For a few weeks after we found out that Anni was pregnant, nothing changed. I mean, of course, everything was different, but everything was also the same. And because life just went on I couldn’t get my head round the fact that by autumn I’d become a father.

 

I kept looking up how big the life growing inside her was, continually surprised at how this microscopic collection of cells was set to take charge and change everything.

 

In terms of food nothing also changed for a few weeks. Anni carried on in her usual calm way whilst I began to freak out and inspect the sell-by dates of every bit of food we had, turn our steaks into pieces of rubber and boil our eggs for 7 hours minimum.

 

After doing a bit of research into what women can and can’t eat during pregnancy we both discovered that pretty much all advice was contradictory, and the vast majority of foods recommended to avoid were based on guesswork, not fact. Just don’t eat raw food, don’t have too much mercury-rich fish and don’t give yourself salmonella.

 

Anni and I had a combined age of 68 and a combined salmonella contraction rate of zero, so I thought that we were going to be ok.

 

Instead, I chose to focus on all of the great food she could eat, and how each ingredient can be of benefit not only to her but to our unborn child. I’ll admit, now that my principal role in child creation was sadly over (and boy was it over) I was feeling pretty redundant. At least by taking charge of what we would eat over the coming year, I could feel like I was involved, and it was one less thing for Anni to worry about.

However, a few weeks into pregnancy, everything changed.

 

Anni began to find the thought of vegetables pretty unappealing and if I didn’t make food for her that was

basically beige in appearance, she would have none of it. She also began to crave salt so I had to act fast before she started eying up the salt pot at 11am each day.

 

My challenge, therefore, was to make appetizing dishes that I knew she would eat in those first few weeks, but also provide enough of the good stuff for our growing baby.

 

So I started to hide vegetables in food. I started to do this a lot. Soup was my number one way of hiding vegetables for Anni in her first trimester. It was the middle of winter, nights were cold and dark and so a warming bowl of goodness and some cheese on toast went down really well.

 

I made a lot of soup in those first few weeks, they are so easy to make, require minimal preparation, are a great way of using up lots of vegetables and also freeze really well. This particular dish is packed with broccoli which due to its high folate, fibre and vitamin content, is a fantastic pregnancy superfood. The parmesan toast also satisfied her salt cravings.

 

 

 

 

Chicken – Protein, vitamin B, zinc

Brioche – Fibre, protein

Parmesan – Protein, calcium, vitamin A

Carrots – Vitamin A, C, potassium, fibre, calcium

Broccoli – Vitamins A, B, C, E, K, folate, potassium, fibre

Rosemary – Vitamin A, B, C, folate

Thyme – Fibre, Vitamin B, C, calcium

Onion/shallots – Fibre, Vitamin B, C, D, K, Zinc, Iron, Folate,

Magnesium, potassium

 

This dish is just absolute goodness on a plate. Every single ingredient used here is healthy

and full of the good stuff mum needs to nourish her baby.

 

There’s a lot of pregnancy superfoods in this dish. Feta is a great pregnancy cheese as its full

of calcium but contains a far smaller amount of calories than other cheeses. Figs are full of

fibre, magnesium and vitamins and the more pumpkin seeds and walnuts you can eat, the

better as they contain lots calcium, iron, zinc and omega-3.

 

Add to that all the healthy benefits of the cucumber, avocado and spinach and you have a

delicious and nourishing dish. Visually this is also one of my favourite salads as the roasted

figs open up like flowers when cooked

 

-6 figs

-200grams of feta

-two oranges

-two teaspoons of honey

-one handful of walnuts

-one avocado

-two teaspoons of pumpkin seeds

-half a cucumber

-two handfuls of rocket leaves

-two handfuls of spinach leaves

 

-Cut up the avocado, orange and cucumber into bite sized pieces, add the rocket and spinach

leaves and mix together in a bowl, adding a little seasoning and olive oil.

-Turn the grill on and slice criss-crossed into the figs about two-thirds of the way down. Fill

the figs with some of the feta and roast under the grill for a few minutes until the cheese has

melted.

-Remove from the grill, drizzle a little honey over the figs and top with crushed walnuts.

– Place in the salad, sprinkle pumpkin seeds over and serve whilst still warm.

 

 

 

Figs = Fibre, magnesium, iron, vitamin B, D, K

Oranges = Calcium, Folate, Vitamins A, B, C, potassium

Cucumber = Vitamin A, B, C, K, folate, magnesium,

potassium, fibre, iron

Avocado = Vitamin A, B, C, D, E, K, folate, potassium,

omega-3 fatty acids, fibre, magnesium, calcium, iron

Pumpkin seeds = Calcium, protein, iron, vitamin B, zinc, omega-3

fatty acids

Rocket = Vitamins A, C, K, folate, calcium, fibre, protein

Walnuts = Omega-3 fats, vitamin B, E fibre, protein

Spinach = Calcium, Iron, Vitamin A, B, C, K, folate,

magnesium

 

I’m a Leiths trained chef on a mission to overhaul the way we see and enjoy

food during pregnancy. Current healthy-eating advice when you’re pregnant focusses on what you

can’t eat whereas I want to focus on all of the amazing food that you can eat over the nine months

and beyond.

 

When my wife became pregnant with our first son last year as a guy I felt pretty redundant. So I

decided to make sure that whatever we ate over those nine months not only tasted delicious and

made her feel good, but was also full of vitamins, nutrients and other good stuff for our unborn child.