Even celebrity culinary experts with an endless array of fantastic ingredients at their disposal think about healthy cooking. Renowned chefs Rocco DiSpirito, Melissa d’Arabian, Andrew Zimmern and Marcus Samuelsson were on hand to demonstrate just that at Fun and Fit in the City, an event promoting healthy living for kids from the Harlem Children’s Zone and their families.
Approximately 2,300 attendees converged at the Harlem Armory for fitness, educational and cooking activities during the event, which was produced by the Food Network New York City Wine & Food Festival. Families looking to get active could try out Zumba and yoga, gymnastics, double dutch jump roping, tennis and even golf. Those more inclined to using their green thumb spent time in the gardening area, learning how to plant and grow fresh herbs. And everyone flocked to the live cooking demos from the four food icons – it didn’t hurt that samples of their yummy and nutritious dishes were available – which showed how produce and protein available in Target’s expanded fresh grocery section can create easy and satisfying meals for the whole family.
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Each chef had a fresh perspective on incorporating healthy ingredients into daily diets. Local favorite Marcus Samuelsson – owner of comfort food haven Red Rooster Harlem – likes to give simple foods simply delicious flavor by adding seasonings.
How do you create recipes with healthy ingredients that are still going to taste terrific?
Marcus Samuelsson: As a chef, it’s really part of our responsibility. I suggest adding spices or mixing up recipes that people are already familiar with. Take mac n’ cheese – but take away some of the cheese and add vegetables. There’s a familiarity for the family, yet there is also a healthier food mixed in as well.
What is your favorite healthy meal to cook?
MS: I love eating a grilled piece of fish with just a squeeze of lemon on top and a side of fresh potatoes – some of the healthiest and easiest food you can possibly make.
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On her Food Network Show Ten Dollar Dinners with Melissa d’Arabian, Melissa focuses on affordable and satisfying meals for families. Her secret for getting kids to eat vegetables? Give them more choices.
What is your favorite healthy meal to cook?
Melissa d’Arabian: I always have whole grain pasta in my cupboard because I can just add vegetables – it’s really fast and easy. Whole grain pastas have tons of protein and fiber in them. I love it! Whole grain pasta is a mom’s best friend.
What advice would you give to parents with picky eaters?
MA: I have four little girls, so I know a thing or two about picky eaters. My best advice: serve two vegetables. That way they have the choice – do you want peas or do you want carrots tonight? It’s much easier to have kids choose a vegetable then to say eat your vegetables.
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Andrew Zimmern has traveled the globe and eaten some pretty daring cuisine – tarantulas, anyone? – for his Travel Channel show Bizarre Foods. For parents who have trouble getting kids to warm up to much less extreme healthy foods, he recommends making them active participants in the meal by taking kids along when shopping for groceries.
How do you create recipes with healthy ingredients that are still going to taste terrific?
Andrew Zimmern: I create healthy meals that taste great very simply because healthy food is delicious. What you’ve got to remember is that fruit in season tastes ripe, sweet and yummy; and vegetables in season taste full-flavored. Eating seasonally and eating fresh is the best idea. I also use contrast and really think about the food. If I’m making a tomato salad that has a lot of acid, I’m going to want something that balances that out like slices of mozzarella cheese or pieces of thinly sliced broiled steak. I’m always thinking about contrasts between fat and acid, spicy and sweet, salty and sour, crunchy and soft, cold and hot – and that makes food more interesting.
What is your favorite healthy meal to cook?
AZ: Oh easy! Shabu-shabu. We have it once a week in our house. It’s a Japanese hot pot meal. I put an electric skillet in the middle of the dining table, cut about ten different types of vegetables and lay out some chicken and shrimp. Everybody gets a bowl of rice and you dip the meat or veggies into the pot of broth and different dipping sauces. It’s a Japanese boiled dinner of the highest order – it’s fantastic.
What advice would you give to parents with picky eaters?
AZ: I’m going to get in trouble here, but I don’t believe there are picky eaters! American families tell me “my kid won’t eat vegetables,” “my child won’t eat fish,” or “I can’t get them to eat anything other than chicken fingers.” Well, I spend my life traveling around the world and I can tell you there are whole countries where children only eat fish and fresh vegetables and have never had a chicken finger in their entire life. The problem isn’t the children – it’s the cultural messaging that parents and television give them. If we tell our children that vegetables are tasty and good for you, they are going to try them. But if your child is already picky and you’re trying to come up with a solution, have your child pick out the food they want to eat and shop for it. If they pick something like chicken fingers, they also have to pick two items that go with it. Gradually, you increase the nutritious foods and decrease the chicken fingers. The minute children take some ownership over their meals – whether it’s shopping or cooking or hopefully both – it changes the family dynamic.
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