The raisin can be inspirational whether at breakfast, lunch or dinner

From sweet treats to splendid, savoury meals, the humble raisin is as versatile as it is delicious and taste great in a host of foods. Here are three fabulous ways with little, dried grapes.

Sweet chicken curry

If the kids aren’t big fans of curry in the traditional sense, then give things a sweet kick by adding raisins. They will love the flavours and might even transition them into ‘curry-eating’ territory! Use cubed chicken breast or simply strip down a cooked chicken, making sure not to add any bones, either work fine. Dice an onion, fry it off and add the chicken until cooked almost through. The kitchen is your oyster after this.

We like diced apple, a few generous handfuls of raisins, chopped almonds and a tin of coconut cream. If you still need some liquid, add some hot water, stir and simmer. If you’re not feeding fussy little ones a blast of curry powder or turmeric can help spice things up a bit. Tinged a bright and intriguing yellow it’s sweet yet spicy, crunchy yet juicy, full of good-for-you ingredients and easy-to-make.

Seven-cup muesli

This make-your-own muesli will set you up for a busy day, plus it counts as one of your five-a-day, is high in iron and packed with fibre.

Grab three handfuls of oats, one handful of mixed nuts, including macadamia if possible, half a handful of sesame seeds and sunflower seeds, a handful of raisins, as well as a small handful of dried cranberries and dried, ready-to-eat apricots.

Tip all the ingredients into a large airtight container, shake it up and wait for morning! Serve with soya or semi-skimmed milk and if you’re feeling adventurous, throw in some chopped, fresh seasonal fruit like pears, banana, pineapple, papaya, passion fruit or grapes.

The mince pie

Not only reserved for the festive season the humble mince pie deserves a shout out.. Packed full of raisins, and an awful lot more, you can enjoy them warmed up with a cup of tea, or nice and cold with a glass of milk.

Whichever takes your fancy, the mince pie is one of Britain’s favourite festive treats, which is strange as history states they are not actually British. While mince pies have been widely accepted as a British tradition, the idea actually started in the Middle East in the 13th Century.

European crusaders returning to their homelands brought recipes that included meats, fruits and spices - which inspired the notion for a mince pie. As the name might imply, once upon a time mince pies contained mincemeat mixed with fruits and spices to help preserve it. As time went on, it became progressively sweeter until the mince was removed all together - but the name remained.