My children are not fabulous eaters it has to be said. Jimmy eats way more than Florence did at the same age but still, looking at my friends babies I would say he doesn’t eat very much at all and Florence, well, talk about picky! I often have to pick sweetcorn, beans or even bits of rice out of things, at times separate the food on her plate and not have any sauce of any kind touching the rest of the food or if there are bits in the sauce, remove them… Every meal with her has always been a hold your breath situation while you just hope she’ll eat a little bit of something. And the rules do not remain the same either! It’s not like just because one day she eats pasta and sauce, the next day she will; I never really know if she’ll eat something or not.

Packets of baby food and the like have ALWAYS been left by Florence. She just wasn’t interested. Jimmy is pretty much the same and has only very occasionally and sporadically eaten something from a packet. They will eat things like fish fingers but I don’t like to give them frozen food every day so easy food, where you just heat it up and don’t have to do any cooking, is not something I get to do often. Obviously I wouldn’t give them rubbish ready meals or anything and I only ever offer them the ones made with the best and freshest ingredients but they still turn their noses up. I think the problem is often that there’s not enough flavour in them?

Now, this post I am aware, is going to sound a bit like an advert but I don’t mean it to. We have tried out some food for a company but we only tried it because I asked them if I could review for them and not because I was approached and am doing it through duty. There is one brand of healthy ready meals both my children always eat, without fail, so I thought why not ask them? We don’t buy them every day but I know if I pick them up (they often have special offers in the supermarket making it affordable) then my children will eat them. They will eat them despite the fact they have sauce all over everything, regardless of red meat sometimes being a main ingredient (not something which usually goes down well) and even though they are often meals that should I cook them myself, they would refuse to eat. They are also full of fresh and healthy ingredients. Sometimes I guess hidden in the sauces but the pasta with cheese, peas and broccoli trees for instance, has everything on display and yet still my children eat!

The brand is Little Dish and to be totally honest, after trying them, I can see why – the fish pie is a delicious favourite and I often sneak a mouthful myself! My children will have one ready meal between the two of them and it’s just about the right portion size for them. I appreciate my two don’t have massive appetites but you could easily bulk one up with some fresh veg and still share it between two who do like to eat a bit more.

So, as I mentioned, I wrote to Little Dish and asked if I could review for them.Well, I knew we liked their ready meals and thought it would be good to be kept up to date with new products and get to try them first, we love that sort of thing. They kindly sent me some of their mini tortellini (fresh filled pasta) and to go with it a tub of their new fresh tomato and veg pasta sauce. The ready meals save me so much time and effort because they just go straight in the oven or microwave while at the same time not compromising on nutrition. They are healthy but most importantly, they taste of something! I expected the pasta and sauce to be similar and I wasn’t disappointed.

One bag of pasta, for us, would create about 4 or 5 meals so it’s excellent that they have fairly long dates on them. The packaging is enticing with little characters and I always show Florence what she’ll be having as I know she will eat it having seen what brand it is. The ready meals come with something to colour in on the inside of the boxes so I thought she might be disappointed that the pasta doesn’t but she didn’t seem to notice. I also thought it might be more of a faff to prepare than the ready meals but really it was very easy and super quick, ready within minutes.

All that’s left to do once heated up is to mix together and serve. I’m always worried the sauce poured over pasta will mean Florence won’t eat it but she absolutely loved this one! She said it was very tasty and ate almost every piece in her bowl, the next day she had some more for lunch and it got the same reaction again – I think I would call this a pasta result! The vegetables are all blended into the tomato sauce which helps as she’s not a fan of lumps! Jimmy actually didn’t like the sauce which is unusual for him with tomato based food and on both occasions he refused to eat it. He likes strong flavours and this one was quite mild so perhaps that’s why but I gave him plain pasta with the filling and he wolfed it down.

We’re definitely Little Dish food fans and the pasta just gives me even more options. I like knowing I’m not giving them rubbish food but it’s so handy to be able to give them something quick! The best bit is the fact they eat it of course!

Their website, www.littledish.co.uk, has recipe ideas and tips as well as information on thew products and where to buy them.

I have not been paid to write this post but I was sent the pasta and sauce for review.

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