I am aware that my posts of late have been more ‘Vegetarian’ than ‘Dad’, so hopefully this will address the balance a little bit, and give you all a break from my recipes!

Although I try to be sparing in the area of treats for the children, and am conscious about sugar levels, additives, etc. I think it’s unrealistic to say that the occasional treat doesn’t help as an incentive in the day-to-day managing of your children. I’ve found this recently particularly, as I have one 6 year old, and one 3 year old, and a daily mile-long school run walk, and the promise of some grapes to move things along just doesn’t cut it!

But where does this leave veggies in the world of ubiquitous Haribo’s and other gelatine based treats? I was horrified to discover the other day that a childhood favourite of mine, Fruit Pastilles, are not veggie, so I ended up throwing a new packet in the bin.

I know that there are now a few on the market, and things are getting a bit better, so here is my guide to a few that have worked for me…

1. Scrumptious Sweets

I do not know a great deal about this company, but with a couple of exceptions they appear to produce all vegan and vegetarian sweets. I have only road-tested the veggie marshmallows, and they were great!

http://www.scrumptioussweets.co.uk/

2. Sweet Expectations

If you like your sweets old-school (and who doesn’t!), this is a great place to go online. All sweets are veggie, and it is apparently the only traditional sweet shop fully approved by The Vegetarian Society. I personally recommend the fudge!

http://www.sweetexpectations.co.uk/

3. Goody Good Stuff

This is a company that I have only just become aware of. Again, all products are veggie, and they have what looks like a great range of bagged sweets. I have tried the Cheery Cherries, and frankly the kids didn’t get a look in!

http://www.goodygoodstuff.com/

4. The Jelly Bean Factory

Both of my children absolutely love jelly beans (particularly when they come out of a dispenser in a pub!). Some, however do have gelatine in them, but the ones produced by The Jelly Bean Factory are all veggie, so I can relax and not have to read the small print, which I hate having to do!

http://www.jellybeanfactory.com/

5. Swizzels Matlow

Finally a shout out to my local confectioner, and home of Love Hearts, Parma Violets, Drumsticks, etc. I am not 100% certain that all of their products are gelatine free, but certainly the ones I get are (including the three aforementioned).

http://www.swizzels-matlow.com/

I hope that this helps anyone in my situation, and as my mum still says ‘A little bit of what you fancy does you good’!

Paul