Nichola Murphy




It’s well known that the Duchess of Cornwall and Prince Charles love to eat plenty of fresh and organic produce grown at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire – but Camilla’s food choices have not always been so healthy!

Like many parents, the royal used to cook quick and easy dishes for her two children, Tom and Laura, and Camilla has even admitted to passing on some very unusual food habits to her grandchildren Prince George and Princess Charlotte.

Take a look at what Camilla eats behind closed doors…

RELATED: Camilla’s daily diet: what the Duchess eats for breakfast, lunch and dinner

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WATCH: What exactly are the royals’ snacks of choice? All is revealed

 

Snacking on this vegetable

Camilla supposedly passes up the usual snacks of biscuits or fruit for a very unusual (but very healthy) alternative…raw peas. On a school visit to Slough, England, Camilla told students: “I tell you what I really like – eating peas straight from the garden. If you take them straight from the pod they are delicious and really sweet.”

And even the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge‘s children are said to enjoy eating them. She continued: “I take all my grandchildren down to the garden and they spend hours and hours eating peas.” It certainly wasn’t what we were nibbling on at their age!

MORE: The secret code the Queen uses with staff at official dinners

 

No leftovers go to waste

camilla-market

We’re all partial to a good plate of leftovers – after all, dishes such as lasagne always taste better the second time around! This is true of the royal couple, who ensure that every piece of food is used up, even if it is turned into an entirely new dish – perfect for ensuring they don’t get bored of the same meal night after night.

Former royal chef, Carolyn Robb, told Racked: “They were always very thrifty and economical. If we made roasted lamb and there were leftovers, we’d probably go and make shepherd’s pie the next night.”

 

Ketchup is a staple

prince-george

When taking into account her love of healthy, organic foods, the last thing you’d imagine finding its way into the royal’s fridge is ketchup. But that’s apparently a staple she can’t live without, especially when Prince George and Princess Charlotte visit! 

Speaking to judge Gary Mehigan on Masterchef Australia, the Duchess confessed olive oil and tomatoes are always in the house, but she has several backups if fresh tomatoes aren’t available. “If I don’t have fresh tomatoes, then puree,” Camilla said. “And I’m afraid to say even ketchup. My grandchildren are rather addicted to ketchup.”

 

Quick and easy childhood dinners

burger

Unlike her diet today, Camilla used to cook quick and easy meals for her children Tom and Laura, including beans on toast. Tom told the Evening Standard in 2009: “And Wimpy burgers. All of that was much more glamorous than, say, roast chicken. There was a point at the beginning of the 1980s when all this convenience food suddenly appeared, and it was very exciting.”

READ: 

Meghan Markle has admitted to loving boxed macaroni and cheese from her childhood, so it seems the royals are just like us sometimes!

 

Unusual breakfast food

camilla-charles-welsh-cakes-recipe

As well as fresh scrambled eggs, the 73-year-old may also enjoy oatcakes for her first meal of the day. Clarence House’s official Instagram page recently shared the three-ingredient Scottish recipe for oatcakes, which are thought to date back to the Roman times and “are commonly eaten at breakfast or served up with a cheese board.” 

They are said to be a mix between a cracker, biscuit and pancake, and can be served warm with banana or peanut butter for breakfast.

 

Travelling with food

prince-charles-fruit

It has been reported that Prince Charles likes to carry certain foods with him when he travels, so his wife may have picked up the same habit. 

Chef Graham Newbould said in Channel 5 documentary Secrets of the Royal Kitchen: “Wherever the Prince goes in the world, the breakfast box goes with him. He has six different types of honey, some special mueslis, his dried fruit and anything that’s a bit special that he is a bit fussy about.” We wonder what foods Camilla can’t travel without…

READ: Kate Middleton’s most unusual eating habits revealed – and Princess Charlotte has inherited one