A Healthy Diet on a Penny Pinching Budget…

We all know that even as adults sometimes it can be difficult to make sure you’re eating a varied and healthy diet. I’m a vegetarian so fruit and vegetables have never been an issue for me but sometimes I do struggle to get enough protein or calcium, especially while I’m breastfeeding and ‘little missy’ is taking all the good stuff!

As a mummy to two little ones I’m fortunate that I don’t have any difficultly at all getting either of them to eat fruit or vegetables! They both love their fruit and veg and to be honest I know Ben (my 3 year old) would much rather have a plum or some blueberries as a treat instead of chocolate or sweets! However I know that some Mummies really struggle to get the recommended 5 a day into their children’s diet, and I’ve heard stories of hiding peas in mashed potato, carrots in tomato sauce and even pretending that grapes were sweeties!

As you may know from previous posts I prefer to use organic produce where my family's concerned,  I can’t say that is possible 100% of the time but I certainly do my best! Now you are probably thinking, ‘How does buying organic fit in with a penny pinching lifestyle, It always looks so expensive at the supermarket?’ And you would be right in the supermarket it can be expensive, but there are other alternatives when it comes to eating organic…

‘Growing your own’ is great if you have both the time and ‘green fingers’, neither of which I seem to possess! I start a vegetable patch most years but the only things I seem to have success with are radishes and potatoes (although this year my tomatoes and carrots are still surviving at the moment so fingers crossed!) Although we are lucky enough to have a friend who is blessed with ‘Green fingers’ and has an allotment, so he often offers us some of his lovely organic vegetables.

 We also get organic fruit and vegetable boxes delivered every Tuesday from the fabulous Abel &Cole. (Check out their website here to see if they deliver to you!) This actually works out at really good value and means that each week we get a variety of fresh and organic seasonal fruit and vegetables along with some great recipe ideas. I find this, along with being able to see online what we are going to get the previous week means I can plan the family’s meals in advance and save both money and waste as well as ensuring we are all having a healthy diet.

Although I don’t having a problem getting my little ones to eat it sometimes it can be hard to get hold of fresh organic fruit when our box runs out. The fruit bowl always seems to be empty by the weekend and it can sometimes be difficult to get hold of organic fruit (which I prefer my children to have) from the local shops. So although fresh is always best it’s always useful to have an alternative in the cupboard.

And that is where the new ‘100% organic fruit pouches’ from various baby food brands come in. They are aimed at weaning babies but I find them great for all the family! Whether it’s a pudding or snack for seven month old Elizabeth, mixed with a yogurt after his dinner for Ben, or mixed into porridge in the morning for Mummy and Daddy. They have become a cupboard essential in the mymummyspennies house!

We were recently fortunate enough to be given the chance to try the ‘new’ fruit pouches from two leading organic baby food brands, See below for our thoughts!

HiPP Organic 100% Fruit pouches - Review and competition!

Ellas Kitchen first tastes - try a free sample  - our review will be coming very soon....