Meal times are an important part of life at Fledglings, all meals are freshly prepared in our kitchen on a daily basis. Children attending all day sit down three times daily to enjoy a morning snack, a mid-day meal and then tea in the afternoon.
Whatever your child’s dietary needs are we will cater for them. It is not unusual for our chef to prepare three different versions of the main course at lunchtime to ensure that all children can enjoy a nutritious meal which ticks a variety of dietary boxes.
Dietary Needs & Allergies
At registration you will be asked about any dietary needs your child has and asked to record them. At Fledglings we want to ensure that we get it right so once we know your child is starting our chef will arrange to see you, to talk to you about your child’s particular needs.
Low Salt and Low Sugar
We use little or no salt in the preparation of our main lunch time dishes, using fresh herbs to add flavour.
A typical lunchtime pudding could consist of Greek yogurt and fresh pureed strawberries with a natural sweetener used (where necessary), or it could be a fresh fruit salad. We use unrefined sugars in the preparation of desserts and cakes, we use agave as an alternative to syrups.
Good Eating Habits
We aim to provide your child with the right amount of food to promote good eating habits, not too much and not too little! The staff encourage the children to try new foods acknowledging that some can be fussy about what they eat. Older children are encouraged to serve themselves, to understand the importance of sharing and good table manners.
Morning Snack
Morning snack time falls at around about 10am when the children enjoy a snack of fresh fruit and milk (alternatives are always made available for dairy intolerant and vegans).
Lunch
Lunch is served at mid-day, this is a vital part of the Fledglings routine, when the children sit down to two freshly prepared courses.
Each main course normally consists of a protein element and at least two types of vegetables. All main courses are made from scratch using fresh ingredients and the food is purchased first thing in the morning, being cooked within a couple of hours of arriving in the kitchen.
A typical week’s main courses might be:
* Cheesy Pasta Bake consisting of fresh vegetables and a cheese sauce, (a gluten free, and dairy free version would be available)
* Fish Pie, cod, haddock and pollock in a parsley and dill sauce topped with creamy mashed potatoes. A dairy free version would be prepared. Vegetarian version might consist of a Quorn based alternative to provide protein.
* Roast Chicken, mini boiled potatoes, broccoli and carrots.
* Pizza – Prepared from scratch, with the dough made early in the morning. Gluten free dough provided when necessary and vegan cheese is always available.
* Sausage Casserole, Rice and Vegetables. Good quality sausages are used as the base for this dish with a rich tomato-based sauce with fresh herbs created to make a hearty main course. The children love it! Again, a vegetarian version is always prepared.
Typical puddings are:
* Fresh fruit salad
* Low sugar jelly
* Apple Crumble (made with unrefined sugar)
* Greek yogurt with strawberry puree
* Pineapple upside down cake (freshly baked in the morning)
Tea
Served between 3 and 3.45pm, a typical week’s teas might be:
* Crumpets, flapjack and fruit
* Pitta bread, humous, cream cheese, carrot sticks and cucumber and sponge cake
* Selection of sandwiches and fromage frais
* Pizza with cucumber and carrot sticks, low sugar chocolate brownie
* Beans on wholemeal toast, fresh pineapple and strawberries
Please note we do not provide breakfast. Where possible your child should have breakfast before coming to nursery and not later than 9am to ensure that their appetites are not affected later in the morning. If you need to send breakfast in for us to serve please bear in mind our low sugar policy by avoiding such items as high sugar cereals, yogurts and cake-based breakfast items.
Your Suggestions Are Welcome
Please feel free to suggest recipes and meals that your children enjoy at home and we will do our best to reproduce them for everyone to enjoy.