Magic Tomato Sauce

serves 4 as a pasta sauce

Another recipe on our ‘most popular list’. This basic tomato sauce is packed with flavour and can be blended smooth or chunky depending on your family’s preferences. It’s a great base for pizzas, pasta, bolognaise, lasagne, chilli and anything needing a rich tomato base. And look at the veggies we are sneaking in!

Ingredients

1 onion

2- 3 garlic cloves (or to taste)

1 red pepper (capsicum)

1 grated courgette (zucchini)

1 grated carrot

1 tin chopped tomatoes

2 tbsp tomato purée

½ tbsp olive oil

2 teaspoons mixed Italian herbs

1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar

Method*

1. Chop onion and pepper into grape sized piece and dice garlic finely.

2. Fry onions and garlic in oil over a medium heat until the onion starts to soften. Add pepper, carrot and courgette and cook until the vegetables are soft. If necessary add a little water to pan to prevent sticking to bottom of pan.

3. Add chopped tomatoes, puree, herbs and balsamic vinegar and bring to a bubble. Reduce heat and simmer for 10-15 minutes until sauce thickens.

4. Blend into a smooth or chunky puree.

* N.B. Children should always be supervised when cooking, and an adult should oversee the use of heat as well as all preparation involving sharp utensils.

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Assemble and prepare ingredients

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Fry the vegetables over a medium heat

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Add tomatoes, herbs and vinegar

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Blend into a puree

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Serve over pasta

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Enjoy

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Serving suggestion:

Delicious served over pasta. Makes an excellent tomato base for pizzas. Can also be used as a sauce for chicken or fish or used as a dip for vegetables and pitta bread. Freezes well.

 

Try something different…

• Add other coloured peppers, aubergine, celery, a handful of parsley and /or basil to your sauce… a great way to get children eating some healthy veg.
• If you don’t have balsamic vinegar, substitute for a tablespoon of sugar.

 

Did you know?

• Tomatoes are a great source of vitamin A and C.
• Although the tomato is closely associated with Italian and Mediterranean cooking, the tomato originally comes from America and was only first introduced to Europe in the 16th century.
• For more information about tomatoes visit: www.thetomatozone.co.uk

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SUGGESTED EQUIPMENT:

Apron and clean hands

Chopping board

Sharp knife

Garlic press (optional)

Pan or small pot

Wooden spoon

Blender

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet for an adult. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs. Infants and Toddlers will need less calories according to their age.
Click here for advice on how many calories your child needs.

7 Spinach Recipes Your Children Will Love

Whilst available all year round, the UK spinach season is March - June.  Often lauded as an iron-rich superfood (just think Popeye), it is also rich in vitamin K, vitamin A, vitamin C and folic acid, and a good source of calcium, manganese, magnesium, iron and vitamin B2.

Iron is important for making red blood cells, which carry oxygen around the body, and children need vitamin K to help normal blood clotting and to heal cuts and scrapes.

 

So what’s the best way to sneak this supercharged leaf into your family’s diet?

Blend it!

Spinach works brilliantly in smoothies and fresh juices. Blend with mango, strawberry, or banana which will mask it’s peppery leaves.

Try this vibrant green mango and spinach smoothie from Tinned Tomatoes.

Or Baby Boy Bakery’s family friendly yogurt-based spinach smoothies.

Add it to potatoes, cream and garlic (yum!). Here are two amazing dauphinoise recipes which include spinach.

Sweet potato and spinach bake GoodFood

Spinach and potato gratin Tesco RealFood

Blitz it in a homemade spinach and basil pesto (then stir through pasta, smear on bruschetta, serve with grilled fish or chicken)

Speedy Spinach Pesto by Mama's Kitchen on Food.com  (Photo: May I Have That Recipe)

Pack it into some toddler sized mini muffins

Spinach Banana Healthy Muffins Tribe Magazine

Or our very own Cheesy Spinach Muffins

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Want to find out more about the story of spinach?

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Our friends at How Does it Grow share the fascinating story of a floating hydroponic spinach farm.

7 Courgette Recipes Your Children Will Love

Courgettes (or Zucchini) are prolific in the UK from June to September. They have a high water content, significant levels of Vitamin C and potassium and are a good source of soluble fibre (which reduces risk of constipation and promotes a healthy bowel).

They are a member of the cucurbit family, and are related to watermelons, gherkins and cucumbers.

Their pretty edible flowers are delicious stuffed with goats cheese, herbs and tomato and deep fried.

 

Our favourite family friendly courgette recipes:

Pear, Carrot and Courgette Muffins Organic Cookery School

Cheesy Courgette Bake Organic Cookery School

Magic Tomato Sauce Organic Cookery School

Courgette Polpette Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall via The Guardian

Zucchini Bread Pancakes Smitten Kitchen

Hidden Veggie Sausage Rolls My Fussy Eater

Frosted Courgette and Lemon Cake  Jane Hornby via GoodFood

Toddler Portion Sizes – Ideas and Strategies to Ensure Your Toddler’s Diet is Balanced and Varied.

There’s no doubt that when babies become toddlers, everything changes – they’re more mobile and engaged, their motor skills are developing at a rate of knots and whether speaking just a little or a lot, they soon start to communicate their preferences and dislikes to you. And that includes what they want to eat.

The Organic Cookery School offers a number or practical  courses which support parents in the next stage of meeting their child’s changing nutritional needs. As well as recipe ideas, these courses are as much about how to deal with the challenges you may face and how to get your child’s relationship to food off to the best possible start.

So how much and what should my toddler be eating?

Whatever our age, we all need variety and balance in our diets, to ensure we are getting the right mix of nutrition. Toddlers tend to have smaller tummies, so appropriate portion sizes are important to make sure they aren’t filling up on just a few food types:

The amount of food your child will want to eat at any given time will depend on so many factors – are they having a growth spurt? Have they just done a big poo? Are they tired? How much exercise have they had today? So offer small portions and top up with seconds, if they are still hungry.

Each meal should offer a mix of the main food groups:

Starchy/Carbohydrate rich foods (up to 5 portions a day)

 

Fruit and Vegetables (aim for at least 5 portions a day)

 

Dairy/calcium rich foods (aim for three portions a day)

Protein foods (aim for two portions a day, or 3 if vegetarian)

 

Over the next few blog posts we’re going to explore each food group in more detail and give examples of recipes which are perfect for toddler tums. 

Recipes:

Our Cheesy Spinach and Apple Muffins are a great mix of dairy, veg, fruit and protein and a hit with our little foodie testers.

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A note on drinks and what foods to avoid:

During the day time, your toddler will need to remain hydrated and water should be offered frequently from a cup or beaker. They can also drink full fat cow’s milk from one year and need approx 300ml  a day. Squashes, sweetened juices and fizzy drinks should not be given to children and can impact dental health. We have created some toddler friendly whole fruit/veg smoothies, which are a great way to boost your families’ vitamin and mineral intake, but bear in mind that, like milk, they can be quite filling. Try a small (150ml) portion of smoothie at breakfast with some toast and scrambled egg for a great start to your toddler's day.

Avoid, raw or very lightly cooked eggs, high salt foods (or the addition of salt), whole nuts (until the age of 5), low calorie or diet foods, raw fish or meat (eg sushi/steak tartare).