Review: 'Feeding Made Easy' by Gina Ford

by Jo Clover

I’m really quite overweight and when it came time to move on from stage 3 of my daughter’s weaning I had to really think hard about what to do. I am absolutely determined that my daughter will grow up comfortably eating a wide variety of food, that she will spell asparagus (without the spell check as I just did) before Pringles, that she won’t need salt on the table or even biscuits in the tin. But as I said, I’m really quite overweight, I did achieve a size ten, aged 22, but it was more related to cigarettes, alcohol and diminishing student loan than to what I was eating. I thought about asking my sister, who’s my usual encyclopaedia when it comes to all things babyish, but she is also overweight – and, more importantly, so are her children. I’ve talked to my health visitor, nurse and GP who told me about healthy eating (I know the theory), my mother (but she raised me, so ditto sister issues), my (skinny) best friend and my NCT buddies, all totally useless. The problem has been that they assume that I’ve got healthy habits underpinning my unhealthy habits, and I don’t. I’ve never willingly eaten healthily, and I know, I’m absolutely positive, that I’m not the only one.

I needed someone to say: here’s a menu planner, here are the recipes – they’re easy, and here’s a shopping list in order to take the responsibility away from me. I was surprised how few books there were available that were specifically designed for toddlers and families! This one offers all of the above; it also makes suggestions on what to get for children when you’re in a restaurant and what to pack for picnics and long journeys, even on how to handle fussy eaters. If you’re scoffing at this, then stop reading now – you clearly don’t need a menu planner, you’re probably not overweight and don’t have a background of poor eating habits, if you don’t like being told what to do, well, you’re probably not looking for a menu planner anyway! But if you don’t want to pass your bad habits on, if you want your children to have the sort of health (by which of course I mean waistline and self esteem) that you don’t have and that you imagine that slim people do have, then maybe it’s worth thinking about letting someone help you to plan.

The recipes are great – they really are easy to make, Homemade Lamb Burgers, Salmon and Coconut Curry, Moroccan Lamb and, of course, Hearty Bean Soup are among our best loved, not to mention everyone’s favourite Green Monster Pasta. Oaty Breakfast Pancakes make a great snack, and Carrot and Pear Honey Muffins are sweet enough for even my tooth.

We’re now in Week 8 of Gina Ford’s “Feeding Made Easy” (£12.99 Vermilion), I’ve tweaked the menu planners to include Granny’s cottage pie and my own whiney sausages, taken into account that she is at the childminder’s three days a week, that my husband is late home on Fridays, that I have limited access to the kitchen on Tuesdays and have invested in the right sized Tupperware. What I’ve ended up with is a little green folder with the last 8 weeks’ shopping lists, receipts and meal planners with notes I’ve made for the next time; the healthiest diet I’ve ever had and the certainty that I am delivering what I aimed for: a balanced and happy diet for my daughter. I’m sure it’s saving me money too as I really know what I need to buy, and Tesco’s deliver on Monday lunch times while Gwen’s having her nap for just £3 so I don’t get distracted by special offers and can’t forget things.

Now if I could just stop myself from reaching for the crisps between meals.

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