Articles & stories

Our new range of delicious meals and desserts is finally here and it’s full of hearty recipes that are sure to warm your cockles this season. Classics made easy Comforting winter classics like casseroles and pies often take time to prepare from scratch. Thanks to our easy to cook meals, you can enjoy your favourite recipes without spending hours slaving over a hot stove. From Roast Dinners to Cottage Pie and more, we’ve got all the usual suspects and this season we’ve added some great new flavours to the menu too. Why not try our delicious Hunter’s Pie made with rich venison for a tasty traditional recipe with a twist?

Chocolate is the ultimate comfort food, stress-reliever and aphrodisiac – here are 10 fabulous reasons why tucking into your favourite treat this Easter could be good for you after all. It’s rich in minerals Dark chocolate is high in beneficial minerals like potassium, zinc and selenium, and a 100g bar of dark chocolate (70 per cent or more) provides 67 per cent of an adult’s recommended daily intake of iron. Cough relief One study showed that chocolate helped to relieve coughs almost as well as codeine – and with none of the side effects.

You are what you eat, so the saying goes – so what are the best foods to keep you in tip-top condition and raring to go? We’ve rounded up some star ingredients that are sure to give you an all-round health boost this spring. Walnuts – good for mood Delicious in puddings and savoury dishes, walnuts are rich in the amino acid your body needs to create the feel-good chemical serotonin. And because they're digested slowly they can contribute to mood stability and can help you tolerate stress too. Why not try… Nut & Mushroom Roast Asparagus – good for mood Asparagus spears are a great source of folate, a B vitamin that could help keep your spirits up - folate is important for our dopamine and serotonin levels, which are crucial for mood. Why not try… Shanghai Beef

If you've thought about trying a diet with less meat there are plenty of benefits to going vegetarian or even just cutting out meat one day a week. Meat Free Mondays are a great way to incorporate vegetarian meals into your diet and make a difference to your health and to the environment. Health benefits There are many health benefits to eating less meat including having a lower risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes. Vegetarians tend to have lower cholesterol and eat less saturated fat than those who eat meat every day and following a more plant based diet often makes it easier to maintain a healthy weight. Because of these health benefits, vegetarians and vegans also live longer on average than those who eat meat every day. Watching the pennies Eating veggie can be kinder to your pockets with lentils, pulses, fruit and veg often cheaper than buying meat. And there are plenty of tasty meat substitute products available these days, making it easier than ever to enjoy meat-free versions of your favourite meals.

As we age it is important to look after our bones and our joints, as we can be more prone to problems like osteoporosis and osteoarthritis. The most common type of arthritis in the UK, osteoarthritis affects the cartilage between our joints and is most likely to occur in the knees, hips and small joints in the hand. Your weight can have an impact on the osteoarthritis of the hips and knees as it increases the pressure on them. If you are watching your weight why not try smaller portions with our popular Mini Meals range? This range has some of our favourite dishes but in a smaller portion so you don't feel like you are missing out on your usual tasty meals from Oakhouse!

At Oakhouse we’re all about using traditional ingredients and classic recipes to create great food that really hits the spot. Award winning development chef Wayne Harris has been creating delicious dishes for the Oakhouse range for over 5 years and we spoke to him about the inspiration behind some of our all-time favourites. A lifelong passion “My love of cooking began at home when I was around 13 or 14 and I used to bake in my mum’s kitchen making classic puddings like Lemon Meringue Pie. I finally became a professional chef after completing my training in Salisbury and have been lucky enough to win several awards over the years doing what I love.

We all know that carrying extra weight can take its toll on your health and after years of trying different weight loss plans, Aberdeen retiree Kathleen finally found the answer she had been looking for – in the pages of an Oakhouse Foods brochure. Kathleen was looking for some help with mealtimes for her elderly father when she came across Oakhouse Foods. “Dad had tried other options but was bored with the food and wanted something a bit more exciting. I picked up an Oakhouse brochure one day and we really liked the look of the food so we gave them a try. “At around this time I had some bad news from my doctor, who told me I had to start losing weight for the benefit of my health. As Dad became a regular Oakhouse customer I realised that their mini meals could be worth trying as they are all smaller portions and lower in calories.  To be safe I showed everything to my GP who gave it the thumbs up, and since then I’ve been eating Oakhouse mini meals for tea almost every day.

The best way to keep your heart healthy is through your diet and we have explained some of the easiest changes you can make. Heart-healthy lifestyle habits will also benefit your general wellbeing whilst reducing your risks of heart disease and lowering your cholesterol levels. Fruit and vegetables should make up a third of our diets so you should be having at least 5 portions a day. This can be hard so why not try adding frozen vegetables to dishes? We have some great choices like Broccoli and our Baby Carrots. Always aim for a colourful plate; variety is the spice of life and with a larger variety means more of the good things like fibre, vitamins and minerals. Eating more fibre will also help lower your risk of heart disease, aiming for 30 grams a day from a variety of sources like Wholemeal Bread, Oats, Wholegrain Cereals, Potatoes with their skins and of course fruit and vegetables. Cutting down on your saturated fat is always a great way to lower your cholesterol levels - using leaner cuts of meat and lower fat dairy varieties will help so try using skimmed rather than whole milk.

The Oakhouse head office team have been doing their bit this December for those in need, with a collection of food items for the local food bank in Melksham, Wiltshire. Members of staff have been contributing items every day for a collection to be donated in time for Christmas. Melksham Foodbank was set up to help with poverty in our local area by providing a practical short term solution for a person or family between a need or a problem arising and Social Services organising benefits. A food parcel with food basics is provided for 3 days, this allows the person in need to concentrate on resolving their problem without having to think about food.

The Oakhouse Extra Mile Award Winner During the month of September we asked you to nominate your local driver if they had gone above and beyond for the Oakhouse Foods Extra Mile Award - we are very pleased to announce that the winner was Tracy Mann from our Reading branch! We had an overwhelming response with over