Getting your children to eat well is a big concern for many parents. The struggle involves not just knowing what to feed your child, but how to get them to actually eat it. Meal time battles are a great source of stress, and it’s in response to this that paediatric nutritionist Mandy Sacher has created her book: Wholesome Child.

I’ve come across a fair few cook books aimed at children, but Wholesome Child is currently my favourite. This is not just a recipe book but an impressively thorough nutrition guide as well. It includes digestible information about the different food groups, additives and preservatives, good vs bad fats, sugar, and tips for dealing with fussy eaters. There are also lunch box ideas and meal plans. The recipes are aimed at children between 1-6 years of age, however my husband and I have enjoyed the dishes as well.

The book is structured around an 8 step guide of incremental changes that can be made to your diet, which will allow you gradually introduce healthy foods and phase out unhealthy foods. Dramatic diet changes are rarely well appreciated by young or old, and by making small steps it helps to reduce the negative responses your child may have.

Step 1: Whole Grains – Replace processed grains with whole grains and focus on variety

Step 2: Reduce Sugar – Set healthy limits and create structure

Step 3: Increase Vegetables – Get creative and persevere

Step 4: Boost Protein – Balance healthy animal proteins with vegetarian options

Step 5: Healthy Fats – Focus on good fats and avoid processed low-fat foods

Step 6: Balance Fruit – In the recommended amounts, it’s a healthy part of a child’s diet

Step 7: Rethink Dairy – Moderate milk consumption and focus on high-calcium foods

Step 8: Avoid Nasties – Eat real food that is free of preservatives, additives, artificial colours, GM ingredients and excessive sodium

With the focus on making small changes, these suggestions are ones you are likely to stick to. It also helps that the recipes genuinely taste good.

Generally the recipes are gluten free and low in dairy, and use alternatives to sugar such as maple syrup, and use coconut oil rather than butter. Most commonly they are recipes you and your children are already familiar with such as brownies, cupcakes, fish fingers and patties, but they are boosted with vegetables and other healthy ingredients such as seeds, good fats and other wholegrains.

Spread throughout the book are charts and tips which allow you to make modifications to the recipes, for instance a guide on how to bake with different flours is extremely handy if you wanted to adjust some of the baking recipes to suit what you have on hand. Initially I didn’t have the variety of ingredients Mandy suggests, so adjusted the recipes to use spelt or wheat flour where gluten free was called for, or puffed rice instead of puffed quinoa, and when carob powder is used I’ve just used extra cocoa powder. But because I really like all the recipes and plan to keep cooking them, I’ve been gradually adding to my collection of pantry staples.

My favourite sections include Mandy’s suggestions on dealing with fussy eating, her guide on additives and preservatives, and her thorough guide on sugar which includes an eye opening section on hidden sugars and suggestions on how to curb sugar cravings and swap the worst offenders for healthier, but still tasty, alternatives.

On top of all that, the book is just gorgeous. The rainbow charts, decorative details and vibrant photography make it a pleasure to read through. This is a recipe book that you can immerse yourself in, and I have done this on numerous occasions. I like to sit down with Ash and say “What would you like to make today?” So far he has picked out the veggie platter (that wasn’t a recipe but he liked the picture, pg 47), choc chia pops (pg 89), strawberry milkshake (pg 225), carrot and cinnamon muffins (pg 83) and flaxseed crackers (pg 185).

One of the big successes we had was the Mac ‘n’ Cheese, which I am excited to share the recipe with you.

Mac ‘n’ Cheese

Serves: 4
Prep: 30 min
Cook: 30 min

Ingredients

• 2 Cups Brown Rice Penne
• 1 Cup Cauliflower Florets
• 1 Cup Zucchini, Peeled And Shredded
• 1-2 Tbs Coconut Oil
• ¾ Cup Milk Of Choice
• 1 Tbs Tapioca Flour
• 1 ½ Cups Cheddar Cheese, Shredded
• 1 Tbs Chia Seeds
• Sea Salt And Pepper, To Taste
• 1 Tsp Paprika Powder

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350°F.
2. Cook the pasta until al dente. Drain and set aside.
3. Place cauliflower in a food processor and process until it reaches a rice-like consistency.
4. Heat oil in a large frying pan and sauté cauliflower and zucchini for about 5 mins.
5. In a saucepan, warm ½ cup of milk.
6. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining milk and the flour until there are no lumps. Then whisk this mixture into the warm milk. Continue whisking gently until milk thickens to the consistency of heavy cream.
7. Mix cheese, chia seeds, sautéed cauliflower and zucchini into the milk-flour mixture and season with salt and pepper. For a smoother consistency you can process using a hand held blender.
8. Place the pasta in a casserole dish and pour the cheese and veggie sauce over it. Sprinkle with paprika powder and shredded cheese (optional) and bake in the oven for 30 mins until the top is golden.

Tip: For a school-friendly version, place mixture in mini muffin holders and bake for approximately 25 mins to create mini mac ‘n’ cheese muffins. If your child does not like the sight of seeds, them leave out chia seeds and use chia powder instead.

The post Review: Wholesome Child Cookbook and Nutrition Guide (plus Bonus recipe!) appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.

I can’t believe how quickly this year is going! Only 3 months until christmas, I haven’t got anything prepared!

As most of you know I am going to be away during October because I am GETTING MARRIED! I will be honeymooning in the Clare Valley and Melbourne, doing very un-naturopathic things like drinking wine. Don’t worry, I will be bringing my liver herbs with me. 😉

Are you getting your 5 and 2 everyday?

Australians Fail to Meet Daily Nutritional Requirements

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) recommends that adults eat 5 serves of vegetables and 2 serves of fruit every day. Are you getting your 5 and 2 each day? If your answer is no, then you are not alone. Results from Australia’s largest nutrition survey of over 13,000 Australians found many people are falling short of their daily requirements of fruits, vegetables and essential nutrients. In fact, around half of the Australian population aren’t consuming the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables, and over 25% of males and 50% of females did not meet their daily requirements for calcium. Findings also suggested that many people are missing out on vital minerals including magnesium, zinc, and iron

Spoilt for Choice

Why are so many people from a nation of prosperity lacking so many critical nutrients? Most Australians and New Zealanders have access to healthy food and the means to buy it. When faced with such abundance of food at the supermarket, many people are filling their trolleys with pre-packaged and processed foods. Only a small portion, if any, contain fresh fruits and vegetables. A low intake of plant-based foods is, in part, contributing to the prevalence of nutritional deficiencies in Australia.

In addition to a low fruit and vegetable intake, the way in which foods are grown and processed may also be contributing to the prevalence of nutritional deficiencies. For example, the soil in which many fruits and vegetables are grown is often deficient in minerals. This is compounded by modern food processing and cooking techniques, which can leach valuable nutrients from food before it hits the dinner plate. Therefore, not only are people eating a lower quantity of plant-based food, but the fruits and vegetables they are eating may also be of a poorer quality.

Photo by Thomas Le on Unsplash

Bridging the Nutritional Gap

Along with lifestyle modifications, support with herbal and nutritional supplements may bridge the gap between the current intakes of vitamins and minerals and the optimal levels required daily. Men and women have different nutritional requirements and as such, multivitamin formulas should be tailored to suit each gender’s specific requirements. If you are interested in this, I can recommend high quality multivitamin formulas that are specific to your individual needs.

Nutrition – Your Body Deserves it!

Taking a daily multivitamin is the first step to complementing your diet as part of a targeted nutrition plan. There are, however, further steps you can take to implement a more comprehensive, optimal nutrition strategy.

Step 1: Optimising Mineral Status

For those with additional nutritional requirements, add a high quality mineral formula containing therapeutic levels of magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, iodine, chromium and potassium as part of a premium nutrition plan.

The practicalities of creating a multivitamin tablet make it impossible to physically fit high levels of minerals into a single tablet as it would literally be the size of a golf ball! As such, taking a separate mineral formula can be an effective way to ensure you are receiving therapeutic levels of key minerals important for many aspects of health, including structural support, antioxidant action, and healthy immunity.

Step 2: Superfoods for a Super-You!

You can improve a diet lacking adequate fruit and vegetables with a high quality whole food powder containing an array of organic fruits and vegetables. Fruit and vegetables not only provide essential vitamins and minerals, they also contain a variety of beneficial plant chemicals known as phytochemicals. Plants produce phytochemicals as a part of their defence mechanism, when they are exposed to stressors within the environment, in order to protect themselves.

Research now shows that when consumed by humans, these unique phytochemicals may also play a significant role in the benefits offered from regular fruit and vegetable consumption, including reduced risk of chronic disease such as cardiovascular disease. Your Practitioner can recommend a great tasting, high quality super food powder that is made from phytochemical-rich organic fruits and vegetables.

Laying the Foundations for optimal Health

Australia and New Zealand are countries with an abundant food supply, yet many people have nutritional deficiencies.

A mineral formula and super food powder can be taken alongside a high quality multivitamin as part of an optimal nutrition plan, to ensure you are providing your body with the essential nutrients for good health.

The post Are you getting your 5 and 2 everyday? appeared first on Alison Mitchell Naturopath.