Take the Wholegrain Goodness challenge: testers can win £250 – NON TESTERS: chance to win £150. NOW CLOSED

[AnnMumsnet]

Try something different for your new year's resolutions this year - take part in the WholegrainGoodness.com challenge and be in with a chance of winning supermarket vouchers worth up to £250.

Here's what WholegrainGoodness.com, a not-for-profit campaign aiming to inspire people to eat more wholegrain, say about the challenge: "Most of us know it's important to eat at least five portions of fruit and veg every day, but did you know you should be eating more wholegrain to keep you healthy too? Nutritionists encourage eating at least three servings of wholegrain a day. But despite the nutritional benefits, national surveys show that 95% of adults don't do this, and almost a third don't eat any at all. So take part in our wholegrain challenge to help us inspire mums to get more nutritious wholegrain into their family's diet and we'll enter you into a prize draw"

The challenge is to include wholegrain in at least ONE meal or snack for the family per day for two weeks and then to add your feedback here by Sunday 9th February to be entered into a prize draw.

• "Official testers" (already selected) can win a £250 supermarket voucher of their choice

• "Non-official testers" (open to all UK MNers with at least one child aged between 2 and 16 living at home) can win a £150 supermarket voucher of their choice

You can use the variety of wholegrain foods available, such as wholegrain breads, breakfast cereals, pasta, rice, flour and even popcorn. And feel free to take part if you and your family already eat wholegrains. Visit WholegrainGoodness.com if you need help finding out what wholegrains are and to see what a serving of wholegrain looks like, as well as to get recipe ideas for inspiration and some top tips. If you have any further questions about wholegrain, ask their independent registered dietitian or go to the wholegrain FAQs (frequently asked questions) page, which we'll keep updating. You can get a free recipe booklet and sign up to their e-news alerts too.

Please add your feedback here on the following:

~ Let us know what you think of wholegrains and if you knew about the benefits already or not

~ Have you tried out any WholegrainGoodness.com recipes? How did you and your family find them?

~ Please add any other comments, recipes, tips or ideas you have too - we'd love to hear from you at various stages of the challenge

Thanks
MNHQ

Please note: comments made on this thread may be reproduced by Wholegrain Goodness (AHDB)

[lorka]

Overall the challenge went well. We were already eating wholegrain cereals and we managed to substitute bread and pasta without anyone noticing any difference. The brown rice didn't go down quite as well because of it's texture.
I didn't use any of the WholegrainGoodness recipes yet but plan to use in the future as some of them look really tasty. I just used my own cookbooks and substituted with wholegrain foods.

[helivalentin]

The 'official' two week challenge has been completed by my family but we've learnt a lot. Mainly being more conscious about the food we eat. I knew about the wholegrain benefits beforehand but we'd stuck to 'white' varieties apart from 50/50 toast and some cereal. I made sneaky changes, brown pasta smothered in sauce etc. We also tried the 'Thai turkey burgers in baps' recipe from the Wholegraingoodness.com. The burgers got thumbs up from everyone!! Changes to my familys diet have been surprisingly easy to make and it's definitely spurred me on to continue making sure my family's diet stays on track by eating more wholegrain foods.

[Twinkletights]

Spicy Jambalaya

225g chicken or turkey, cut into small cubes
175g gammon or bacon, cut into small cubes
1 large onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 sticks celery, finely chopped
1 tsp dried mixed herbs
100g chorizo, chopped into small cubes
2 tbsp rapeseed oil
1 tsp mild chilli powder
1/2 tsp ground ginger
2 tbsp tomato puree
2 dashes of tabasco
750ml hot chicken stock
300g basmati rice (wholegrain)

Preheat oven to 180C
Heat oil in pan and fry onion for 5 mins
Stir in celery, mixed herbs, chilli, ginger and garlic.
Cook 1 minute
Add chicken, bacon and chorizo and cook until browned
Add the tabasco and tomato puree to the stock and mix well.
Add the stock mixture to the pan and stir well
Cover with lid and bake for 45 mins
Add the rice and bake for a further 30 mins until rice is cooked.
Remove from oven and leave with lid on for 10 mins.
Fluff up rice with fork and serve.

[IsletsOfLangerhans]

Let us know what you think of wholegrains and if you knew about the benefits already or not

I've always preferred brown bread to white and tried to use other wholegrains, however, as a family, we had fallen into bad habits. this challenge has put us back on track. I was well aware of the benefits before doing the challenge.

~ Have you tried out any WholegrainGoodness.com recipes? How did you and your family find them?

We didn't try any of the recipes as to be honest, none of them appealed to us. We've managed okay using other cookbooks and substituting wholegrains in other recipes.

Thanks for the voucher and really enjoyed the challenge!

[csmony]

Official tester feedback:

Had a great time taking the challenge, though the 2 weeks challenge is over now it's almost become a way of life to us now .Wholegrain has a range of health benefits:
It causes slow release of energy,better digestive health,high in nutrients etc.I also found it easy to incorporate into our daily life.
I did try the recipes from whole grain goodness booklet and enjoyed the taste of all of them.oat topped meckeral fillet has become our family favourite now.

Today I made a stir fry garli brocolli and prawn served with crispy brown rice for dinner.Yummy.

[HappyMum4]

Even though official challenge is over, glad to report we're still very much continuing to enjoy wholegrain in our diets, kids now take wholewheat bread for sandwiches, last night I tried the smoked salmon cheesecake from the recipe book provided by Wholegrain Goodness, just adapted it slightly by substituting prawns and tuna with a covering of half fat cheese, it was delicious, today making turkey bake with leftover frozen christmas turkey, veg and brown rice, which we prefer now to rice, I make risotto now by adding half rice and half pearl barley. I knew of the health benefits previously of wholegrain but always thought if I made thi he with it, it wouldn't get eaten or it was so expensive I would feel frustrated to have it left and just thrown away, but being given the opportunity to try it for two weeks, I wish I'd done this years earlier, the family have taken to it like ducks to water, no refusals, I do feel healthier in the sense I'm not as hungry, so not snacking, feel like I have more energy, don't feel sluggish, even my daughters skin seems clearer, those pubescent spots have stopped. It's definitely something we'll keep going with.

[kirstyphillipsonlowe]

Thank you for telling me about wholegrain! Since we finished the challenge we have contiuned to have our wholegrain servings. When I went shopping today I automatically went for the brown wholegrain alternatives! What a lifestyle change we have had! Thank you. I also cooked a delicious arborio rice mushroom rissoto for tea last night!
We are all loving the change in our diets!

[IWasThere4Aug12]

I give DCs oatcakes for their packed lunch once a week which they love-makes a change from sandwiches and easier for me. I tried brown pasta at DB last week and thought it was fine but not sure DH will be keen so thinking of introducing it gradually; 30/70 then 50/50 etc Does it take longer to cook than white pasta?

[florencebabyjo]

My kids have been loving the flavoured popcorns from the website, the barbeque one is lovely and they happily munch it as a replacement to the sweet sticky stuff. They have even asked for it as part of their lunch boxes. The challenge is going really well and we have been using some more interesting wholegrains like amarinth in risotto with peas and pancetta which was great. It's naturally creamy and makes a lovely creamy sauce, and is something I've never used before.

[MyNameIsInigoMontoya]

We have quite a lot of wholegrains due to the health benefits. Mostly we have been eating these at breakfast, although some during the day as well. We all like porridge except DH, so often have this and also wholegrain cereals such as branflakes and muesli. We also actually prefer wholewheat pasta, and rarely buy white pasta any more!

We also have a breadmaker and make most of our own bread, which is often using wholegrains (though for this I sneakily prefer white personally, although I like wholemeal bought bread).

I have not noticed that much cost difference. Porridge is cheap anyway and wholegrain cereals aren't necessarily more expensive. I don't think our wholemeal pasta is any more expensive than normal if we buy big bags.

I secretly love popcorn too so often snack on this!

[CaramelisedOnion]

Official tester....and extremely pleased I was! Myself and my son gave loved this...and (smuggery warning) when I told my toddler that he was having spaghetti for tea the other night he said hopefully "i want BROWN SPAGHETTI PLEASE!"

I felt middle class for a moment!! ;)

[D1974]

Well our two week challenge of introducing more wholegrain into our routines has officially finished (thanks for the voucher), however wholegrains will now feature a heck of a lot more in our kitchen cupboards. Tasty, healthy, easy to incorporate, and I've just found Quaker oats porridge sachets have a new multigrain version, so we've got another cereal to add to our stocks. Thanks for helping to kick start my health plan and benefit the whole family too.

[Bogeyface]

So we have finished our 2 weeks and we had mixed results. The brown rice was not popular and the the brown pasta was declared "OK but I dont like the colour!". They loved the morroccan style cous cous I made, the recipe said to serve it with lamb tagine, but it went equally well with left over roast chicken and roast veggies.

By far the most successful was changing from white bloomer bread that we normally have to Multigrain. The kids loved it, and one day when we ran out I had to run to the shop so I could make their lunches, they only had Kingsmill white and the kids were not happy! They ate it, but kept asking when I was getting some more brown. Also, whole grain breakfasts have been popular too, porridge was good and thanks to the microwave was a lot less faff than I remember it being! Also they like the Tesco own brand Shreddies (I boycott nestle). I didnt realise that the Weetos the kids love are whole grain, but when I looked at how much sugar was in them I have decided that they are a weekend treat!

I didnt know until I did some digging that Popcorn counts as wholegrain (which is obvious when you think about it!) and is a lot healthier if you make it yourself rather than buying the sweetened micro versions. I thought it was a bit tasteless without the flavouring tbh, but the kids were happy with it, so that was a good snack for movie afternoon.

When I started this I knew we werent eating enough wholegrain but the thought of joyless brown dinners and picky kids put me off doing anything about it. This has pushed me to do something, but also has opened my eyes to how easy it is to increase our intake, and how we dont have to be martyrish about it!

Its been a good opportunity and I have learned a lot, thank you!

[Cherryjellybean]

In the second week of the challenge, we managed to keep the wholegrain cereals and snacks in our diet that we were eating in the first week, but we added a few wholegrain meals. So we managed 2-3 wholegrain things everyday.
We cooked the chunky chicken and rice soup first. Our toddler was less than impressed, and wouldn't even eat the rice. Me and dh really liked that recipe and would eat it again. :)
Another night we had brown pasta, pesto, bacon and roast veg. That was a hit. Then spaghetti bolognaise with brown spaghetti, also a hit.

It was good to do this challenge as it made me realise how easy it is to switch what I am using, to whole grain. It was great to eat pop corn and feel healthy :) thank you for picking us mn!

[MadMonkeys]

Well I cheated a bit one day last week - my mum made the pork and cider stew from the recipe book (but with chicken instead of pork) and it was lovely, v v good. She served it with white rice, but I actually find I prefer brown now. It still counts though as it contains oats :)

[Bogeyface]

Am I the only one who has rediscovered the joys of hold the lid on a pan of exploding corn kernels?!

It was weirdly satisfying :o

[csmony]

Official tester Feedback

Special thanks to mumsnet and whole grain goodness for hosting this inspiring challenge,it added that extra Zest to a freezing February month,my toddler also has started requesting brown pasta and brown bread.I am sure we will continue incorporating the crispy whole grain foods in our diet through out

[onadifferentplanet]

Due to a rather nasty tummy bug we were a bit slow off the ground making a start on the challenge and my purchases simply at in the cupboard for several days! However once we felt like eating again I simply changed over to the alternatives without comment and put the wholegrain snacks into lunch boxes. Apart from one of the ds mentioning that the pasta looked different nothing else has been said though I have also noticed the boys eating additional bowls of cereal in the evenings rather than emptying the biscuit tin so they obviously like what's there. I have also noticed when sending them to the shop for bread and snacks they are coming back with multi grain bread and healthier snacks. So I will continue now the challenge is over. I have not used the recipes as have just added wholegrain alternatives to what I make already though a couple of them did appeal and may well give them a try in the future.

[frizzyhaired]

We've found eating whole grain everyday quite simple. We did already eat some such as porridge and bread. We have included brown pasta and brown rice. I have to say I love the taste and texture of brown rice. But my husband doesn't much fancy it with the dhal and veggies. He likes it with chicken and meat dishes. We've tried out different grains more frequently like pearl barley and quinoa. We've also been incorporating a lot more oats in our dishes. Loved the oat topped mackerel but it was not a hit with the kids. I did find that my son was even more constipated than usual at the beginning. But that got sorted by his drinking extra water. I think I snacked less hopefully that continues.

[Mograt]

Thank you for picking me for the Wholegrain trial. It came just at the right time as I realised that I had to rein in my teenagers' snacking habits which were full of fat, sugar and refined carbs. When they were little it was easy to control their food choices but now they're at Senior School it's so much more difficult. They're always hungry and will grab whatever is handy. My husband and daughter also have high blood pressure so it could only be a good thing for them to eat more whole foods where I know that extra salt hasn't been added.
It was great to be selected for this Challenge as it means that this 'New Year New Us' campaign has actually lead to real, sustainable lifestyle changes which has resulted in lots more energy, full tummies and very pleasingly several kilos lost! Hoorah. Thank you Wholegrain and Mumsnet! Most New Years we've cut down on everything, been hungry and given up, but not this year.

So we're eating MORE REAL food and LESS MESSED WITH food. We're not hungry. We have more energy and despite the weather we're less grumpy. Oh, and we have more regular 'habits'.... so all round a great result.

We've taken the time to cook more, with more variety, more flavour and we've also managed to save money as we've reduced the amount of red meat that we eat and have swapped to other non meat sources of protein. Quorn. Soya mince. Soya beans. Dried Pulses and beans. I've learned a lot about the food we're eating

My husband and I have seen a slow healthy level of weight loss at approx 1-2 lbs per week. I've miraculously lost 5cms off my waist - yippee!
We're more mindful of what we're eating and making more healthy choices in general, and out two DCs are benefitting from this too. I have a sporty 14 year old DS and equally sporty 12 year old DD and they are always hungry so wholegrain real foods are definitely the way to keep them full, with long-lasting satiety and energy for busy winter days.

So the changes I've made as a result are:

Simple swaps
Extra planning ahead
More cooking from scratch and
More experimenting

Swaps
We are now eating whole meal hot cross buns, pittas and wraps, pasta and noodles and have cut down on any white versions
We've swapped from sugary cereals to Cheerios, porridge, oaty muesli (and made our own with lots of different dried chopped fruits and nuts)
I'm using Oatly milk for smoothies and in cereal and porridge
Evening snacking for me is now yoghurt with a small handful of nuts or seeds and maybe some dried fruit
I'm buying bags of frozen fruits for home-made smoothies and making bircher porridge (soaking oats in milk/youghurt overnight) and adding mixed milled seeds in the morning

Planning/Experimenting
I've started adding dried lentils, pulses and beans to my home-made stews and soups. If I plan ahead I soak the dried ones overnight which makes it much cheaper and if not I just use the tinned varieties.
I work from home so I'm buying packs of ready to eat grains which are great if I've nothing to hand to stop me picking the unhealthy options.
I'm cooking large batches of soups with broth mix grains and and fresh veg.

My Tips
Fill pots with your new snacks and leave on the work top in sight so that they become the first choice, for eg: nuts, seeds, chopped dried fruits
Make home-made cakes, muffins and flapjacks and cookies - we've experimented with whole-meal flour, we've replaced all veg oil with rapeseed oil (no-one can tell the difference!) and we're throwing in chopped nuts and ground seeds.

My DD loves to cook so has started using Wholegrain flour and rapeseed oil in her carrot cake recipe, her banana bread etc

That's it!

[Bogeyface]

Do we have to say that we are official testers? I missed that!

I am an OFFICIAL TESTER :o

[Theimpossiblegirl]

Me too! I've commented loads and don't think I put that once. :)

[BlackeyedSusan]

tester here:

after trying and not liking the risotto (don't like the stock cubes) I did our version of risotto with brown rice and pearl barley. not quite as nice as the original though.

[AnnMumsnet]

Thanks to everyone who took part in the WholegrainGoodness.com challenge.

Congratulations to StandUnderMyUmbrella who wins a £250 supermarket voucher for taking part as an official tester and cheekylittledevil who wins a £150 supermarket voucher for taking part as a non-official tester.

<br />
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