8th May
Unless you are one of the lucky ones whose children happily gobble down broccoli and cauliflower without even trying to hide them under a cabbage leaf, the idea of getting your kids to eat their 5-a-day probably makes you think of that age-old battle involved in getting children to eat fresh fruit and vegetables.
But it might surprise you to know that there are some hidden gems lurking in places other than the salad draw that can help you on your way to making sure the 5 a day for children quota is met.
Here are 6 sources you might not have expected that can help towards their 5 a day for children. Check the packaging to see how much counts as a portion:
1. Jars of pasta sauce, ready-made pasta-pouches or tinned pasta shapes contain plenty of tomato and some of the chunkier versions contain other veg, too.
2. Baked beans, other beans and pulses can count as one of your five portions.
3. Canned fruit and veg still count, even though they’re not fresh. That includes tinned tomatoes, so if you add those to a sauce, that’ll count, too.
4. Canned soups containing vegetables, beans or pulses can provide more than one of your 5-a-day if the whole tin is eaten.
27th Mar
In spite of our best efforts and intentions, dear mums, we don’t always have a healthy home-cooked meal on tap for our toddlers. Perhaps we have run out of frozen meal portions or just haven’t had time to make more… either way; it’s never a bad idea to have some ready meal options available for those moments.
Of course, the ready meals we use should meet the standards of our home-cooking (as far as possible). There are a couple of great nutritious ready meals for toddlers brands on shop shelves – Little Dish is one of them.
Little Dish only uses 100% natural ingredients and never adds salt or sugar. The chicken and beef is free from antibiotics and growth hormones and comes from select British farms where the animals are well cared for, and all of the vegetables are tested for pesticides.
Every recipe is created in partnership with a nutritionist, and each Little Dish is taste tested by a team of tiny tasters before let out of the kitchen.
These nutritious ready meals for toddlers dishes include: Pasta with Cheese, Peas and Broccoli Trees, Mild Chicken Korma, Pasta Bolognese, Cottage Pie, Fish Pie, Chicken & Butternut Squash Pie, Vegetable Lasagne, Salmon & Broccoli Pasta Bake, Chicken Risotto, Beef & Spinach Cannelloni, Monty’s Favourite Spaghetti & Meatballs, Beef Lasagne, and Chicken & Two Veg Pasta.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
13th Mar
Just how can you get kids to eat their five a day? It can be easier than you think, if you follow our ‘sneaky’ tips on how to give kids their five a day.
* Take advantage of peer pressure: in my experience, kids eat better when they are with their friends, so stick an apple, orange or some grapes in their school lunch box and they might be more likely to eat it than if you offer it at home when they can the biscuits in the jar next to the fruit bowl!
Some schools also offer free fruit at break time, so try sending them without a snack or money to buy food and see if they gravitate towards the pears instead!
* Try making a smoothie part of your breakfast routine: you can add as many different fruits (and some veg, if you’re brave enough!) as you like, and you can even add yoghurt and some oats, seeds or a granola mix to make it a complete breakfast. They are even great for drinking on the school run if you are running late!
* Mix them in: bubble and squeak, carrot and potato waffles, or even vegetable-based muffins are a great way to hide vegetables in kids’ food.
You can also make your own pasta sauce with tinned tomatoes, courgettes, peppers, mushrooms, herbs and anything else you want to add – then puree it so none of the veg is visible to the naked eye, freeze a few portions, and serve as normal – they’ll never know…
Written by: Claire Smart
5th Mar
If, like me, you’re into making your own baby purées, you’ve got to check out this gadget: it’s a compact food processing system – a baby food maker, it’s called the Baby Bullet and it’s awesome.
Perfect for busy mums (all of us in other words), the Baby Bullet makes fresh baby food in ten seconds or less. All you do is fill the baby food maker with fresh ingredients, screw on a blade lid, then simply push the cup down on the power base and you can whip up a smooth blend or perfect purées in moments.
Then just serve to your baby straight from the cup.
Baby Bullet comes with a large mixing container for whole pieces of fruit and 6 storage cups and a storage tray. You can make, store and save a whole week’s worth of baby food without anything going to waste.
It also comes with two blades, which make smooth purées or chunkier concoctions for older babies. By using Baby Bullet you’ll always have something to serve in a hurry.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
21st Jan
As the mean mummy who doesn’t give her two-year-old sweets, I am always on the lookout for alternatives to the sugar-infested candies that populate shop shelves.
For other mean mums of like mind, I have found a natural alternative to traditional sweets… called Goody Good Stuff.
Goody Good Stuff is a natural gummy sweet range that is made with a plant derived bio-gum technology, which eliminates the need for the animal-based gelatin used in most traditional sweets.
The natural alternative to traditional sweets contain only natural fruit and vegetable extracts – no artificial colours and flavours. All harmful food additives and possible allergens (such as gluten) have been removed to create a truly all natural alternative that is completely allergen free. The entire line is vegetarian, fat-free, meat-free, dairy-free, nut-free, Halal and Kosher certified.
Okay, to keep it real; the sweets do contain sugar (I checked the ingredients) but everything else is more health friendly.
Written by: Andrea Zanin
Written by: Claire Smart