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A Brief History of the Chickpea and a Wonderful Recipe for an After-School Snack

Parmesan chickpea garbanzo bean after school kids snack

The chickpea is a fascinating little thing and I found myself suddenly intrigued by the name because it doesn’t really look like a chick!

Living in Dubai, chickpeas are a common thing – it is a core ingredient in Arab, Mediterranean, Mexican, Pakistani and Indian cuisine. Hummus is a popular daily dish that appears at dinner parties, kids parties, lunch boxes and basically everywhere else! It has even been recorded that 10% of all US households have hummus in their fridges.

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Spiraling into Control

A spiralizer is the perfect tool for getting kids to eat more veggies

The spiralizer is a kitchen gadget used to cut veg into long thin curly strands. It was originally invented in Japan – probably for housewives to easily cut the thin daikon radish, traditionally used with sushi (a sushi chef takes years to perfect the art of cutting radish by hand!). The spiralizer came into fashion in about 2014, particularly in L.A. where the Paleo and Raw Diets were booming.

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Catching Up With Ketchup

Try this ketchup recipe with healthy ingredients for kid-approved taste

Pretty much all Western households have a bottle of ketchup in their fridge. Although it’s a staple condiment, I have never really thought that much about it until I recently went to visit my god-daughter at meal time – there was more ketchup on her plate than anything else! But what I found most interesting was that she would agree to have extra veg because it meant that she could justify having extra ketchup! And apparently, this is quite a normal scenario amongst kids.

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Junk Food and Kids: How to Have Your Cake and Eat it!

Healthy junk food for kids - it can be done!

Junk food is a weird one; why name something after rubbish/garbage when it is such a prominent part of our eating culture?

I work as a food stylist, and the clients who take their photography the most seriously, are the large fast food chains (I guess they have to!). And although I am an advocate for healthy homecooked meals, I have to say that some of their products are not too bad. But then there are some food brands that give me the heebie-geebies – products, which cannot really be called food at all! But the good news is, I have noticed an improvement in meat quality due to public pressure and the current food culture.

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Portion Distortion: How much should my child eat?

This is a tough question! Children grow at different speeds and use up different levels of energy from day to day. There will be some days where they seem glued to the fridge door and others where they don’t seem bothered by food at all.

The truth is, with the current so-called “Western Diet”, obesity levels have hit an all-time high. In the UK, surveys from 2015 show that 9.3% of 4-5-year-olds are obese and a further 12.8% are overweight! It’s a scary statistic, but easily preventable!

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Juicy or Smooth? How to Get Your Kids to Eat More Fruit and Veg

Fruit juice or smoothies for kids?

We all know about the 5-a-day rule: five portions of fruit or vegetables a day to keep you healthy and happy. This, of course, applies to children as well.

Juicing or smoothie-ing is a good way to try and get the little ones to take in some vegetables, that they may otherwise refuse to eat (we’ve all met a fussy toddler!). Juices and smoothies with carrot, celery or spinach can be enjoyed successfully when mixed with apple or mango.

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