Cooking Good is adding new information to this website to reflect the challenges many of us are facing in the current outbreak. We are all having to think and source food differently and some people are self-isolating, which can make shopping difficult.

Here are some links to useful information:

General Information

For those self-isolating in Northamptonshire you can go to this page and call the support number noted there.

Essential information about Coronavirus (COVID 19)

When we are in the kitchen, we are coming into contact with food and getting our hands messy, so here is some general NHS advice about how to stop infection spreading.

Need food?

A food larder with free fresh food donated by supermarkets has been set up across South Northants. This will be distributed via local hubs in towns and villages across the County. If your area is signed up to this, you will hear about it via this local response. The latest weekly recipe and information sheet is here.

The usual food banks are currently open in Towcester and Brackley and now other mini village food banks are being set up.

Supermarket deliveries can be difficult to book right now. Here is a list of alternative suppliers, Some will deliver to various postcodes, others need you to collect your order.

Those pupils eligible for Free School Meals should be getting some support with food from their local school. Contact your school for further information.

Need help with cooking?

Last update 3rd April 2020. All information taken from respective websites and presented in good faith. Please contact suppliers before placing orders or making special journeys.

Local Food Drops is a new search engine for alternative suppliers of various food-stuffs.

Produce Warriors

Home Delivery service around Banbury/Brackley/Bicester area. Mixed Fruit Box - £20.50
Mixed Vegetable & Salad Box - £20.50

The Fruit and Vegetable & Salad box contents are not set in stone. Aiming to supply a 600x400mm box full of a mixed Fruit/Vegetables for good value for money.

Dairy boxes can only be ordered in conjunction with one or both of the above Fruit/Vegetable boxes. Dairy boxes cannot be sold singularly.

Supplementary Strength Dairy Box - £10.50
12 Free Range Eggs, 1 x 250g Salted Butter, 2 x 2ltr Full Fat Milk, 2 x 800g White Sliced Bread

Supplementary Health Dairy Box - £10.50
12 Free Range Eggs, 1 x 250g Unsalted Butter, 2 x 2ltr Semi Skimmed Milk, 2 x 800g Brown Sliced Bread

Collins Fresh

Seven day delivery. Due to unprecedented demand, they are currently only able to delivery to addresses within Northampton and Northamptonshire.
Mixed produce boxes @£35 can add products such as loaves of bread @£1.25.

Garry Penn Ltd

Taking orders to be collected between 10-14hrs. Vegetables and milk. Order one day, collect the next.

Healthy Weight Children and Portion Size

Children whose parents encourage them to eat well and be active are more likely to stay a healthy weight and be healthy. 

Steps to success include:

• Being a good role model
• Encouraging 60 mins of physical activity each day
• Keep to child-size portions
• Eat healthy meals, drinks and snacks
• Less screen time and more sleep

Child sized-portions

There is very little official guidance on portion size so you will need to use your own judgement.

A good rule of thumb is to serve smaller meals and let your child ask for more if they are still hungry.

Try not to make your child finish everything on their plate or eat more than they want to.

Use child sized plates and encourage your child to eat slowly. Use the BANT plate as a guide of how much to eat from each food group. This is available on the attached link and as a download from the Tools section.

‘Eat a Rainbow’ in healthy eating terms is a fun phrase to encourage a higher intake of fruit and vegetables. We asked Nutritionist Louisa Gregory about the details of why colour in our diet is important.

We know fruit and vegetables are widely recommended for their health-promoting properties. They contain important vitamins, minerals and plant chemicals. They also provide a rich source of fibre which is crucial for a healthy digestive system, disease prevention, and the regulation of blood sugar levels. We have been brought up with the 5-a-day reminder to eat more fruit and vegetables so why the rainbow?

The 5-a-day message is important but it doesn’t emphasise the requirement to eat a wide variety of fruit and vegetables from the huge list of options available to us. We are typically creatures of habit and fall comfortably into familiar routines of buying the same fruit and veg we like each week or those that our children will eat. It’s not just the quantity of fruit and vegetables that we eat each day that makes a difference to our health, but the diversity as well.

Weaning can typically be thought of in terms of 3 stages. 

Stage 1 is introducing the very first foods to your baby in the form of smooth purees and very soft finger foods. Tastes are introduced one at a time and baby is observed for possible reactions. At this stage baby cannot chew but they can move food forwards and backwards and swallow. This stage usually starts around 5-6 months and lasts for a couple of weeks.

Stage 2 progresses to a wider variety of tastes, flavours and textures. Food can be a bit lumpier and can be mashed with a fork rather than using a hand blender or sieve. Flavours can be combined to make new and exciting meals and baby usually progresses to 3 meals a day. This stage is important because many of the nutrition reserves your baby was born with begin to run out. This stage usually begins around 7 months or slightly earlier if you have a keen eater. It usually lasts until baby is 9-10 months.

Stage 3 is when your baby is a skilled chewer and can manage chopped family meals. This usually happens when your baby is around 10 months old.

When planning your baby's meals from stage 2 onwards think in terms of 3 parts.

1. Providing an iron rich protein such as meat, beans, lentils or eggs.

2. Adding vegetables and / or fruit which are high in vitamin C and will help with the iron absorption. 

3. Adding in some energy providers - examples include: avocado, nut butters, yogurt, buttered toast, pasta, sweet potatoes and other grains. 

For more detailed information on weaning and nutritional needs of specific aged visit: https://www.childrensnutrition.co.uk/ 

See attached file for supportive guidance and advice.