I've actually thought about this a fair bit, and grew up with a family that was accommodating of my choices despite the fact that they ate meat. I'm pretty bad at planning meals, but I know that when I have my own family one day, I'll have to get my act together, because as you know, that's crucial in making sure you stay on top of the nutritional needs of growing children. I think it's good to have a few 'go-to' meals up your sleeve. Meals that you can whack together easily and inexpensively. These are those types of meals. For special nights, or if you feel like mixing things up, you can browse through any old vegan cook book/website and try a new recipe. But the most important thing in the early stages of the transition is to have enough to work with until you get used to the dietary changes, and obviously that's extra complicated when there are other people involved. Anyway, I grew up on this kind of stuff.....
*Pasta. So that the dish isn't an entire carb fest, try bulking it up with some beans. When I was growing up I often had red kidney beans through the sauce for some extra protein. This way, you've got your carb energy and your protein for growth and development. To make a nutritious, filling meal in less than half an hour that will feed a family is pretty good right? All you'll need is a vegetarian tomato-based sauce, beans, pasta, and any extra veggies that the kids like to add to the sauce. This is about as cheap as it comes for the amount of food you're getting. I had this at least twice a week growing up and I never got sick of it.
*Curries. Make a chickpea or lentil curry twice per week. Basic ones are very easy to whack together. Open up a few cans, fry some onion and garlic, simmer cans of crushed tomatoes, add herbs and spices, serve with rice. Done. Cheap. Easy.
*Stir Fry. Capsicum, broccoli, bok choy, mushrooms, onions, ginger, chili, garlic, soy sauce, and tofu or tempeh for the protein boost. Serve with rice. Bam.
*Burritos/tacos. Black beans or kidney beans, spices, garlic and onion. Serve with rice and veggies inside a tortilla (read ingredients to make sure they're vegan, some of them have animal fats)
These are all very basic, but that's precisely the point. I don't want to suggest intricate slow-roasting dishes with a million ingredients. With 5 kids I'm sure you'd appreciate some simplicity!
