FFK101: How to get my child to eat pulses or legumes - beans, peas, lentils and chickpeas.

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Today’s episode is part of our series of how to get kids to eat more of something, and today it’s the turn of pulses or legumes, so beans, lentils and peas. I don’t think I need to explain in too much detail why it’s great to help kids to like legumes. So you want to have more pulses in your family’s food, but how to get your child to accept them? As with our other epsiodes on this, we’re not actually aiming to get our kids to do anything. We are finding ways to give children opportunities to build familiarity with a food and try it when they feel comfortable, or building foods into or alongside familiar foods so they feel comfortable to eat. In this episode Joanne gives some suggestions of dishes where the beans or lentils are obvious to see and taste, and some where they are mixed or blended in so their texture might be easier to cope with for some children. But as usual even when we are mixing things in together, the idea is not to hide them and pretend they are not there, if asked you can always tell the truth or allow them to help to prep them. Hiding and sneaking only builds distrust. But there is nothing wrong with blending or mixing things in to make foods easier to approach and just be honest if asked. The episode gives lots of ways to get more beans, lentils and peas into your family’s food. And there are lots of recipes in the shownotes. Links in this episode: Why beans are so good for us: https://foodfoundation.org.uk/sites/default/files/2025-10/TFF_Beans%20Facts_DIGITAL_0.pdf [https://foodfoundation.org.uk/sites/default/files/2025-10/TFF_Beans%20Facts_DIGITAL_0.pdf] Food Foundation Bang In Some Beans campaign: https://foodfoundation.org.uk/initiatives/bang-in-some-beans [https://foodfoundation.org.uk/initiatives/bang-in-some-beans] Recipe ideas in the shownotes at: https://thefoodies.org/ffk101 [https://thefoodies.org/ffk101] Music "Happy Days" by Simon Folwar via Uppbeat

My child invited a coeliac friend home for tea, with Nicky Chilvers, how to provide a safe gluten free inclusive playdate. (Food For Kids 2026)

Today is part of our series called “Help my child is bringing someone home for tea”. These episodes are intended to give families who don’t have a special diet themselves the basic information they need to be able to be inclusive for other people’s children who do have a special diet. This episode is about hosting children who need a gluten free diet either because they have coeliac disease or just because they react badly to gluten. I think this is one of the ones that frightens people a lot because, like dairy, gluten is in a LOT of foods that you wouldn’t immediately think of. So for this one I asked Nicky Chilvers from Gluten Free Little Cook to run through some of the basics of coeliac symptoms and some practical ways to make sure that everyone has a child friendly tea without the worries of anyone getting sick, including less obvious things about cleaning utensils and oven tray position. It's a quick and reassuring guide to having a coeliac child to tea and of course bring their parent in on the planning. Nicky is mum to two teens; one of whom has coeliac disease. It was a shock diagnosis in 2018. There seemed little support for parents; mums especially, to understand the disease & help their child adapt. The only way to help her child was to learn about a gluten free diet & fast. Nicky then wrote a book helping parents from her own experience so they didn’t have the same struggles. A kids book was written to celebrate 5yrs of diagnosis & one for teens in 2024. When not on Instagram, she can be found in the kitchen cooking, working on her latest DIY project or out eating! DISCLAIMER: I spoke to Nikki in 2025 and she mentions a couple of specific products. Those mentions were accurate at the time of recording, but because manufacturers change recipes over time and podcasts can of course be downloaded at any time, those products might have changed by the time you listen to this. The episode is for general information purposes only. Please do check any labels on the day that you purchase a product. Nicky's website: https://www.instagram.com/gluten_free_little_cook/ Nicky's Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/glutenfreelittlecook Music "Happy Days" by the fabulous Simon Falwar via Uppbeathchi Mentioned in this episode: Disclaimer I spoke to Nikki in 2025 and she mentions a couple of specific products. Those mentions were accurate at the time of recording, but because manufacturers change recipes over time and podcasts can of course be downloaded at any time, those products might have changed by the time you listen to this. The episode is for general information purposes only. Please do check any labels on the day that you purchase a product.

29. juni 202611 min

FFK101: How to get my child to eat pulses or legumes - beans, peas, lentils and chickpeas.

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