Deceiving The G: the truth about baked beans . . . .

Fresh produce, The G-style......

The G's aversion to all things organic endures . . . .

The code that has long governed her eating habits continuing, getting her to even consider trying anything that has grown on a tree or a bush or beneath the ground remains a challenging undertaking.

Fearing the imminent onset of scurvy, I've spent recent times engaged in an important experiment. The conclusion I've reached is that getting The G to eat her five-a-day, for so long unthinkable, might not be as difficult as it first appeared.

The important thing here is to ensure that the component parts are never presented in their conventional form.

Take an apple, for instance.

On its own, this is deemed to be 'Yakky'. In the guise of juice, however, it is more than acceptable.

Blackberries, grapes, strawberries and blackcurrants? Forget about it.

Smoothie? Yes please.

It seems it's just about being creative.

Factor in raisins, mashed potato and 'fruit pots' - these the simple apple and pear purees, more often fed to small babies, that she has, for inexplicable reasons, always enjoyed - and improving The G's diet has at last become a manageable task.

The secret weapon in all this is the faithful baked bean which, thanks to some shrewd marketing from Heinz, I've come to realise can be counted as one of the aforementioned five.

There's little that The G enjoys more than beans. I just have to hope she never finds out about their organic origins . . . .