Author Archives: admin

Christmas Treats – a FREE Festive Ebook

Christmas is almost here, and with it the promise of good things to eat.

School holidays and festive celebrations mean more free time to cook and more people to make things for, so there couldn’t be a better time to get into the kitchen with your kids.

Treats like mince pies, gingerbread men, iced cakes and marshmallow-topped hot chocolate are Christmas classics for a reason – and I’ll be making all of the above with Nino and Joy over the coming weeks – but it’s also nice to have a few more wholesome treats up your sleeve to meet the daily (hourly?) snack requests whilst adding a little nutrition.   

To help you along the way, I’m giving away a FREE Christmas ebook containing five tried and tested festive recipes which all pack in at least one serving of fruit or veg plus some healthy fats, filling protein and whole grains to boot.

Getting kids involved in cooking from an early age has been shown to improve their attitudes towards food and capacity to try new things. Teaching them about nutrition in a hands-on, non preachy way, is so important if we want to raise healthy, curious, confident eaters. Yes sweets and chocolate are delicious, but dates, greens, even cannellini beans can be too!

Sounds too good to be true? Try the recipes and let me know what you think 🙂

Yes it can be messy and chaotic, but involve your little eaters in the kitchen and make food fun and everyone  will get so much out of it.

So roll up your sleeves, embrace the chaos and let’s get cooking!

To download your FREE Christmas treats ebook, click here. 

ps. I’d love to see your Christmas creations. If you make anything from the ebook, please tag or DM me on Instagram @feedinglittleloaves.

Malted Milk Chocolate Blondies

Malted Milk Chocolate Blondies - 1

On Saturday, I went out to dinner with girlfriends for the first time in months. Before having Nino I couldn’t comprehend parents who never went out, always assumed it was easy but – (not such a ) news flash – it’s not. There’s a reason why all those friends with kids smile wryly and forecast the end to your social life as soon as you tell them you’re pregnant. Being a parent is wonderful in more ways than can be imagined, but it can also be repetitive, tough and – unless you have a live in nanny, endless family or an even more endless supply of cash – full time. Add into the mix a not-so good sleeper, breastfeeding on demand and separation anxiety (both Nino’s and mine), and you’re talking stay-at-home central. Continue reading →

Thelittleloaf is moving . . . please join me!

churros-3Hello lovely readers. This is your 24 hour notice that thelittleloaf will be moving to a brand-spanking new home as of tomorrow, Thursday 16th January. From then on you will find me (and all my recipes) at www.thelittleloaf.com.

My old blog should automatically redirect to the new site, but just a couple of things to note:

  • If you’re signed up by email, you’re coming with me (hooray)
  • If you follow thelittleloaf using WordPress or RSS feed, you’ll need to sign up again on the new site tomorrow (sorry)
  • And if you know anyone who would like to read thelittleloaf, but doesn’t yet, I’d love you to let them know

As with any new site, there may be a few tweaks to make over the coming weeks, so please bear with me and let me know if you spot anything odd. Hopefully you’ll love the new site as much as I do and I’m looking forward to seeing you tomorrow.

Oh, and there will be a recipe for churros and chocolate (pictured above). If that won’t tempt you over, I don’t know what will.

Frangipane Mince Pies (+ Mincemeat-Free Alternative)

Frangipane Mince Pies

The first time I saw a frangipane mince pie, I fell a little bit in love.

To put this in context, I’m not much of a mince pie eater. If you read this blog regularly you’ll know that I’d take chocolate, caramel or creamy desserts over boozy dried fruit any day of the week: an indifference to festive desserts that extends to both Christmas pudding and cake. If a mince pie is all that’s on offer, I’ll probably end up eating it (top removed, filled with copious amounts of brandy butter then replaced) and I do enjoy the ritual of baking them at this time of year, but getting excited about a recipe? It doesn’t tend to happen. Continue reading →

‘After Eight’ Ice Cream Bowl

Magic shell

It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

Our flat is filled with sparkling lights, rolls of wrapping paper, the smell of pine and the sound of Mariah Carey (don’t judge me, you know you’ll dance around your tree to this at least once before the year is out). I’m the proud owner of a brand new gingerbread man jumper (eat them, wear them, I’ll take any form of extra baked goods in my life). And everywhere I look (granted I’m looking at food blogs, food websites and cookery programmes on TV), it’s all about festive food. Continue reading →

Festive Fig Rolls with Orange, Honey & Cinnamon

Festive Fig Rolls

They say that the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. If my husband happened to be said man, you could pretty much guarantee his affection for life with a humble packet of fig rolls.

When he was little, Carnivorous Husband’s mum would always buy two packets of fig rolls at the supermarket: one to keep in the cupboard and one for my hungry husband-to-be to consume in one sitting. A couple of hundred miles away, at a similar age and unaware at this point that he even existed, I took a similar approach to a freshly baked loaf of bread. Some treats, it seems, are made to be savoured, others to be eaten in enormous quantities. Continue reading →

Crunchy Maple Walnut Butter Cups

Crunchy Maple Walnut Butter Cups

As a child, there’s something slightly exciting about spending a day off school sick. Not, of course, if you’re seriously unwell, entirely bed-bound and unable to eat. I’m talking about those days when you’re possibly still contagious but ultimately on the mend, able to appreciate eating on the sofa, watching too much TV and your Mum (or another adult) making a great big fuss of you. Continue reading →