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Tell Dolmio what a regular family dinner is like in your home: £200 Amazon prize up for grabs!

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  • Last night was a bar b que chance before today’s storm.Sirloin ,monkfish & king prawns served with potato ,egg mayonnaise & pasta salads.Delish!Followed by berries,cream & coffee a lovely meal before the dreaded storm.Tonight is a night off to ‘eat out to help out’.This deal has proved a great success in our area if u are lucky enough to get a table.Everywhere is booked out to capacity.
  • We are a family of 5,mum & dad plus 3 girls. Dinner time in our house can sometimes be chaotic but we always try to have dinner round the table so we can discuss our day with each other.  
    I try to get the girls involved in cooking as I cook from scratch,so there is chopping, slicing, and stirring always to be done. I find that it encourages the girls to try new things,be it a new ingredient or some new technique. 
    Pasta is the main staple in our house, we have it about 3 times a week!! And a jar of Dolmio is always in the store cupboard. 
  • We are a family of five, momma, dadda, Paisley-violet 4, Ollie-leighton 2 and Frankie-Leigh 5months. Dinner time is the most important meal of the day in our home because it's when we are altogether because dadda is at work early in the morning before babies get up so they only see him few hours before bedtime so we all sit together. But we send him lots of pictures in the day of what we do and what were cooking for dinner to make him feel involved. We make sure the children realize how lucky they are with each meal they have and our little girl always picks something to put in the donation trolleys/boxes in the stores.
  • We love family dinners! I grew up always sitting around a table for a good meal - whether that's a squeeze or a great big extendable table! Sharing food is a great opportunity to check in day-to-day or catch up when you haven't seen each other in a while  :)
  • We tend to eat together in the living room in front of the TV but are due to move house soon and looking forward to once again eating up to a proper dining table.  The majority of the time we eat the same meals.  My better half likes more meat and I like more vegetables and/or salad so dishing-up is quite easy as we have the same food but in different proportions.  Every now and then we will have different meals as I am lactose-intolerant but understand others need milk, cheese or yoghurt in their diets.  Sometimes we might make a pasta dish and serve a portion for me before adding a cheese topping for everyone else.  We cook most meals from scratch, so if making things like shepherd's pie will do a small dish for me and large one for everyone else to share.  If I fancy eating vegetarian meals I make stews and casseroles in 2 saucepans and only add meat to one of them.  If we have salads I tend to add seeds, nuts, crisps, rice and extra salad items to mine whereas the rest of the family have more meat, fish, eggs, dressings, coleslaw, potato salad.

    It will be lovely when we can invite more people to dinner and all sit around the dining table.  I like a lot of meals, and especially Xmas dinners and Sunday roasts, to be served in bowls, with platters of meat, so that people can serve themselves and get the amounts of each item they want, and extra helpings without having to ask.  This works well with Mexican, Chinese, Italian and Indian style meals too.  Also good for the children to try new things, learn about food groups, different tastes, varied food combinations, healthy eating etc.  We will also have space in the new house for outdoor dining so looking forward to al-fresco lunches & dinners + big BBQs - nice weather we will probably have breakfasts or elevenses outside to enjoy the garden and fresh air.

    Mealtimes do bond a family, are good times to discuss what each family member or friend is up to, to iron out any problems that have cropped up, and to make plans for the coming days.  Meals to mark birthdays or other milestones are long-remembered.

    And a last note - it's good to see food companies supporting efforts to get food to those in the UK that really need it; in the 21st-century nobody should be going hungry.  We are happy to donate items to the box in our local supermarket for a local food bank and anyone who can afford even 1 extra item in their trolley to donate on their way out of the store can contribute to making a real difference.  Food is the priority but we need to also be aware there are other items people in poverty struggle to afford (cleaning products, toiletries and, for girls and women in 'period poverty', sanitary products + pet food.)  Food may be the focus but it's always worth checking whether the food bank or other local charities collect and distribute other items too.  Hats off to Dolmio for helping to feed the hungry.
     


  • Through the week we usually eat in front of the TV because everyone comes in a different times. At the weekend we sit around the table and catch up on news. We love a Sunday Roast and through the week we eat pasta, chilli, curry etc.
  • Family mealtimes are a daily occurrence, but I find them pretty stressful! My youngest (1) pretty much eats what he's given so far, but his 3 year old twin sisters are another story; one of them is dreadfully fussy and each meal is a battle to get her to eat (unless it's pasta) and the other spends ages making up an elaborate story, using her food as characters, before she'll eat it.
  • Our family dinners include getting the family involved, teaching them where things come from/how they’re grown if it’s something new but encouraging to try everything! Some days are quick where something gets slammed in the oven but on quieter days we like to make sauces and toppings for meats, vegetables, Pastas, pizzas etc!
  • Well our family consists of me, husband, number one son and partner, number two son and wife and seventeen month old and our daughter.
    Between us we have the following dietary requirements
    diabetes
    vegetarian
    no pork
    no mayonnaise
    no cheese
    no sweetcorn
    no peas!
    So we usually serve pasta with a soya based bolognaise sauce using Dolmio. It makes life so easy but oh dear the little one usually gets fed half naked because it can get messy!
    And because everyone is keen to include deaf husband the noise levels are pretty scary too!
    But our table is the heart and soul of our home. Sharing is caring as they say.
  • Since we’ve started weaning my son, meal times have become very messy business. 

    We’ve made it a rule no tv, phones or iPad during meal times and meals are to be eaten in the dining room.  

    As my husband is English and I am Chinese, we’ve wanted our son to fully embrace both cultures and the food which is offered.  He’s already tried roast dinner and stew.   He loves Yorkshire puddings, although it does take him some time to eat his peas, one at a time.  He’s also tried a little custard bao.  

    We’ve had new foods like baby butter chicken and spinach and sweetcorn muffins. 

    The messiest of meals always involves tomatoes. 
  • Family meal times have always been a important part of my family life and more so now than ever in these troubled times (co-vid). Always a time to catchup, share stories, discuss the food being eaten and Socialise. We have recently been doing more home cooking and our current favourite dish is pasta, meatballs with Dolmio sauce - my favourite is the garlic sauce. Great food and mealtimes is so important for mental health and well being. Family meal is something we in the UK have forgotten about and it so important on many levels.
  • We eat at the dining table so that we can discuss our plans, hopes and actions.  We eat a meal usually cooked from scratch with plenty of fruit and vegetables, with the occasional pizza or ready meal if time is short.
  • Mealtimes in our house are MESSY. The kids are 2 and 8 months and both fiercely independent about their food. Where possible I let our 2yo help with prep and make choices to encourage her to eat (which veg do they want, what shape of pasta etc). We eat a huge range of foods but pasta is one of the favourites. Jamie at 8 months adores all things meat, while Evie prefers more vegetarian meals. Peas on pizza anyone? For us, it's important that the kids eat meals around a table and try to teach them this wherever possible, food is never forced but generally plates are cleared and we speak to them about what they're eating and if they like it. It definitely brings us a little closer sitting together for that little bit of time each day. Some recent mealtime photos:



  • We always eat at the kitchen table and meal times are a time for chatting and finding out what we have done at work or school. We all eat the same thing although my youngest son will pick out onions! We eat a mix of meals but they are all cooked from scratch and my children help with cooking. 
  • We love Meatballs in our house & Dolmio tomato sauce makes the best ones! The kids & big kids alike look forward to them! 😋🍝
  • When my children were at home we used to have a "consideration" meal where we would have a bowl of home made soup and a sandwich. We would then donate the difference in cost as a cash donation to a local charity appeal. The kids loved to have strawberry jam sandwiches with lentil soup.
  • The only thing the whole family enjoys is a Dolmio bolognese or lasagne! It’s the only night we don’t have a protest and all plates are empty and my son asking for more. This is a picture of my son protesting to eat his roast dinner he ended up falling asleep at the table! I wish every night was a Dolmio dinner 
  • Well with four kids and the odd guests dinner time is a busy affair whether it's a full roast or beans on toast but whatever the meal the ketchup is a must! Then shoveled down and disperse to books, tv or computer games - not before clearing the table!
  • My son likes to make us a dinner he is 13 and a good cook.we like to sit around the table and have family time. He likes to make us a big brunch like you can get in the cafe.
  • Family dinner is only partly about dinner. Yes, it’s important for kids to eat a nutritious dinner and this is more likely to happen seated around the family table than strapped in a car seat. But family dinner is actually about nourishment—physical and emotional. It’s about connection. It’s about family. o:) 

    There are numerous benefits to sharing a family dinner:

    • Better nutrition: Studies indicate that families that sit down to dinner together are more likely to eat a more nutritious dinner and less likely to be overweight.
    • Better grades: Kids who have regular family dinners have been shown to perform better in school.
    • Less substance abuse: Kids whose families share family dinner are far less likely to experiment with drugs, alcohol, and nicotine.
    • Improved language skills: Kids who participate in family dinners have improved language and communication skills.
    • Improved connection: Families that share a family dinner are more connected. Parents are more aware of what is going on in their kids’ lives and kids are able to receive support for any issues and challenges they may be facing.

    The bottom line is that parents who make family dinner a priority are more plugged in to what is going on in their kids’ lives.

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