Health & Wellbeing: Cost-of-living crisis drives passion for 'good food'

Rising food prices, increasing numbers of families using food banksand households resorting to frozen vegetables are all issues that are currently hitting the headlines. It is against this backdrop that Nina’s Nurseries – a group of seven settings in Stockport, Greater Manchester – is priding itself on providing ‘high end’ food to the children in its care and educating them about where it comes from and how to prepare wholesome, cost-efficient meals.

‘With evidence showing how establishing and laying foundations in early years promotes lifelong health, it is important to us as an organisation that we promote healthy food choices and encourage children to learn about food,’ says head of operations Jayne Mallett.

The nursery group wanted to establish a nutritious and sustainable menu so employed professional chef Mike Hodgkinson as catering manager two years ago to overhaul its food offering. He has followed Government nutrition guidelines and replaced processed foods with nutritious meals that wouldn’t look out of place on a restaurant menu, from vegetable Thai green curry to leek, woodland mushroom and sage carbonara and gnocchi with broccoli and spinach in a roasted red pepper and cheese sauce (see box).

ON THE PULSE

‘Our food is not typical of many nurseries that don’t focus enough on nutrition, which is a big issue at the moment, especially with the high cost of food now,’ says Mike. ‘We are giving our children the chance – especially important in the more deprived areas – to eat nutritious, new and exciting foods. Our menu is extensive and we only use fresh vegetables, sometimes locally sourced. We offer home-cooked meals with a twist and pride ourselves on offering food that you’d eat at a restaurant, rather than fish fingers and peas, which isn’t what we’re about.’

While favourites such as roast chicken and beef stew are still on the menu, Mike has kept the food budget under control by also including less expensive ingredients such as pearl barley, pulses such as lentils and beans, which are low in fat but high in protein and fibre, and introduced more vegetarian meals such as Scotch broth, which he describes as ‘hearty but with no meat’. Rather than buying jars, he prefers fresh ingredients, for example, making his own Thai curry paste with garlic, coriander, lime, ginger and lemongrass.

‘It is rewarding to serve foodthat you have put your heart into, especially when children ask for seconds or thirds,’ says Mike. ‘Some parents are amazed at the foods that their children are now trying and enjoying that they wouldn’t eat at home. I try to push the boundaries and include different food such as gnocchi. Parents often comment the children eat better than they do.’

The nursery group also prides itself on providing a more substantial tea offering with a full meal rather than the ‘picky teas’ often offered in settings. ‘It’s nice to know that children are going home with full tummies, especially for parents on a tighter budget,’ he says.

In response to parents’ enthusiasm for the nursery menus, Mike has been trialling free food boxes for the children to take home. They contain a recipe card and instructions along with the ingredients to make a nursery meal, budgeted at around £3.50 per box. Children choose which recipes they would like to make at home and help to package up the ingredients.

‘These boxes create the opportunity for our families to spend quality time creating something new together, while also supporting children with their independence skills at home,’ he explains. ‘The boxes support our families with meal planning, budgeting and culinary skills while creating themselves a quick, easy and tasty meal.’

Currently three families at a time receive the boxes, along with a few extras for families that can benefit from some additional support, but there are plans to expand the offer.

SCRATCH COOKING

Children are also encouraged to take an active role in preparing food. Charlotte Blackburn, deputy manager at Nina’s Nursery High Lane, says, ‘We’ve always been passionate about food education, but I feel it’s even more important now during the cost-of-living crisis. Some children can’t afford to have fresh ingredients at home and we feel it is important for them to see fruit and vegetables and cook with them.’

Manager Amanda Redwood adds that they are a Curiosity Approach-accredited setting and part of their ethos is that children have the opportunity to handle real items. They are often amazed that children new to the nursery do not recognise vegetables in their original form. For example, they have only seen broccoli that is broken into florets. Some children are surprised to learn that cauliflower actually grows with green leaves and onions come in different colours. They have started to grow vegetables themselves and harvest whatever they can to eat. Amanda says this helps to create a ‘field to fork’ understanding.

Children also go out into the community to purchase some of the ingredients for the nursery meals. Many families order groceries online so this gives children the experience of seeing a wide range of produce, following a shopping list, directly purchasing items and communicating with adults outside of the nursery environment.

Back at the nursery, children are shown how to use knives safely and often help to prepare meals. An Italian heritage staff member spoke about making fresh pasta with her grandparents, which galvanized Mike to invest in a manual pasta machine and hold pasta-making classes with the children.

‘It was a surprisingly simple process to do and we found that the children wanted to eat more for lunch after making their own pasta,’ says Amanda.

She adds, ‘Children make soup quite regularly from seasonal vegetables and they will make bread to eat along with it so they are solely responsible for the whole meal.’ They have even made their own butter. ‘I saw on social media that people are making butter because it is currently cheaper to do at home than buying it off the shelf, so we thought we’d try with the children,’ she says. ‘They now know about the process of mixing cream for a lengthy period of time. These experiences all give them a real understanding of food.’

TO THE TABLE

Mike advises the nursery cooks on how to present the food so that children can also appreciate the aesthetics of the meals. At High Lane, children are encouraged to lay their own place settings, which includes using vintage crockery. ‘This meets our reuse, repurpose and recycle ethos,’ says Amanda. ‘The plates and bowls are like we’d have used at our grandparents’ homes.’

Charlotte adds that using breakable tableware encourages children to respect the delicate items and supports their belief that children are capable and can be trusted to show care for resources.

Children are also supported to self-serve their food. ‘This allows the children to choose their own amounts,’ says Charlotte. ‘We need to empower them to make good, healthy choices but respect their choices too.’

on the menu

A week from Nina’s Nurseries’ three-weekly autumn/winter menu:

• Monday: Lunch: Minced beef, shallot and potato pie with root veg mash and gravy. Fruit yoghurts Tea: Roasted autumnal vegetable lasagne
• Tuesday: Lunch:Sweet potato, chickpea and spinach curry with fluffy rice and mini poppadomsTea: Fishcakes, seasoned potato wedges and beans
• Wednesday: Lunch: Chicken casserole with vegetables and pearl barley. Homemade flapjacks Tea: Roasted Mediterranean vegetable fusilli pasta with soft cheese
• Thursday: Lunch: Gnocchi roast red pepper, tomato, broccoli and cheese bake served with garlic bread Tea: Homemade pesto, mozzarella and cherry tomato flatbreads
• Friday: Lunch: Roasted salmon, lemon and dill linguine with spinach. Chocolate and banana marble cake Tea: Toasted bagels with soft cheese and fresh chives, vegetable crudités and lentil crisps

*Fresh fruit is offered every teatime