Eat what it says on the tin!

Funny how we call meats by certain names and not others. For example, I've never heard anyone say "let's have pig for dinner" or "the cow was delicious" yet we do refer to chickens, ducks, rabbits and lambs. When my animal loving nephew and niece were small they were simply told "it's meat". My own children quite often ate "dinosaurs", courtesy of Bernard Matthews! Before that they had been Milupa babies with the odd exception when I would try and puree fruit and vegetables. On one of these occasions my son refused his pureed brocolli whilst his grandpa mused how it looked like grass cuttings!

As the children grew I began to make more of my own food and give them less processed stuff. They and my husband are not vegetarian so I have always cooked meat for them. (I have tried to put my husband off steak and kidney by calling it "cow and wee" 'though it hasn't deterred him!) This means cooking more than one meal at a time. I like us all to be eating a similar meal, i.e. meat and veggie chillis, curries, lasagnes, pastas etc. but when they eat a roast dinner I often fall back on a quick and convenient bought breadcrumbed camembert. These can get a bit tedious so I have found ways of livening them up by inserting a slither of garlic, a sprig of rosemary or a squeeze of honey.

Home made, 'though not really healthy, flapjack has been the staple sweet treat in our family. It's so quick and easy to make and everyone seems to enjoy it's satisfying oaty sweetness. My son is called Jack and when he was little he used to ask for "flap" having been frequently asked "would you like some flapjack?"

Most of you will probably have a much healthier recipe for flapjack but I'm going to share mine with you anyway. It was given to me by a friend in the 1970s and I have recently tweaked it a little.

Fiona's Flapjack:

9oz Stork Margerine

4oz Demerara Sugar

3tbsp Golden Syrup

12oz Porridge Oats (I use 2oz thick milled oats & 10oz wholegrain rolled oats) 

Melt margerine, sugar and syrup together then stir in the oats. Pour into a greased baking tray and bake for 15-20 mins in a moderate oven. Cut into slices whilst warm then allow to cool before removing from the tin. Enjoy!