Easy Pasta Recipes For Kids

Now that the kids are pretty much settled back into school after the summer holidays our weekday routine is jam packed with juggling drops off, pick ups, work, and after school clubs.

One meal that I know will always go down well in our household is pasta! It’s super versatile, filling, comforting and best of all quick and easy to prepare. Not to mention budget friendly too.

You can’t beat a simple pesto pasta dinner but if you’re looking for some new and different pasta recipes to try then check out the recipes below. Some even have lots of hidden veg… bonus!

Kid Friendly Pasta Bake Recipes

If your child likes to eat plain pasta then try this simple hack of cooking it in bone broth. It adds protein, collagen and amino acids to make their favourite food a little healthier.

A delicious and super easy pizza flavoured pasta salad recipe. Ready in less than 15 minutes and perfect for lunch boxes, picnics and BBQ’s this summer!

A delicious and easy mid week family meal of Creamy Sausage & Broccoli Pasta, all cooked together in one pot on the hob!

Budget Pasta Recipes

A simple creamy pasta dish made with salmon, frozen peas and cream. A great way to encourage get kids to eat fish and ready in just 15 minutes. The perfect mid-week family meal.

When you’re in a hurry and need to feed the kids fast, try this One Pot Cheesy Cauliflower Pasta recipe, only 5 ingredients and ready in less than 15 minutes!

A quick and easy midweek meal, all cooked in one pot and in just 10 minutes. It’s my One Pot Spinach & Parmesan Orzo

Simple Pasta Recipes For Kids (and They're Ready Quickly)

A delicious and easy Mac & Cheese recipe with hidden courgettes, made in one pot. Perfect for picky eaters who don’t like eating their veggies! 

A rich but super simple Tomato & Basil Pasta Sauce cooked in the slow cooker for a delicious flavour. The perfect go-to pasta sauce for busy families.

A delicious tomato pasta sauce made with red lentils and packed with protein and fibre. A great way to get some extra nutrition into a simple kids pasta dish!

Top 10 Best Pasta Recipes For Kids

A delicious one pot Creamy Ham & Pea Pasta recipe, ready in just 15 minutes. Perfect for quick and easy mid-week meals!

Sneak some veggies into your kids meal with this delicious Butternut Squash Mac and Cheese recipe. Great for toddlers and baby weaning too!

A quick, easy but super delicious recipe for Sausage Meat Ragu. This simple meal has fast become a favourite in my family and I think you will love it too!Getting your kids to eat can be TOUGH. This easy One-Pot Toddler Pasta is so simple to make and will have them coming back for seconds!

Authentic Indian Family Food: Simple Tomato Pasta For Kids

It’s been so long since I’ve posted a recipe for Norah, so I decided to share one of her favorite meals! The last time I shared a kid-specific recipe it was these 5 Ingredient Carrot Cake Pancakes almost a year ago!

Pancakes of any sort are still a favorite of hers, but I’ve recently come to find out that feeding toddlers can be a bit tricky! Let’s just say this One-Pot Toddler Pasta has saved the day on more than one occasion.

From the moment we started baby-led weaning at 6 months, I was blown away at how well Norah took to food. She was eating tons of avocado, spinach, and eggs from the get-go!

Easy Cheesy Garlic Broccoli Pasta (family Favorite!)

As the months went on, she became even better and was always known for how well she ate and how good she was with utensils. Even now she shovels food in her mouth like it’s a competition. However, over the last 6 months, I’ve definitely seen a change in her food preferences.

While she used to eat plain spears of avocado like candy, now she’ll only eat them in the form of guacamole. Peas are typically a hard no unless mixed in with something else. I used to feel bad about ‘hiding’ vegetables in her meals, but now I’m definitely not opposed to it.

I just make sure that I’m also offering her those foods in their natural form so hopefully, she’ll one day develop a taste for them. For example, I like to blend in spinach with her mac and cheese sauce, but I still saute it in grass-fed butter and offer it to her that was as well.

Minute Creamy Pesto Pasta Recipe

With any luck, she’ll end up an adventurous eater like mommy and daddy. Until then, this pasta is a hearty but healthy meal we can rely on.

Since you cook this pasta in chicken broth, it tastes almost like a cross between chicken noodle soup and mac and cheese! Yum! Instead of peas and carrots, I’ve also grated in a bit of broccoli and she still gobbles it up!

I like to use bone broth since it’s more nutrient-dense, but regular broth or stock (or water) works just as well. What are some of your favorite toddler meals? I’d love to continue sharing a few of Norah’s favorites!

Easy Pasta Salad For Kids

Add pasta, bone broth, carrot, and peas to a medium-sized pot over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil. Stir frequently until the pasta is al dente, about 8-10 minutes. Stir in the butter, cream, and cheese and stir until well-combined and creamy. Add salt and pepper, if desired, and serve immediately.

I made this but my chickpea pasta I used turned it into a mushy puree like texture. My son still ate it but may try it again without the chickpea pasta!

Would this recipe work with whole fat milk and no cheese? Maybe more of like a chicken noodle soup instead of creamy pasta?

White Sauce Pasta Recipe (béchamel Sauce Pasta)


I’ve been trying to hide veggies in my toddler’s meals, which has resulted in my picker eater throwing things and me desperately needing a professional carpet cleaning. I’m hoping she’ll like this meal, she does love noodles and surprisingly, she does love peas. Thank you for sharing!!

Hi I’m making this later and I want to know do I add uncooked pasta with the brown broth or do I cook the uncooked pasta water then add it to the other ingredients?

Hi Gizelle! You boil the pasta in the broth with the other ingredients. This makes it one-pot and the pasta absorbs all the flavor and nutrients from the broth!This Easy Tomato Pastarecipe is my fallback plan. If I get stuck, I always know I can make a great tasting meal (that my kids will definitely eat) in under20 minutes, using things I always have in my kitchen. Phew!

Quick Salmon Pasta For Kids Recipe

You must get those days when your dinner plans fall through, or you didn’t have time to go to the shops, or you get back late, or you forget to defrost something or you just don’t really fancy cooking, right? I know I do!

This Easy Tomato Pasta has been my saviour in those sort of situations more times than I care to think about! It’s quick (under 20 minutes), it’s easy, I pretty much have all the ingredients in my fridge and cupboards all the time and I know my kids will eat it without complaint…it’s also a heck of a lot cheaper (and quicker) than getting a takeaway and probably healthier too!

If I have some leftover chorizo or bacon, I chop them up small and cook them at the same time as the onions. A few stray veggies lurking at the back of my fridge? I throw them in when the onions have softened – peppers, courgettes, aubergines and mushrooms are all great in this.

Simple Tomato Spaghetti For Kids

No basil? You can use parsley or dried oregano. No balsamic vinegar? Try a splash of wine, or a squeeze of lemon juice. Or even good old Worcester Sauce. Want to spice things up? Add a teaspoon of dried chilli flakes and/or a teaspoon of smoked paprika. No sundried tomatoes? Just leave them out, or use sliced black olives instead.

And if you have fussy kids (or fussy grownups) who aren’t keen on lumps of vegetables and ‘yucky green bits’, just blitz this sauce up with a hand blender first before adding the pasta.

This tomato pasta sauce is also a great recipe to do as a big batch and keep in the fridge or freeze, so you have an even quicker meal when you need it! Why not make double the sauce and use the rest later in the week? Or use the second half of the sauce as a pizza topping or in a bolognese.

White Sauce Penne Pasta

To make this Easy Tomato Pasta recipe even quicker and simpler, omit the basil, balsamic vinegar and sundried tomatoes. It won’t taste quite so nice but it will still feed hungry mouths quickly!

This Easy Tomato Pasta recipe is my fallback plan. If I get stuck, I always know I can make a great tasting meal (that my kids will definitely eat) in under 20 minutes, using things I always have in my kitchen. Phew!

Have you got your hands on a copy of my meal plan yet? If not CLICK HERE to download a copy of my FREE 4 Week Easy Dinners Meal Plan today!

Easy Tomato Pasta

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