Ah, the beauty of the midday nap! As a working Mum, weekends with my toddler are precious, but that doesn't mean they're not exhausting.

Chasing round after a curious, 60 mph chatterbox with no sense of danger is an exhilarating and hilarious business.

Come 11.45 a.m. however, I'm ready for a break and after stuffing Chloe full of a healthy lunch, off she goes to bed for a two-hour sleep. I'm well aware that the domestically gifted start cleaning at this point, but despite my lovely husband looking meaningfully at me and then the kitchen, I usually follow suit.

The only down side to the snooze-fest is that it interferes with brunch. Brunch is a big deal in our family but as we've prioritised a well-rested baby we've been off the circuit for a while. Last weekend however we buckled and experimented with a delayed schedule.

Fortunately it worked and we've now entered an early-brunch, late-nap utopia. This does mean however that the healthy lunch aspect is in jeopardy. There's only so many times you can say no to a toddler and surrounded by friends and family I had to give up sole control of what went into Chloe's mouth.

There was one moment when I leapt across the table to scrape the coloured sprinkles off a cup cake, but aside from that I managed to behave.

I consoled myself with the thought that even toddlers get to break the rules once in a while, especially when I have recently mastered the art of Hiding Lentils.

Lentils are undeniably healthy but unfortunately they look incredibly dull. I honestly don't think it's the taste that has earned them a bad rep, but they certainly aren't all that appetising to look at.

However they are so easily incorporated into other dishes that it's actually very easy to sneak them into family meals.

The benefits are two-fold, you get to include the nutritional value of lentils (high in fibre, iron, B vitamins, although not B12, and folate) and you also get to stretch out a family meal economically.

Adding lentils to a bolognaise, chili or stew is simple and as they are so small, they tend to mingle in benignly. If you think your family are super-picky, you can try blending the lentils before you add them to the dish so that they help to thicken the sauce but aren't identifiable.

The Eden Organic lentils are less than $2.50 a can so as a bonus, they are a cheap way of bulking out a meal.

For those of you who are meeting resistance to serving vegetarian options at home, this may also be a good compromise for you. Now, although I'm not generally an advocate of tinned food, the Eden Organic line of beans, lentils and tomatoes is fantastic. Tinned food is normally heavily processed, full of additives and sugar, and in many ways, nutritionally "dead".

In contrast, the Eden Organic products are free from irradiation, preservatives, toxic additives, food colouring, refined sugar and genetically engineered ingredients. The company philosophy is also inspiring. They buy locally first, use biodiesel fuel and use recycled pallet-wrap that reduces landfill waste by 50 percent.

They also use 80 percent recycled steel for their buildings and have a super energy efficient lighting policy.

Further, Eden Organic is the only US based food company to use a Bisphenol-A (BPA) free lining for their cans. (BPA plastic has hit the headline previously as research revealed it to be a potential endocrine-disrupter, affecting hormone levels in both males and females. See www.ewg.org for more details)

Anyway, back to hiding those lentils. I had great success last night by mixing the lentils into a homemade bolognaise sauce.

The lovely husband, Chloe and her play date all wolfed it down. This is my recipe, but of course you can use your own recipe as a base if you prefer. Just note that if you want to serve this to young children, you should use tomato sauces/purée with no added sodium.

Bolognaise sauce (with lentils)

Serves 4 adults

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 small package of "all natural" (hormone/antibiotic free) or organic ground beef

1 tin Eden Organic pre-cooked lentils

1 clove garlic, crushed

4 plum tomatoes, peeled and diced (fresh if possible)

½ jar Eden Organic no salt added spaghetti sauce (Supermart)

2 tbsp no salt added tomato purée

1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce

½ cup apple juice

Black pepper to taste

Light olive oil

In a heavy bottomed pan, over a gentle heat, sauté the onions in a little light olive oil until they become soft and translucent, but do not let them brown

Add the ground beef and stir through over a medium heat until lightly browned

Add the lentils, garlic, tomatoes, spaghetti sauce, tomato purée, Worcestershire sauce, apple juice and black pepper and stir through.

Allow the sauce to come to a boil and then immediately turn the heat down to a simmer. Cook over a low heat for 30 minutes to allow the flavours to mingle, ensuring that the beef has cooked through. Serve with whole-wheat pasta and green salad. You can also layer this mixture into lasagne, but go easy on the cheese if you do!

The advice given in this article is not intended to replace medical advice, but to complement it. Always consult your GP if you have any health concerns. Catherine Burns is a fully qualified Nutritional Therapist. She can be contacted at clinicalnutrition@gmail.com.