Reaching for a frozen dinner for the kids that is healthy, made with real ingredients and simple to serve has never been easier thanks to Messy Faces.  Messy Faces delivers frozen kids meals around Melbourne – ensuring that your freezer is stocked for those nights you’re caught out, yet still want to plate up something that is healthy and that they will actually eat.

When:  Melbourne deliveries on Wednesdays, click here for more information

Cost: Meals individually are $6.95, but order five or more for a better deal.

As this was our first time using Messy Faces we ordered a Fill the Freezer pack – which included one of every meal in their range: Spaghetti Bolognese, Cottage Pie, Fish Pie, Mac and Cheese, Tuna Mornay, Vegetable Curry and Apricot Chicken Risotto.  This was a great way to try out everything and get feedback on what the kids would happily eat again.

Delivered frozen, you can keep these healthy, home cooked meals for kids in your freezer for those nights when you simply run out of time to cook.  Messy Faces meals contain no additives or preservatives, no sugar, low in salt, each has at least 2 serves of vegetables and in 3.5 minutes you can have dinner on the table.

The packaging is clever – the base is cardboard and it’s sealed with a clear cellophane film cover (so you can see the meal).  You don’t need to do anything to the packaging (no pricking or opening at a corner) it’s literally pull it out of the freezer and pop it into the microwave, once it’s ready you peel off the cellophane and transfer it into a bowl.

I often freeze meals into batches – but part of me hates the defrosting food in the plastic container at the other end (even if it’s just for a little bit to loosen it enough to transfer into another container).  I am also a bit uncomfortable about storing food in plastic in the freezer for long periods.  Possibly it’s completely unfounded, but like the ancient Egyptians and their lead makeup – I wonder what future generations will think about us and all our plastic.  And so for me the packaging got a big thumbs up.  (Oh and being cardboard it would have to be more biodegradable than plastic, another thumbs up!)

The kids gobbled up the food – we even tried some out on our baby cousin and she was happy to get in on the action.  I was lucky enough to get a few “tastes”.

The kids also remarked (as they came to sit down to dinner) how good it smelt.

I am no food photographer (and my presentation skills when it comes to plating up are laughable) but hopefully you can see the meals are filled with real food – and there was plenty of texture and flavour.

The meal sizes are probably a little on the small size for my school aged kids who are aged 6 and 9 (this month they must be going through a growth spurt as I can’t cut up enough carrot and celery sticks in-between dinner and bedtime) however for our 15 month old cousin the size was generous.