Mums cook up to three dinners a night

Mums cook up to three dinners a night

25th May 2012

As much as we enjoy donning our cotton aprons and getting creative in the kitchen, for those of us who aren't professional chefs, rustling up one tasty meal in the evening is probably quite enough.

However, a recent survey has revealed that some overworked mothers are cooking as many as three dinners a night to appease fussy little eaters.

The research, which was carried out by Flora Cuisine, found that over a third (34 per cent) of mums prepare a wide variety of dishes on a daily basis to accommodate the individual tastes of their children and partners.

But despite efforts to keep everyone happy at mealtimes, it seems that traditional dinnertime habits could be on the wane - as only one in five families said that they ate together every night while less than half (44 per cent) found the time to do so between one and three times each week.

"The survey results show that traditional mealtime preparation and habits are changing," said Alastair McKerrow of Flora Cuisine.

"Mothers are busier than ever, and many are having to prepare more than one meal each evening in order to accommodate their family's tastes."

And the pressures of catering for several individual preferences alongside the cost of ingredients are having a negative impact on creativity in the kitchen, with 72 per cent of UK mothers admitting to cooking the same old meals over and over again.

While encouraging fussy eaters to branch out can be tricky, a great way to encourage your youngsters to try new foods is to invest in some aprons for children and get them involved in the whole cooking process.

You don't need to splash out on costly or fancy ingredients, but shopping for simple, local produce with your little ones will help them get excited about different tastes and flavours.

Finally, while we all lead busy lives juggling work and family pressures, setting aside at least one evening a week where all the family sit down together at the dinner table can be a great bonding experience for mums, partners and kids alike.

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