To do beans on toast once a week?

[MollyAndMuck]

Doing a different work pattern soon and two nights a week will be a lot of pressure to pick up DCs (infant age) from after school, feed them and not end up putting to bed too late.

I can't cook from scratch these nights and realistically don't think I'll be organised enough to batch cook for both nights.

AIBU to give my kids beans on toast every week for one evening meal? I know it's UPF but at least it's some kind of veg and very quick. They'll be having a hot lunch at school and are pretty good at eating it.

Normal people don't no. People that know nothing about nutrition and think that adding random salad to things that it doesn't go with do. I think it is because they are unable to look at the big picture and take the overall diet eaten over a period of time.

Baked beans with salad

I mean really!!!

I swear some people on this thread talking about a quick meal of 40 minutes or the horrors of upf and everything has to be cooked from scratch are just sat behind a screen with a big mac laughing. Normal people don't act like this. Normal people finish work at 5/6 pm then have less then 2 hours to feed, bath, do homework and bedtims with multiple children. Cooking healthy homecooked meals from scratch every night was fine years ago when a parent stayed at home all day but that's not the reality anymore.

We had beans on toast in the past.

We had convenience food in the week, salad for Saturday tea and a roast dinner on Sunday. My parents both worked in the 1980s but if I went to a mates house and their mum didn't work we still had something like sausages, chips and beans.

I cook from scratch a lot more than my parents did, and DDs have had a better and more varied diet than I had growing up. But it certainly involves things like beans on toast!

Though (this is peak Mumsnet) if you are really worried about how processed baked beans are, you can make your own.

If you are asking seriously, it will be the extracts and flavourings. What exactly is in them? Flavourings are often chemically created in a lab.

I am trying to limit UPF after reading some pretty worrying research about its link to disease. But it's completely impractical to eliminate all of it as it is everywhere and there will be a sliding scale. Your M&S beans are probably completely fine, and a lot better than many ready meals. I would not be worrying about them.

For me and for my family, we have chosen to limit UPF by working on our biggest culprits. So swapping bread for brands that don't contain emulsifiers, yoghurts that are milk, fruit and sugar rather than gums and sweeteners and limiting processed meats like cheap ham. We still eat the odd takeaway and quick freezer food but have less UPF than we used to. It works for us and I feel better for it. Many people think it's a load of old shite and are free to eat what they want.

In fairness, the OP mentioned UPF hence some of our replies trying to help her out.

I know, literally the amount of.posts where people told to add some cucumber to random meals.

I imagine it is the flavourings, but we're talking about a fraction of a teaspoonful in a half-tin of beans. I really can't get worked up about it.

Omg having this tonight with an egg on. Perfect dinner

Plus a home cooked meal isn't necessarily healthy. Mine are laden with oil and butter if I don't rein myself in a bit. Also even kids can end up having massive portions and piling the weight on.

Controversial view here - all the posts recommending having egg with beans on toast - no, just no. Whether poached, fried, scrambled or microwaved, eggs do not go with beans. On the red letter days when I have a fried breakfast, I make a barrier between the beans and the egg with the sausage and treat them as two separate courses. Then it's fine.

I do have cucumber and celery sticks with a lot of things, but would draw the line at baked beans.

Never mind children, I still like beans on toast, or tinned spaghetti or tinned macaroni cheese.

Depends if they'd eat it- baked potato (in microwave).

In a hurry we sometimes have precooked chicken heated in gravy (from granules) with smash and tinned peas.

@Halfemptyhalfling

why? Salad doesn’t go with beans on toast

I do beans on toast once a week already and it’s not even due to massive time constraints. It’s fine - beans are a healthy and nutrient dense food. I choose the low sugar and salt variety but even the regular kind is honestly fine and not something to stress about.

Im just making tumbet, home cooked Mediterranean dish, full of olive oil. Vegetarian yes, full of veg yes, but very high in calories and fat. I dont mind this, this is the sort of food I eat but it would score a lot of reds if it was a ready meal, plus I use a lot of salt in things.

I happily do beans on toast to save time and money - but some of this is getting a bit close to 'something eggy on a tray' and life in 1950s bedsits!

I'm just thinking back nostalgically to the mid-00s when bagged salad, king prawns, pine nuts and avocados would make a superb meal for not very much money. They've got so dear now.

Poached egg on toast. Ravioli on toast.
Sardines on toast.
Beans and sausages on toast.
Cheese on toast with tomatoes
They do eat a hot school meal so perfectly fine

Why not? I hate cooking and some days they can have something less nutritious...

Tortillini with ham and add some precooked broccoli chunks + double cream and voila ! Takes 5 minutes :)

My life too, and I live alone so there really isn't an excuse.

Although I did discover a tin of tomato and basil soup worked as well as the chopped tomatoes I thought I was opening.

I had beans on toast for supper last night - first time I'd had baked beans in at least 6 months😁

No added cucumber.

Nothing wrong with it at all

For me it would be hoops as I don't like baked beans

Ds (16.5) would love it as a snack as long as cheese melted over the top.

His other favourite - jacket potato covered in tuna & cheese - his idea of a very good supper

OH is main cook but when he's not around I like to make myself baked potato with beans, cheese and coleslaw.

When he's on his own OH would happily live on sandwiches or toast.

@BeaLola

beans on toast isn’t a snack though , it’s a meal.

It's a snack for a 16 year old boy

What sort of bread, how many slices, how many beans? All that turns it from a snack into a meal and back again.