The eat cheats: 15 surprising ways to get your five a day

The eat cheats: 15 surprising ways to get your five a day

A shocking one in six children thinks a blueberry muffin counts towards their five a day.

Others believe jam, cereal and even milk up the quota, too.

We look at unusual things that do and those that don’t...

Baked beans on toast

Beans of any type count as one portion, plus there’s some tomato in the sauce. Serve on ­wholemeal toast for a super-healthy lunch.

A jacket potato with chilli

The bad news is ­potatoes don’t count. But on the bright side, the kidney beans in your chilli con carne topping â€" providing there’s a decent amount â€" do count.

But no matter how many beans you eat, they only count as one portion as they ­contain less ­nutrients than other fruit and ­veg.

Lemon slices in your drink

Gin and tonic anyone? Slipping decent-sized lemon segments into your drink and then nibbling on them afterwards will up your fruit quota â€" and the drink will take away some of their sour flavour.

Houmous

This tasty spread made from chickpeas counts as a portion. It’s especially healthy if you make your own â€" simply blend a can of ­chickpeas, with a little olive oil and ­garlic.

Slather the spread on to pitta  bread and add salad leaves for a tasty lunch-time wrap.

A glass of juice

Orange juice: Drink your way to five a day

 

You don’t have to eat each of your five portions â€" you can drink some. And as long as it’s 100% pure juice, it counts.

But only as one portion, no ­matter how much you drink. This is because juices don’t contain fibre (unlike a whole piece of fruit).

But watch out â€" if it’s called a “juice drink” it won’t count, as they usually contain only a small amount of juice and lots of water and sugar.

Two handfuls of olives

You’d need to nibble about 30 of these tasty bar snacks to get one portion of your ­five a day.

However, even if you don’t manage to clock up quite enough, you’ll still be ­contributing a useful amount towards one portion when they are combined with other veg or fruit.

Tinned spaghetti

According to Heinz, just half a tin of their spaghetti counts as a single portion, thanks to the number of tomatoes used in the sauce.

But do watch out for too much added salt and sugar in some varieties, which can cancel out health benefits.

Popcorn

OK, so popcorn is actually a grain, not a fruit or veg, but a study this year by ­University of Scranton in ­Pennsylvania, US, found that a portion of this cinema ­favourite was brimming with more disease-fighting nutrients than your ­average serving of fruit and vegetables!

Researchers discovered one serving of popcorn has up to 300mg of antioxidants â€" nearly double the 160mg for all fruits per serving. Choose the air-popped variety to save on calories.

A spoon of tomato puree

Did you know that just one tablespoon of this concentrated kitchen cupboard staple equals one of your five a day?

You could add this to most dishes without even noticing.

Spread it in wraps and ­sandwiches for a more flavoursome lunch or use to liven up cheese on toast, salads and pasta dishes.

The right sort of crisps

Snack: Eat the healthy, low-fat alternatives to potato crisps

 

Unfortunately, standard crisps don’t ­contribute towards your five a day.

However, many companies have now brought out healthy, low-fat ­alternatives to their potato ­predecessors â€" in the form of apple, ­parsnip, ­carrot and beetroot crisps.

Just one packet of these can often make up one of your ­portions.

Guacamole dip

The main ingredient of this tasty Mexican treat is avocado, while the home-made versions ­generally contains fresh lemon juice and tomato, too.

And if you dip with red pepper and carrot sticks, you’ll get yourself another portion.

Sweet potato wedges

Normal potato wedges don’t count, but these tasty tubers do as they are rich in the disease-fighting ­antioxidant betacarotene.

Slice into chunks, drizzle with a little olive oil and bake in a hot oven for 20 minutes for a delicious snack or side dish.

Mini packet of raisins 

It’s a myth you need to eat masses to reach a portion’s worth â€" with dried fruit, it is so concentrated that small amounts can easily make up your quota.

As a general rule of thumb, around half to one ­tablespoon of currants, raisins or two dried apricots or prunes is the equivalent of one portion.

Christmas pudding

OK, so it’s the wrong time of year but the dried fruit that Christmas pud is packed with â€" or indeed any good fruit cake â€" is as good as any other for contributing towards your five a day.

Half a chopped onion

Most of us use at least half an onion in our daily cooking â€" whether that’s in a spaghetti bolognese or a cottage pie.

But it’s easy to forget that they count as a vegetable portion because we use them to enhance flavour in the same way as we use garlic or herbs.

And five which unfortunately don't count...

1 Spuds

Disappointing: Potatoes don't count

These are a vegetable but they don’t count as a ­portion because their main nutrient is starch, which classes them in the carb category.

2 Jam

Sadly the teaspoon worth we spread on our toast doesn’t ­contain anywhere near enough fruit to count.

3 Tomato ketchup

There’s just way too much sugar and not enough ­tomatoes to qualify we’re afraid.

4 Blueberry muffins

That teensy little sprinkling of berries doesn’t add up to much in among all that cake dough.

5 Apple pie

Most pies are more pastry than fruit, so you’d need to eat a very large helping to count â€" and that’s not great or the ­waistline!