We all love getting out of the house and socialising, and it’s a great chance to show off your little bundle. Be it the antenatal group picnic, PIN group party or simply ‘we haven’t seen each other for ages’, your baby is at that delightful stage where they’re transportable and generally quite happy as long as they have regular feeds, a little stimulation and somewhere comfortable to sleep. So it’s only the grown ups food you need to think about.

The easy catering option at these events is to ask everyone to bring a plate. At this point your heart may sink as you wonder what to take…something easy and nutritious, that won’t take ages to prepare, will travel well and make you look good. A packet of Tim Tams is an option, but here are some alternatives…

Savoury

• Try pumpernickel bread as a substitute to bread: it’s high in fibre and offers greater satiety. Top with your favourite crostini toppings.
• Alternatively blinis (mini pikelets) are a low fat and tasty alternative to bread and can be topped with savoury or sweet foods. 
• Canned baby beetroots can be transformed into a nutritious and colourful dip. Blend drained beetroots with cumin, olive oil, garlic and coriander and serve with veggie sticks (carrots, cucumber, peppers and celery) and an assortment of wholegrain crackers. Alternatively make your own hummus by blending chickpeas, sesame seeds, lemon juice, garlic and olive oil. Or just buy a pot of dip and a pack of rice crackers from the supermarket! 
• Slice cucumber rounds and top with lite or fat-reduced cream cheese and thin slices of roast beef. 
• Slice mini bagels in half and spread with cream cheese, roast beef and a smear of horseradish sauce.
• Make asparagus rolls with fresh steamed asparagus and a dollop of mayonnaise wrapped in wholemeal sandwich bread. 
• Make up a platter with dry roast almonds (whole almonds lightly sprinkled with rock salt and oil roasted in the oven), dried apricots, fresh dates, semi dried tomatoes, olives and sliced salami with thin slices of French stick bread. 
• Prepare pizzas using pita bread as the base and an assortment of toppings. 
• Bake baby potatoes in the oven until tender. Cut a cross in the top and spoon in a mixture of sour cream and chives or tuna, sweetcorn and mayonnaise. 
• Make mini quiches in a Texas muffin tin. 
• Use falafel mix (available in the chiller at New World) to make mini falafels and serve with sweet chilli sauce or a yoghurt dipping sauce (unsweetened yoghurt, finely diced cucumber and fresh mint).
• Instead of potato chips try bagel crisps, pita chips or pretzels for a change. 
• You can’t go past sushi. It’s low in fat, high in carbohydrate and can cater for vegetarians.

Sweet

• Fresh strawberries piled high in a bowl and lightly sprinkled with icing sugar are quick and easy.
• Alternatively chocolate dip strawberries and pieces of pineapple. Try white chocolate for a change.
• Assemble a fruit platter with slices of rock melon, watermelon, hulled strawberries, seedless grapes and orange wedges. 
• Baby meringues topped a mixture of yoghurt and cream and berries make a great dessert. If your favourite berries aren’t in season use frozen. 
• Panforte (pronounced pan-for-tay) is a rich fruit and chocolate cake from Italy that is traditionally served at Christmas. Only a small slice is needed for the perfect after lunch sweet morsel. 
• A plate of truffles always looks good and can be bought from your supermarket or made from scratch. Check out this recipe for Fruity Truffles.

Drinks

Tropical juices are delicious on their own or mixed with soda or lemonade to make them into a long drink. Tomato juice is great for making Virgin Mary’s and is high in lycopene, a valuable antioxidant. Sparkling juices like grape, grapefruit, lemon or mandarin are a good option plus ginger beer is refreshing served ice cold on a hot day.

Refreshing lemon, lime and bitters can be bought prepared or you can make it yourself with a couple of drops of Angostura bitters, a splash of lime cordial and a glass of lemonade. Soda with a twist of lemon, lime or kiwi is popular too.

With all these options, you and your baby can get out and about and enjoy as many ‘bring a plate’ get-togethers as your diary allows.  

Endorsed by our New World Nutritionist  ||   Proudly Partnering with Parents Centre

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