Family Nutrition Q&A with Dr Sarah Brewer‏

One of the hot topics of conversation when I get together with my mummy-mates is food. What will the kids eat, what won’t they eat? Are they eating enough, what will stop them and us getting stinking colds, all of that and more. So when Nurture Drinks gave me the opportunity to have a chat with top nutritionist Dr Sarah Brewer, I saw my chance to answer all our questions and more.

What are the main concerns about family nutrition at the moment?
Lack of vitamin D is a concern, a study in Southampton found that a third of children seen in an orthopaedic clinic had low levels of vitamin D and were at risk of developing rickets, 15 minutes of sensible sun exposure is a healthy way to top up vitamin D levels.

Are supplements for children worth it?
Up to the age of 5 the government currently recommend children take supplements of vitamins A, C and D, a good children’s multivitamin should cover it. Over the age of 5 it depends on how well they eat and how good their diet is. The Imune Nurture drink is a great way for children to top up their vitamin levels too.

Does vitamin C help with colds?
If you’re stressed or have an active lifestyle then it can help, but a balanced, healthy diet is key. Zinc lozenges can reduce the length of cold symptoms too. Olbas oil is excellent to helping with snuffly noses.

What can we do to look after ourselves as parents and boost our immune health?
Take a good multivitamin, don’t skip meals. Taking a rhodiola supplement may help reduce stress. Getting plenty of sleep is the key, but it’s not always easy as a parent. Try meditating before bed, aroma baths and power naps can help too.

How important are Omega 3 oils?
Omega 3 fish oils are really important and key for brain and eye function. There is evidence that omega 3 deficiency can contribute to ADHD, poor attention and behavioural problems. If you can incorporate oily fish in to your families’ diet that will help, so eating homemade salmon fish fingers and nuts are a great way to add omega 3 to diets. Two to four servings of oily fish a week is the current recommendation, though this is less if you are pregnant or trying to conceive.

Omega 3 is now added to some follow on milks and if you’re concerned about your family getting enough omega 3, then fish oil supplements are available and there’s an algae supplement for vegetarians. Omega 3 is a brilliant brain booster, and if you take it with evening primrose it can also reduce wrinkles and scaly skin.

Family Nutrition Q&A with Dr Sarah Brewer‏

We like cooking together as a family. What’s good to make together?
Things like homemade chicken nuggets or fish fingers are good, dip in egg and roll in breadcrumbs; make your fish fingers from salmon and that’s a great way to get some oily fish into your diet. Pizzas made with your own sauce and fresh toppings are fun to make too.

Should you hide veg in food, or it best to be upfront?
I hide veg, when I make a bolognaise for example I grate veg into the sauce and cook it out, chopped mushrooms are good because they can taste quite meaty, maybe add some soy protein or lentils too. All veg, hidden or not is good.

How should we deal with picky eating phases?
Keep offering healthy options and they’ll eventually eat them, try saying eat half and leave half, some is better than none. Kids won’t go hungry so keep offering them good things.

Fruit and veg. Is it 5 or 7 a day now?
It’s still 5 a day as a minimum, most people average about 4 a day, in America they recommend 10 portions a day. I have an “open fruit” policy at home, I have a large fruit bowl and the family can eat as much fruit from it as they want, variety is important.

Is diluted squash better than pure juices?
Squash is a good option for getting then to drink water, it’s best to dilute more than the bottle recommends, dilute as far as you can get away with. I prefer squash with natural sweeteners. Again with pure juices you should dilute them down, so half juice, half water. Like the Nurture drinks which are half juice and half water.

Is it true you shouldn’t eat after 8pm?
If you do it regularly it’s not great for you, but every so often won’t hurt. It can slow down your metabolism if you consistently eat late at night.

What’s good for strengthening hair and nails?
Nail strength is largely genetic, but biotin, silica and fish oils can help with your nails. Poor hair strength and condition can be a sign that your diet is poor or you’re under stress, a good multivitamin can help, as can eating more protein and taking a protein supplement. Stress causes constriction to the scalp so stimulating the scalp can help as can caffeine shampoo. Nourkrin supplements and treatments are expensive, but can help with hair growth too.

Are there any links between diet and asthma?
I’ve written a book about that subject, Overcoming Asthma: The Complete Complementary Health Program. Sensitivity to certain foods can trigger asthma, for example sulphites such as those found in wine and tartrazine in drinks can have an impact. Coffee, an apple a day, oily fish and a whole food diet can help.

Why do you recommend Nurture drinks?
It’s an exciting new development, Nurture have no added sugar and the no spill cap is great. The flavours are interesting and they can really help boost immune health. They contain beta glucans which can help reduce the chance of catching a cold and can reduce the length of the cold too.

Thank you to Dr Sarah Brewer for kindly giving her time to speak to me. This is not a sponsored post.

Review: Immune boosting Nurture drinks for children

We were asked to try Nurture drinks, which have been designed to boost children’s immune systems. The drinks come in two flavours, Strawberry & Cherry and Orange & Pineapple. Both flavours are 100% natural with no added sugar or sweeteners and are made up of 50% juice and 50% water.

Nurture drinks

The juices are endorsed by Dr Sarah Brewer, the UK’s leading medical nutritionist who says “Many children miss days from school due to coughs and colds. While it’s important to avoid spreading infection when kids are unwell, it’s also important to boost their immunity so they recover quickly and are less likely to succumb to the next wave of infection going round”.

Each 200ml pouch is packed with optimum daily amounts of vitamins for children aged two to five years. Including Wellmune WGP 100% natural beta glucan is a clever ingredient designed to strengthen key immune cells. Vitamins B6, B9, B12, C, D, and zinc contribute to the normal function of the immune system, Calcium and Vitamin D provide power for the normal growth and development of strong bones, and Vitamin B5 supports brain development.

Come September the small boy will toddle off to the nursery at our local primary school. We’ve been busy getting his uniform and things ready, but having worked in education in a previous life, one of my biggest worries is just how many colds and bugs he’ll pick up once he starts in September. Whilst he’s a pretty good eater and loves his fruit and veg, it can’t hurt to give him and his immune system a boost. Nurture seemed just the thing to try to help this.

So, how did we get on? The small boy is 3 and we have so far limited his juice intake, generally preferring to give him water or milk. Juice is a rare treat because it’s quite sweet and it’s not something we have in the house for ourselves. We decided to limit him to the recommended one pouch per day, and of course I had a little sip or two just to check it out for myself.

Nurture drinks

Firstly we tried the strawberry and cherry flavour. I think this was his favourite as all he asks for now is the “red juice”. To me it tasted quite sweet and I can see why it appeals. It was a nice balance of the two fruits. He was very happy to drink the pouch in one go. If you were drinking this at home I’d be tempted to decant it into a glass and dilute it with a bit more water.

We then tried the orange and pineapple flavour. I personally preferred this flavour as I’m a bit of a pineapple junkie, the small boy liked it too. It was sweet enough, but not overly so, but could be diluted down further if you wanted to.

Each pouch comes with a special spill-proof spout. We’d never encountered a spout in that design and it took a few minutes to get the hang of. If you depress the cap with your mouth and suck the juice it comes out quite easily.

I think the Nurture drinks are a great addition to lunch-boxes and as part of children’s’ daily diets. The pouches are a definite improvement on other pouched juice drinks which offer negligible nutritional benefits. I’d happily pick Nurture drinks over other drinks for their immune boosting benefits, even if they are slightly more expensive. I think in this instance you get what you pay for. This is clearly innovative and useful, not to mention delicious and popular with the small boy. This is a winner.

You may also like to read my interview about family health and nutrition with leading nutritionist Dr Sarah Brewer.

Nurture is available now in Tesco stores across the UK, at RRP £2.99 for a pack of four 200ml pouches.

Note: we were sent two boxes of Nurture drinks for review purposes. All opinions and images are my own.

Tagliatelle with Goats Cheese & Courgettes

Yesterday, we received a lovely hamper from St Helen’s Farm. A lovely goaty hamper, which I will blog about properly at a later date. Right now we’ve got a fridge full of goats cheese, milk, butter and yoghurt and largely empty cupboards. The boys were due home and I had to think quickly about what to feed them. So I made this, tagliatelle with goats cheese sauce, courgettes and roasted cherry tomatoes. It took no more than 30 minutes to throw together and everyone cleaned their plates.

I’m a bit rubbish at weighing and measuring, I’m a dollop of this and a dash of that kind of girl, so I’ve tried my best to recreate the recipe for goaty goodness below.

Ingredients: (feeds around four people)

Tagliatelle – I use two nests of tagliatelle per person
One medium courgette per person
One punnet of cherry tomatoes
2 teaspoons of St Helen’s Farm Goats butter
Seasoning – salt, pepper & dried chilli flakes

For the sauce
40g St Helen’s Farm Goats butter
20g plain flour
425ml St Helen’s Farm Goats milk (I used skimmed)
120g St Helen’s Farm Mature Goats Cheese, grated
Seasoning – salt, pepper & dried chilli flakes

Method:
Slice the courgettes, melt the butter in a frying pan and sauté until they start to go soft. Meanwhile halve the tomatoes and place on an oven tray and season a little, roast for 15 minutes (check regularly) at 220c. Once the courgettes have taken on some colour and are starting to soften, transfer to an oven proof dish and put in the oven, but keep an eye on them.

While the courgettes and tomatoes are cooking, cook the pasta as per instructions on the packet.

In another pan melt the butter and add the flour, stir vigorously, then start to slowly add the milk, adding a little at a time and beating to ensure the sauce is smooth. Once all the milk has been added, season to taste and add the grated goats cheese and stir until melted.

Drain the pasta and combine with the sauce, add in most of the courgettes and stir. Serve on warmed plates, garnish with the remaining courgette slices and a pile of the unctuous roasted tomatoes.

Simple and delicious. This is going to be a family favourite this summer I think.

I didn’t quite have enough pasta in the cupboard so my picture looks a little on the saucy side.

Disclaimer: I was sent a free hamper of goaty goodies by St Helen’s Farm to try and see what I thought, that review will follow, but the clean plates mean my family genuinely loved it.

A Picnic in Delamere with Roberts Bakery

Ever since spring turned into what passes for summer round here, the small boy has been putting in constant requests to go for a “nicnic”. To those unversed in small boy speak, he wants to go on a picnic. Well if it makes him happy, and if it allows us to eat nice things in the sunshine (?), then who are we to refuse?

We were therefore really excited when Roberts Bakery invited us to a nicnic/picnic in Delamere Forest. There’d be storytelling and fun for the kids, whilst the mums were put to work making some fun, healthy sandwiches.

Roberts Bakery have been baking beautiful loaves and treats since 1887 in Northwich, Cheshire. I’ve long enjoyed their bread, but putting taste aside, I love that they’re relatively local, and I’m all about local products from local businesses.

This month they’ve been busy launching “50 Days of Summer” which is a family guide for the holidays, packed with ideas and inspiration to keep the little ones entertained over the long, long summer holidays. A brilliant idea, and one I’ll be delving into regularly for small boy entertainment.

We arrived by train at Delamere and had a little explore before we tracked down the Roberts Bakery team. Wellies on (for this is England) the small boy had a good run around with some of his new friends, then toddled off to be entertained by Storyteller Ian Douglas.

We then set to work making some healthy sandwiches for us all to enjoy. Roberts Bakery have recently launched a 50% white 50% wholemeal bread which as well as being a lovely loaf, contains protein, complex carbohydrates, calcium, iron and B vitamins, as well as thiamin, niacin and riboflavin, as well as being a major source of fibre.

We made lots of different kinds of sandwich, but the big hit with the small boy was the SLT – sausage, lettuce and tomato. I’ll share the recipe below, but it’s a low fat, healthy sandwich, easy to make and great for those who enjoy a really filling, hearty butty.

The SLT

Ingredients:
4 Roberts 50% white 50% wholemeal rolls
8 low fat sausages (we used Quorn sausages, because I’m veggie)
3 tbsp fat-free Greek yoghurt
1 tbsp reduced fat mayonnaise
4 tomatoes, sliced
2 little gem lettuces
Freshly ground black pepper

Method:
Grill the sausages and leave to cool, then slice them lengthways. Combine the fat-free Greek yoghurt and mayonnaise, grind in some black pepper. Split the rolls and spread with the yoghurty mayonnaise. Lay your sausages on the bread roll (I found three halves per sandwich was sufficient). Top with your tomato slices and then your little gem lettuce leaves, then pop the top of the bread roll on and enjoy.

I really enjoyed the lightness of the yoghurt and mayonnaise mixture and I think you could easily use rocket instead of little gem, though I enjoyed the textural crunch of the lettuce.

We ate the fruits of our labour, whilst Ian the storyteller regaled us with the tale of the giant Finn McCool. It was a really lovely day, a nicnic we will both remember very fondly.

The Roberts Bakery 50 Days of Summer download pack is available from 20th June and daily ideas will be shared on their Facebook and Twitter pages throughout the holidays. Fingers crossed the sun shines!

Disclaimer: We were invited guests of Roberts Bakery, we have not been financially compensated for enjoying our nicnic.

Scrambled Egg & Tomato Breakfast Wrap

Recently I’ve given up bread. Not all bread, but leavened bread because I eat too much of it, and when I cut it out I tend to lose weight a bit quicker.

I’ve struggled a bit with breakfast as I love scrambled egg on toast. I’ve tried just having scrambled egg but it felt a bit too frugal and it needed something else.

Searching for inspiration I found some tortilla wraps in the cupboard and came up with this breakfast wrap. I doubt it’s a new, exciting breakfast concept; but I love it and coming in at under 450 calories for a pretty hearty, tasty breakfast you can’t go wrong. And yes, I’ll admit it doesn’t look stunning, but it does taste amazing.

Chop two tomatoes into bite size chunks, put into a microwaveable dish and season to taste. I used salt, pepper, dried chilli flakes and a pinch of sugar. Microwave for two minutes, stir and microwave for one more minute.

Scramble two eggs however you’d normally scramble eggs. I add a dab of butter, no milk, no seasoning in this because the tomatoes are seasoned enough.

Take your tortilla, spread with the cooked tomatoes, top with your cooked eggs, roll it into a wrap and eat.

I think it’d also be great with some wilted spinach or chopped parsley. Whatever you fancy.

Honestly this is my new favourite thing. If I can’t have it for breakfast then I’ll have it for lunch. It might look a bit bland but it’s so good. In fact I think I’ll go and make another one right now!

Aloe Vera Juice – did it put a spring in my step?

We’re not big juice drinkers in our house. We tend to get some in if we’re feeling run down just to give us a bit of a boost. I don’t think it’s ever occurred to us that drinking good juice might stop us feeling run down in the first place. Doh.

I was given the chance to try the Aloe Vera juices from Taj Foods. I was a little sceptical. When Aloe Vera juice first came out a couple of years ago and wondered, if like goji berries they might be a health food step too far. I was wrong and actually pleasantly surprised.

I was sent the original and the mango flavour to try. They come in 500ml bottles which I found was enough for about 4 or 5 days of morning juice drinks.

Aloe Vera Juice - did it put a spring in my step? — Original & Mango flavour Aloe Vera Juices from Taj Foods

Aloe Vera juice is low sugar, apparently aids detox (it regulates the bowel), boosts immunity and is energising. There are 24 calories per 100mls and I was having around that each morning, so my calorie intake wasn’t taking a massive hit.

I started off with the mango juice. I’d heard Aloe Vera was an acquired taste so I thought I’d ease myself in with a familiar flavour. The juice wasn’t too sweet, but sweet enough, it contained pulpy bits which I took to be mango but on closer inspection were the pulp from the aloe plant. I like a pulpy juice so this didn’t bother me. The drink was very pleasant and enjoyable.

Once I’d polished off that bottle I cracked open the original flavour. I really didn’t know what to expect having never tried plain aloe before, but I was pleasantly surprised. The original was quite sweet, again it had pulpy bits but not unpleasantly so, and I quite liked it.

They do a range of flavours including lychee, strawberry, passion fruit and pomegranate & cranberry. I’d be keen to try some of the other flavours which are available online and you can also find them in Morrisons.

So, did it make a difference to me health wise? It’s difficult to say after only two weeks, but Aloe Vera does regulate the bowel and having been on heavy duty painkillers for over a year now, any help in that area is welcome (sorry, TMI?). I did feel more regular. My skin seemed to be clearer too and I’ve had a number of comments from people about how well I was looking lately.

I’ve got a friend who has been drinking the juice for a few months now. She looks amazing, her hair is shiny and her skin radiant, she has also reported the, erm, bowel regularity.

Given the fact my friend now looks like a shiny haired goddess I think I’ll be sticking with my morning Aloe Vera boost. Given it’s only 24 calories a time and all of the reported health benefits of Aloe Vera it’d be rude not to.

It’s important to note that Aloe Vera drinks are not suitable if pregnant, lactating or for children under 3.

Disclaimer: I was sent two bottles of Aloe Vera juice to try for review purposes, this is my honest review.

Vegetarian Recipe: Skinny Homity Pie

I had a falling out with my kitchen around Christmas time. The turkey gave me the evil eye, the sprouts turned on me and quite frankly the stuffing can get stuffed. So ever since then my usual culinary enthusiasm has been somewhat lacking. Perhaps it was the change of season or the pile of leftover new potatoes glaring at me from the fridge, but inspiration struck and I decided to do my take on the Cranks classic – Homity Pie.

Skinny Homity Pie

I’m not a massive fan of thick pastry, unless it’s covered in jam and cream with a big cherry on the top. So for a while I’d been musing about a homity pie made with filo. So I looked up the Cranks recipe, carefully read it, closed the book and put it back on the shelf. I was going to experiment and see if I could make it a bit healthier but just as tasty.

Skinny Homity Pie

Ingredients:
1 onion, finely diced
Olive oil
1 clove of garlic, crushed
1 tablespoon of fresh thyme (or dried if you don’t have fresh)
Enough sliced cooked potatoes to half fill your pie dish
2 eggs
2 teaspoons of mustard
3 or 4 pieces of shop bought filo pastry
50g grated Cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper

Method:

Sweat one onion in a dab of olive oil, when soft add a crushed clove of garlic and as much fresh thyme as you fancy (I used a lot, thyme and onions are the best of friends and I have a huge thyme plant in the garden).

Slice up a pile of cooked potatoes; I used new potatoes because that’s what I had.

Whisk up 2 eggs, some salt and pepper and a goodly dollop of your favourite mustard.

Grab your favourite quiche or pie dish, give it a light coating of oil, lay a piece of filo in the dish, oil that piece of filo and artfully drape another on top, repeat the process until you’ve got 3 or 4 pieces of filo piled up, greased and ready to go.

Mix your sliced spuds and the unctuous onion mix together, spread a layer in the bottom of your dish, sprinkle a handful of cheese over and drizzle your mustardy egg over, layer the remaining spuds, pour over your leftover egg and top with another handful of grated cheese.

I baked it in the oven for 25 minutes at 220 degrees or until it looks golden and gorgeous.

I served it with a huge green salad and some oven roasted tomatoes. It was a huge hit with the boys, impressive as the toddler is (oh joy) going though a picky phase. This Homity Pie is monumentally easy to do, half quiche, half homity pie and it’s a real family favourite!

For more simple and tasty family recipes, click here. Vegetarian Recipe: Skinny Homity Pie