NAKD – Amazin Raisins
NAKD have hit a winner with these unsweetened raisins flavoured with natural fruit extracts a strange concept but it really works! We were sceptical about these until we tried them and now they are the fastest disappearing snacks in the house! There are three flavours to choose, Cherry, Orange or Lemon all of which were delicious but the lemon ones just topped the bill.
The Kid Test – Devoured in seconds (and that was several packs!). In fact they disappeared faster than chocolate and that’s saying something!
Overall – A really yummy natural snack that tastes like sweeties kids and parents go nuts for them! Small snack packs make them fantastic pushchair fodder
Availability – Sainsbury and a number of health and convenience food shops.
NAKD – Raw Wholefood Bars
A selection of tasty chewy bars with 100% natural ingredients. There are four scrummy flavours to choose from; Banana Bread, Berry Cheeky, Cocoa Loco & Apple Pie. The bars are nice and soft so easy for babies and toddlers to chew. Beware that all flavours contain nuts so don’t feed them to kids if you have any concerns about food allergies.
The Kid Test Slowly munched while keeping an eye out for biscuits, well you can’t miss a chance you know!
Overall A tasty snack to keep you going while out on the trail but more popular with adults than kids.
Availability – Sainsbury and a number of health and convenience food shops. Well hidden in larger Tesco’s!
Allergy advice: Contain nuts including peanuts
ORGANIX – Curly Puffs and Noughts and Crosses
These low salt corn snacks come in cheese or tomato flavours and are made with organic ingredients. To be quite honest, even I prefer them to the MSG enhanced flavours of most crisps! The curly puffs are easier for little ones to eat as the noughts and crosses can hurt delicate teething mouths.
The Kid Test Tomato and herb are the favourites in our house!
Overall A good low salt alternative to crisps, but do you want to start that crisp addiction so young…?
Availability – Most supermarkets
Allergy advice: Not recommended for children under 1 due to salt content.
www.organix.com
Reviewed by Hippy Mum
Banana Guard
A sturdy case to protect your banana while you are out and about.
This hard fruit case is designed to fit any banana and we haven’t found one that doesn’t fit yet! The guard is perfect for putting in the bottom of the pushchair or in your backpack, though some kids spot them and want the contents immediately, and your banana is fresh and unbruised no matter how hard you batter your rucksack (it even survives Bloke’s cycling bags!).
Overall: Does exactly what it says! Available in a range of colours
High Points: protects all bananas!
Low Points: appearance (!), a bit large to fit in nappy bags.
www.bananaguards.com
Snack Trap
A brilliant idea a pot with a lid that babies and toddlers can put their hands in to help themselves to snacks, but that the snacks can’t fall out of!
The lid is made of flexible rubber, with triangular flaps enabling entry for little hands, but when tipped up (as all toddlers do!), the snacks aren’t spread all over your home or car. Alternative lids are also available to turn the trap into a sippy cup or a normal storage pot.
Available in a range of colours with different decorative pictures. Packaged so you can try before you buy.
Overall: A great accessory, but make sure your child will use it while you’re in the shop!
High Points: great for cars as toddlers can help themselves when you’re on the move.
Low Points: expensive, some children (ours!) will not put their hands in even for chocolate!
www.parentsroom.co.uk
Fruity Faces
A fun way of protecting fruit when you are out walking.
These inflatable fruit cases are fun and easy to use and are a great way of tempting kids to eat their five a day. The cases come in two shapes, banana or round fruit, and are perfect for carrying apples, oranges, peaches, in fact just about any fruit you can think of! Simply inflate the case after you have put the fruit in it and it will be bruise free even after the roughest treatment (believe me our kids tested them thoroughly!).
Available in a range of designs, from comedy faces to footballs.
Overall: A great way to encourage kids of all ages to eat more fruit.
High Points: fun and easy to use and kids love them!
Low Points: quite large but the handy clip does mean that you can attach them to the outside of nappy bags or the pushchair
www.parentsroom.co.uk
RECIPES
Thanks to all who sent in their scrummy recipes. Our panel of mini judges thoroughly enjoyed trying the food, and as they’re all straighforward recipes, we even enjoyed cooking them! Here are the recipes, along with some of our own which we just had to share with you.
1 sheet puff pastry
1 small tin baked beans
2 slices ham
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 oz grated cheddar
1 tbsp oil
Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a baking tray and roll out the pastry.
Saute the onion in oil until soft. Add the ham, stir for a few seconds and then add the beans. Heat through and stir in the cheese until melted.
Cut the pastry into 10cm squares. Put a dollop of filling on each square, fold the pastry in half and seal the edges. Bake for 15-20 mins until golden and puffy.
Great hot or cold.
1 sheet puff pastry
Cheese of choice
(cheddar, gruyere or emmental are good)
Preheat oven to 180C. Grease a baking tray and roll out the pastry.
Sprinkle grated cheese on sheet of puff pastry. Fold in half and roll to seal. Cut into 1cm strips and twist.
Bake at 180C for 10 mins or until golden.
500g pork mince
2tsp mixed herbs
salt and pepper
2 sheets puff pastry
Preheat the oven to 180C. Grease a baking tray and roll out the pastry. Cut into 10cm wide strips.
With your hands, mix the mince and herbs, a pinch of salt and a grind or two of black pepper until well combined. Still using your hands, roll into long sausages and put them on the pastry strips. Roll the pastry around the sausage meat, and cut into 3cm lengths. Arrange on the baking tray and bake at 180C for 15-20 mins until golden and the meat is cooked through.
Makes around 24 sausage rolls.
2 slices granary bread
Vegetarian Haggis (cooked)
Brown sauce
Spread the haggis on the bread, lavish with brown sauce and enjoy
More popular with adults, but as our web designer submitted it we thought it ought to go on…
Baking potatoes
Butter
Cheddar cheese
Favourite pickle
Bake the potatoes in a hot oven until cooked through.
Carefully scoop out the centres leaving the skins intact. Put the scooped potato into a mixing bowl.
Turn on the grill .
Add a little butter, the grated cheese and a spoonful of pickle to the potato. Mix well.
Return the filling to the potato skins and grill until browned on top.
Small tin sweetcorn
6oz flour
1 tsp baking powder
2 eggs
4 fl oz milk
2oz grated cheddar
oil
ketchup/thai chilli sauce
Beat the egg, milk, flour and baking powder until smooth.
Stir in the sweetcorn and cheese.
Shallow fry spoonfuls of the mixture in the oil until brown on both sides and cooked through.
Serve with ketchup (kids) or thai chilli sauce (adults).
Great cold in a picnic.
Makes about 8 large fritters.
150g Porridge Oats
75g Butter or Margarine
100g Soft Brown Sugar
2 tablespoons Golden Syrup
Handful of raisins (optional)
Grease a 7 inch baking tin and line with greaseproof paper. Place the butter and sugar in a saucepan and heat gently until it is just beginning to melt. Take the pan off the heat and add the golden syrup. Reheat until the butter has completely melted. Take off the heat, stir in the oats (and raisins) until evenly coated. Press into the prepared tin until firm and even. Bake at 180oC until just golden brown at edges. Cut with a sharp knife before cool.
3 cups flour
6 tablespoons cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons salt
2 cups sugar
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 tablespoons white vinegar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups cold water
Chocolate Fudge Frosting
1 cup sugar
5 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup milk
1 cup milk chocolate chips
Preheat oven to 180 degrees.
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine the wet ingredients in another bowl. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and beat well. Pour into an ungreased 9×13 inch baking pan.
Bake for 35 minutes. Allow cake to cool before frosting.
In a medium saucepan bring sugar, butter and milk to a boil, stirring constantly. Remove from heat. Stir in chocolate chips until melted and frosting is smooth. Pour evenly over the cake that is still in the pan. Allow to cool.
200g plain flour
75g brown sugar
50g butter
1 tbsp spoon golden or amber syrup
½ tsp baking powder
1 tsp ground ginger (some recipes use two teaspoons ginger)
1 egg
Glacé cherries, currants and icing
Set oven to 180° C or Mark 4
Sieve flour, ginger and baking powder into a bowl. Beat the egg. Melt the butter and sugar but do not boil; add to the dry ingredients along with the egg and mix to form a soft dough. Allow to cool.
Roll out about ½ cm thick on a floured board and cut into gingerbread man shapes.
Give the men currant eyes and cherry nose (or ice them on later). Bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
Ice the mouth, buttons, etc. as you like, once they are cold.
200g butter or marg
150g golden syrup
50g cocoa powder
100g seedless raisins
½ tsp baking powder
400g mixed sweet biscuits, crushed
200g plain chocolate
Grease a 15cm shallow cake tin.
Put butter, syrup, cocoa and raisins in a pan and heat gently until butter has melted.
Remove from heat and stir in cruched biscuits.
Press into tin and leave to set in the fridge.
Melt the chocolate over boiling water and spread over the cake. Leave until set.
Remove from tin and cut into small squares.
4 1/2 oz butter
2oz sugar
6 1/2 oz flour
2 tbsp rosemary
Grease a baking tray and heat oven to 180C.
Cream together the butter and sugar.
Stir in the flour and chopped rosemary until well mixed.
Roll out and cut into biscuit shapes.
Bake for 10-12 minutes until golden.
8 oz self raising flour
1 tsp cinnamon
8 oz brown sugar
8 oz carrots peeled and grated
3 oz chopped dates
1 oz chopped nuts (optional)
3 eggs, beaten
6 fl oz sunflower oil
Icing
6oz icing sugar
juice half a lemon
Grease a baking tray and heat oven to 180C.
Sift flour and salt into mixing bowl.
Add spices, sugar, carrots, dates and nuts. Mix well.
Mix beaten eggs and oil and add to the flour mixture.
Beat until thoroughly combined.
Pour into greased, lined tin and bake for 1 hour at 180 C
Mix the icing ingredients and drizzle over the cake.
Cut into squares and store in an airtight box (if it lasts!).