Quorn – Our firm family favourite!

You won’t get me eating that no-meat stuff, it’s just not the same!”.

Hands up if your husband / partner / kids have said similar? This was the attitude in our house once over too. I’m a long-term slimmer at Slimming World. This works for me because it is a healthy eating plan that works with a family rather than around it. There is no reason why we can’t all eat the same meals anymore.

As part of my Slimming World plan I like to incorporate Quorn products into my meals a couple of times a week, they are low fat and delicious. Our current favourites are the Cumberland sausages and the Swedish meatballs (which my sister has fallen in love with after eating them here last week).

One thing I will not do if I can help it is cook more than one meal, I don’t see why we should all need to eat different foods. Sometime I eat Quorn in place of something like a pie or similar which is too high in the Syn value to enjoy on my Slimming World plan but as we usually eat more meat/ basic foods rather than any processed foods or pastries, we find that we, as a family, are choosing Quorn not as a replacement but because we like it.

Roy, who in his youth was thrown out of an all-you-can eat buffet after eating too many burgers, loves the Quorn burgers and enjoys them with piles of onions and salad in a bun. Kieran, my eldest who is 5yrs old adores the Swedish meatballs and I have to say my current favourites are the basic fillets. I love to try them with different seasonings, to chop them up and throw them in a stir-fry or just eat them on their own with some salt and black pepper with a big salad and beetroot.

Clearly we are a family who enjoys our food and despite our initial Meat vs Quorn debate we’ve now recognised that we don’t have to choose between them as the Quorn products are delicious and filling foods in their own right. We aren’t vegetarians and love our meat but include Quorn in our diets as we enjoy it.

*This is a sponsored post however the content is based entirely around the experiences and opinions of my family.

For Mother’s Day I want to help another Mum keep her child alive.

Inspired Gifts from UNICEF

What is the best gift for a Mum on Mother’s Day? I usually get treated to a lie in and a day of not lifting a finger with homemade cards and flowers. A lovely family day! Some people enjoy being wined and dined, a show or even jewellery and I don’t begrudge any of them, us Mothers work damn hard you know!

Some information I was sent make me rethink about what a Mother really wants for Mothers day and in many areas of the world it is to see her child have a meal, some clean and safe water, a life saving vaccination or a blanket to stave off the cold. This puts a whole new slant on Mother’s Day for me.

UNICEF run an amazing scheme called Inspired Gifts. You might have heard me mention something this before as I tried to help raise awareness of it at Christmas. Basically you can choose to buy a gift for your loved ones that helps someone else keep theirs. A nutritional UNICEF Inspired gift really can make that difference.

It is unbelievable to me that in this day and age Mums are having to bury their children because they are dying from malnutrition or illness that ordinarily wouldn’t kill a healthy child but which can’t be fought off by a baby or young child who is basically starving.

You can buy a gift such as some magic milk which is just £12 (the price of a decent bunch of flowers at a supermarket). This life saving milk is used in the treatment of children with severe malnutrition in refuge camps, hospitals and emergency feeding centres.

Buying an emergency gift which costs £18 (a bottle of wine and some flowers) will provide UNICEF with the funds to provide clean water, supplies including medications and other essential kit to areas who are in a dire emergency situation.

For those who really do feel they need to give something they can wrap up, why not choose a gift from the UNICEF shop? There are some gorgeous and useful items there which would make a fantastic Mothers Day gift and the funds raised still go towards helping those who need help the most.

I have asked Roy to help the boys choose me something from the Inspired Gift range (I have my eye on the nutritional biscuits). On Mothers Day I will be able to cuddle up in bed with my boys knowing that another Mum across the world can still hold her children.

Please visit the UNICEF website and choose a truly Inspired Gift this Mother’s Day.