I spend a lot of my social media time these days on Instgram, as it’s quite possibly the most sophisticated and functional micro-blogging site out there (sophisticated in terms of usability, not content… that one’s debatable :D). One of my favourite people to follow often posts photos of her kid’s (vegan) school lunch, and, as part of that, usually showcases a re-usable smoothie pouch.

Now, she’s in the USA, and I’m in the UK, so the animal-themed brand I fell in love with wasn’t available here for less than £30 (no thanks), but I just couldn’t let go of the concept. Isla loves her ready-made smoothie pouches but, for several reasons, I try to avoid letting her have them too often. For one, she wants a smoothie every day. Throwing away a pouch each time adds up to a lot of unnecessary waste, and she’s not quite at the level where she would easily be able to drink a smoothie from a glass. Secondly, the store-bought smoothies, despite being only organic fruit, contain far more sugar than homemade equivalents as they are typically made with a lot of high-sugar varieties (e.g. apple and banana). That is, of course, why kids like them so much ;).

I don’t want to deprive her of her smoothies because she loves them so much and, let’s face it, she could be doing a lot worse (custard creams, anyone?). So, I started looking for a different solution. Making your own smoothies is easy enough, I go for a bit of coconut milk for liquid, fat and extra calories, some spinach, some banana and either some mango & pineapple or some berries. While perusing Amazon, I found these Nature’s Little Squeeze pouches. They’re just under £13 for six and feature a clever double-ziploc at the bottom, which means they’re easy to fill (once you get the hang of it, I did have a bit of spillage the first time. The trick is to geeeeeently squeeze out the air before closing) and really easy to clean, which is important to me when you’re working with raw food for small children. They’re also freezer and dishwasher safe, come in a variety of sizes and are BPA free. 

All in all, these are an excellent purchase if, like me, you have a smoothie-addicted baby and want them to have a more wholesome option. As she gets bigger, I’m going to start experimenting with different additions such as flax seeds, chia seeds and nut butters, and I have my fingers crossed that this will be the start of a lifelong healthy habit!