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Beetroot is not known for being the most exciting of vegetables but research released today’s show it is enjoying a revival, not only in the form of juice, but in our babyfood too!

Beetroot is derived from the maritime sea beet and has been highly esteemed from as far back as Roman times. It’s health giving properties are also an added incentive to feed to your baby, or you!

Did you know that Beetroot is a rich source of carbohydrate, good source of protein and high levels of important vitamins and minerals, particularly iron, magnesium and foelic acid. It is also a great source of fibre so excellent for little ones!

We appreciate that Beetroot isn’t always an ingredient that would be on your shopping list, but we dare you to try it at least once this week. We love and recommend this website for some inspirational recipes!

The Evening Standard Dr Mark Potter reported on Tuesday (4th December) on some new research that we at Plum find very interesting indeed.

“Should you have a fussy eater for a child - and which family hasn’t got at least one? - you will be interested in some new research. It suggests that a baby’s natural dislike for the bitter foods such as broccoli and Brussels sprouts can be blunted if the mother eats them duting pregnancy and breastfeeding.

New research from the Monell Chemical Senses Center in Philadelphia suggests young babies are more likely to take to foods that they have previously been exposed to in the womb, or through the traces that make it into the breast milk.

And these aren’t the only windows of opportunity for new mothers. Babies are also thought to be particularly susceptible to new tastes and textures during the weaning process between the ages of six and nine months.

So rather than mixing their meals into amorphous homogenised gloop, you should be keeping ingredients seperate so your child can log each individual taste.

And don’t forget to pull the right face when feeding them. Babies are very good at picking up on subtle cues and if you wrinkle your nose when offering them a piece of fish they will do the same.”

Hear Hear!

It’s something that we already believed at Plum HQ, but scientists who led the £12 million project into organic food, have reported that organic food is more nutritious than ordinary produce, and contains higher quantities of antioxidants which help ward off heart disease and cancer!

The scientists, and the Plum family, hope that the evidence will help persuade the Government to recommend organic produce and stop advising that eating it is merely a “lifestyle choice”.

Among the reports key findings, potatoes and carrots were among the organic produce found to be higher in vitamin C than their chemically-farmed counterparts.

Also higher levels of minerals and antioxidants were found in organically- farmed spinach and red cabbage, all of these are already key ingredients in our yummy Plum recipes!