Fast Food Alternatives

Fast food as a regular inclusion in anyone's diet is, in my opinion, the devil. Regularly feeding it to children makes me depressed beyond words. It's like foisting upon your kids a ticket to adulthood diabetes and obesity before they can even have an informed say in the matter. There's the obvious factors for concern- too much sodium, sugar and animal fats- not to mention that most of the food has so many air miles attached to it that what nutritional value it originally held has been eroded and lessened as a result of excessive refrigeration time. The foods are inherently addictive by design. ...I understand the appeal of it, especially when you're time poor and plainly knackered. I'm not saying I never eat fast food. But for me, and my family, it's maybe a thrice per year event- no soft drinks, just something small. I hate that there are so many people who get fast food for their children habitually, for example weekly. There are so many options that are quick, easy and far more nutritionally beneficial for small fries (pun intended). Weary minds are prey to those drive thru fast food outlets or supermarket ready meals and parental minds are unstintingly weary.

Here's my unnecessary disclaimer. I love to cook. I make no bones about it. Fast food is not a trap I will ever fall into because, from a point of sheer self-interest, it would deny me the pleasure of preparing true food. Real food. But I know not everyone feels like this. For many, cooking is a chore. I put this in the category of shocking, but true, revelations. If cooking is a chore, it makes it just so much more tempting to go for the "easy" option. But there are some options that are just as easy and far more nutritionally sound and less damaging.  It's a matter of arming yourself with a few tried and tested recipes that your kids enjoy and you can whip up with relative ease.

 So here we go- a list of impending doom/fast food alternatives.

1. Always have some dried fruit or unsalted nuts (if your child is of a choke proof age!) in a sealed bag in your car and/or handbag for unexpected delays. If you're stuck in traffic or a child's swim lesson has run late, this will tide them over until you get home. Keep it as unprocessed as possible- not crackers or biscuits or lollies. Natural. Nutritious.

2. Pasta. Keep a good quality dried pasta in the pantry (I love whole grain spelt) and a tin of organic tomatoes, or a good quality pasta sauce- ideally one made for children as this will have lower sodium. (However, in the time it takes to boil pasta, I am able to sauté onions and garlic, add tinned tomatoes, herbs and simmer to make my own sauce.) But store bought is fine.

3. Eggs. Boil them. Poach them. Scramble them. Add some frozen veggies and make a frittata. It's a three minute meal and kids love it (generally).

4. Frozen ham and cheese sandwiches on a whole grain or rye bread. Make them up and freeze them in batches of ten. Press them in a sandwich grill and voila, dinner in a min.

5. Tinned tuna with Greek yoghurt and grated apple. Sounds honky, tastes yum.

6. Tins!! Tinned no-salt-added beans. Tinned sardines. No tins that have meat and are shelf stable, no tins with produce from countries whose food regulations you aren't familiar with. 

7. Frozen veggies (Australian, please). Microwave, add a knob of butter and a grate of cheese. If you have a salt fiend on your hands then salt it lightly, or use a Parmesan to give it a depth.

8. Toast. Simple toast. Vegemite. Honey. This is still far preferable to take away.

9. Savoury muffins. Make them in batches and freeze in cling film. 

10. Rice. This takes a bit longer (15 for white and 25 for brown). But if I decide to do rice on a night when our schedule is out of whack, I pop the kids in the bath before dinner. Cook the rice according to absorption method and then add some grated cheese and sultanas, diced tomato if you have any to hand, or frozen veggies or tinned tuna.

11. Fruit. Yep. Just fruit. My kids (like most kids) love fruit, and I don't see a single problem with giving them a bowl of fruit. Watermelon, banana, apple, orange, mandarins, strawberries, whatever you have. If it's slim pickings for fruit, add some dried fruit and sliced cheese. Platter style eating just lets them get their continental-Europe on! Add a glass of milk and you have a pretty rounded meal for little tummies.

12. Cous cous. This is quick, and kick arse, not to mention fantastically easy. Flick the kettle and get some water boiling. Put about 1/2 a cup of cous cous in a bowl, top up with approx a cup of boiled water and a glug of olive oil, then place a plate or lid on top of the bowl to let it steam. This will take a couple of minutes. While that's happening, prepare veggies or meat or tofu of fish to toss through- eggs are fine too. Cous cous with grated cheese- delicious.

13- muesli! Porridge! Cereal! A great meal for any time of day is a whole rolled oat with milk, banana and some LSA sprinkled on top. It doesn't get easier than that!

14- For really fatigued little bodies: smoothies. Banana, strawberries, yoghurt, milk, some oats and honey, LSA... It's a quick and filling solution when nothing else is working.

15- vegetable mash. Any veggies you have, in a big pot of boiling water for around ten minutes. Drain water out, add butter and milk, chopped herbs if you have them, grated cheese- you're done. Sure, this one takes a total of fifteen minutes, but only three of those involve doing anything more than watching a pot boil. That's got to be less hassle than changing lanes, driving through a narrow entrance, ordering over a staticky comm system, fishing out coins or cards, paying, receiving and then doling out meals and re-entering traffic.

Look. I'm a food idealist. And my food ideals don't always translate to the rigours of parenting. Case in point. Before I had kids, I strongly believed I would always, and I mean without exception, prepare dinners en famille, en masse. Well, the reality is that my kinder are often fed, bathed and ready for bed before my husband arrives home, and the last thing I feel capable of is retaining order whilst trying to eat. My yummy dinner and glass of Pinot is the reward I give myself for a very hard and long day's work. 

One of the ideals I can't shift though is that food is a sacred joy. A privilege to be enjoyed, a delight to be savoured. The idea of crappy food, grabbed on the run and eaten in the car whilst en route is abhorrent to my inner foodie. These meals are hardly haut gourmet, but they are about three tonnes better than anything you'll get from a drive thru window...

Just remember that this isn't about ticking all of the nutritional boxes, it's about avoiding total food demons on a night where you might otherwise succumb to temptation, and ease. Kids do not need to have fast food as a regular component in their diet. Their palettes are forming. Their preferences are being informed. Every meal is an opportunity to guide them so you can be confident they'll grow into adults who make the right nutrition decisions. Make good food an instinct for your kids. It's a gift.