Struggling to get your children to eat during hot weather? Try bigger protein-packed breakfasts, hydrating fruit and vegetables, and picky plates for dinner. Here are my top tips for keeping children nourished on the hottest days.

My picky eating workshops or 1 to 1 programs I can help your child gradually overcome some of their sensory challenges, such as spices and mixed textures. I love creating recipes like this chicken curry tray bake, which helped my son broaden his list of safe foods. Accepting a broader variety of foods packed with essential nutrients will help your child flourish in the future.

This is a simple recipe packed with protein, healthy fats, different colourful vegetables, spices, nuts and wholegrain. Providing key nutrients for mum and baby during the first 1000 days of their life.

A lovely recipe to introduce to your baby once you have passed the stage of introducing single vegetables. The mild spices add flavour and the rice introduces a new texture.

It is recommended that children should have a portion of protein in every meal. Breakfast can be a challenge for most families, all children want to eat is breakfast cereals, high in sugar. Which gives our children a quick energy burst. Protein provides energy to keep them going, help with focus and attention at school.

Try this pancake with nuts, seeds, eggs, oats and milk packed with protein.

My daughter created this snack during her work experience with me today, her brief was to make sure it’s packed with healthy fats, protein and complex carbs.

Dark chocolate, high in cocoa is rich in flavanols, an antioxidant which prevents oxidated stress that can damage cells and tissues. It is also rich in zinc, iron and magnesium.

My daughter is in year 7 and had to do work experience today. So she spent the day with me creating recipes for my blog and social media post.

Her brief was to create a snack for a school lunchbox or after-school snack, packed with protein, healthy fats and complex carbs to keep you fuller for longer. She is targeting a picky eater who struggles with eating vegetables.

This simple recipe is packed with essential nutrients for whatever stage you are at in the first 1000 days of a child’s life, starting from pregnancy to their second birthday. Containing essential nutrients to support mum during pregnancy and postnatal recovery. And nutritionally supporting your developing baby in the womb. Also, a great family recipe if you are introducing solids to your child.

This delicious creamy chicken, mushroom, bean and leek, traybake is packed with essential nutrients (choline, vitamin D, iron) to support mum during pregnancy and postnatal recovery. A tray bake is quick and easy to make if pregnant and juggling work or if you have just had a baby. You can batch cook and freeze. Ready for when the baby arrives.

I like to share tips with parents on encouraging their children to eat the rainbow every day, whatever their age. I offer a checklist to my clients, that they can put on their fridge.

My top tip is to choose a family favourite recipe and add a couple of extra vegetables, like this Toad in the Hole, with roasted broccoli and leeks.

Dips are a fun way to get kids to try lots of different vegetables. Even the fussiest eater might explore new or familiar foods with a dip. Even if they only lick off the dip and leave the vegetable.

Dips make a great play food which can often help picky eaters try new foods. Having fun at mealtimes can remove the pressure some kids feel, creating a stress-free, playful environment so they let go of any inhibitions and are possibly more willing to eat.

Getting children to eat more vegetables doesn't have to mean mealtime battles. My versatile veg-packed tomato sauce works for weaning babies, toddlers, and older children and most picky eaters won't even notice what's in it.

Macaroni cheese is a classic comfort food for the family. Its an easy dish to add a nutritional twist with the addition of hidden vegetables like cauliflower, pumpkin/squash, and carrots in the sauce. The creamy and cheesy mac and cheese is the perfect way to sneak in some extra vitamins and minerals without sacrificing flavour.

During October I love seeing the variety of squashes in the shops, all different shapes and sizes. We often buy a pumpkin to carve for Halloween, often forgetting we can cook and eat them too. They are so nutritious, the orange flesh is a powerhouse of vitamin C, carotenoids and vitamin A. Supporting eye health and enhancing the immune system.

It’s World Mental Health day today I have created this Pumpkin and Vegetable Biryani Stuffed Peppers packed full of mood foods. This recipe includes brown rice, walnuts, almonds, lentils, sweet potato and broccoli, these are GABA foods high in glutamic acid. GABA is the zen of neurotransmitters, which our body makes naturally and impacts our emotions, it calms us down, helps with restful sleep and feel positive.

A quick and tasty dinner for super tired children and parents at the start of the summer holidays. Packed with different coloured vegetables, to help your children eat the rainbow.

For my family, I am always looking for ways to increase their plant foods and eat the rainbow. This Rainbow Vegetable and Beef lasagne contains 14 different plant foods, including celeriac, aubergine, courgette and sweet potato.

People think Nutritional Therapists eat a perfect diet, but like everyone, we enjoy a treat and for me, I love my chocolate, for years it was cheap milk chocolate high in sugar and low in cocoa. But more recently I have taught myself to like dark chocolate, with less sugar and packed with goodness.

So what are the health benefits of dark chocolate?

Herbs and spices aren't just for flavour they're packed with polyphenols, antioxidants, and gut-supporting compounds. Here's why they matter for children's health and how to get more into family meals easily.

Part 2

The importance of maternal nutrition in the first thousand days of a child's life can influence your child’s development. This starts during pregnancy to their second birthday. It is an essential period when their brain, body, metabolism and immune system grow and develops. Good nutrition is essential for your child’s physical development, social development, emotional, and behavioural development, cognitive development and a healthy immune system.