Mark 17 May in your diary…

We are going to be part of Jamie Olivers Food Revolution Day to celebrate real food, where it comes from and how to cook it!

I will be running an afternoon cooking session at 4pm 17 May on this site.  It will run pretty much like our school holiday cooking program and will be a short, sharp and seriously fun session!!

More details will follow – but  I will have you cooking up a meal that your family will LOVE – I am thinking of something that is totally iconically Kiwi!

This will be our second year of supporting this day!

Wow I’ve done it – I have my first book in the iTunes Apple iBookstore!

I’ve spent much of my university holidays working on a series of new publications for you – this first one is now available.

You are going to love this – for any of you are iPad fans this is so so cool! This first book is summer stuff – light summery food, barbecues, salads and in of course there are some sweet treats too!

I have five review copies to give away – if you would like a free copy to review please email  glenda@foodsavvykids.com and she will send you a code.

Click here to see the blurb etc in iTunes…

Teenager Claire Gourley shares her food discovery journey with easy, quick recipes and tips to get kids food savvy. For kids aged 9 – 16, this book reflects Claire’s food motto – “I don’t do complicated” and is all about making cooking fun and achievable.
Claire recipes work, taste great and are really really easy. If she didn’t find them reliable, tasty and easy, she ditched them! She has added lots of photos, tips and things kids will probably want answered as they are cooking… for anything a bit tricky she links to her YouTubes.

Claire wants to know enough about food to take good care of herself. She figures lots of kids are the same as her – they love eating food but they’re always busy with friends, school and sport, so they can’t really be bothered spending too much time cooking – but that doesn’t mean want to settle for average food!

It’s My Turn To Cook takes kids on Claire’s food journey as she has worked out what she needs to know to get food savvy! She has gathered quick, easy recipes made a lot of YouTubes, and asked a lot of questions. She intertwines food and nutrition tips so that while kids are cooking they also get skills to make good food choices.

Many cookbooks are written by adults for adults and while they may look beautiful they are often boring… Claire doesn’t do boring!! This informal chatty approach has much appeal with kids of all ages.

The other two titles are now finishing off are

• It’s My Turn to Cook Quick Food and
• It’s My Turn to Cook Bread

This is a guest blog from Rachel Barnard – I love these ideas and it really cool to have her contribute! I’m sure you will love what she suggests – I do!

Look and feel your best with these 5 healthy party foods

You’ve got straight A’s, an appointment at the best salon in town, and a gorgeous little black dress from the 2012 Sherri Hill line, but the last thing you want is to unflatteringly fill out it’s waistline thanks to too many unhealthy snacks at your graduation party. It’s true: too much salt or sugar can make you bloat or swell in unattractive areas and turn your beautiful party look into a hot mess.

Instead, aim to throw a graduation party with healthy foods in mind. Ditch the fatty chips and dip for a few guilt-free, low calorie party snacks that’ll keep you looking sensational in your graduation attire.

Check out the following figure-friendly, low calorie party snacks to dress your table with—oh, and did I mention you won’t have to spend hours in the kitchen to prepare them either…

1. Fresh Veggie Thai Roll Ups

I love Thai food, and every time I order it, I’m sure to choose these yummy, healthy rolls as my appetizer. Not only are they deliciously-good-for-you recipe is chalked full of shredded greens, crunchy carrots, flavorful mango all dipped in savory soy sauce (low sodium of course) and spicy chili sauce. The proteins and good fats come from non-salted peanuts (or substitute with any nut of your preference). Simply roll up shredded baby book choy, julienned asparagus, cucumbers and carrot, sprinkled in some slivers of fresh mango and roll individual portions into rice paper wraps. You’ll want to immerse these in hot water first to make them malleable. Prepare a dipping bowl with the low sodium soy sauce and chili sauce, and you can even put some pickled ginger on the side as a dressing condiment.

2. Fresh Rainbow Salsa

This fresh and chunky salsa is a party for your taste buds! Featuring the vegetarian protein of black and kidney beans, and zested up with freshly squeezed lime juice, green chilies, chili powder, green onions, a pinch of exotic ground cumin, plus plum tomatoes and black olives—this colorful salsa has got what it takes to be the showcase of your party table. Chop all ingredients and mix in a bowl to refrigerate overnight. You can even offer some low fat sour cream as a delicious and healthy side. And offer alongside some baked tortilla chips or pita wedges for scooping.

3. Crunchy Veggie Tray with Guacamole

Guacamole is the perfect party favor—especially when that party is in the summer. Why? Not only is guacamole an understandably popular dip, it’s full of healthy fats too! Use 6 ripe avocados (test by squeezing them in the store, they should be a bit mushy). Cut them lengthwise, twist, and remove the pit. Scoop the avocado meat into a bowl and add lime juice, garlic, and salt and pepper to season. You can even add some chopped cherry tomatoes and green onions for added zing.  Set your guacamole dip in the middle of a tray of variety of fresh, raw vegetables.

4. Apples and Goat Cheese Canapés

Take the tanginess of Granny Smith apples and the creaminess of Greek goat cheese and what do you get—deliciousness! These appetizers really bring the zing with the sour-sweetness of green apples and ground pepper. Core apples and cut into inch-thick apple slices then top with creamy goat cheese and drizzle with a bit of honey. Bake in the oven for just 5 minutes and ta-da—they’ll be coming back for more!

5. Garlic Flatbread “Pizza”

Take-out pizza is a caloric nightmare. However, if you put fresh ingredients—such as low fat mozzarella or goat cheese, fresh tomato sauce, lean chicken, and loads of veggies on lower calorie flat bread, you can still have pizza and maintain a healthy weight as well! Load on your ingredients then bake in the oven for 10 to 15 minutes until the cheese melts. Then cut and place on wooden cutting boards for guests to pick their favorite slice.

Bios: Rachel Barnard is a freelance writer for Apron Addicts, a popular site that features tips on hosting parties, entertaining and recipes.

I want to tell you a story about mushrooms and me… I used to hate them – in fact I used to go to all sorts of drama picking them out of food. This went on for years. Then one day I was at a friends place and I felt I couldn’t pick them out of the food because it would look too rude. So I ate them… and guess what – I loved them!

So then I had to eat a bit of humble pie – because I had always made such a fuss, (yes – I admit I was an anti-mushroom drama queen) so I was sure my family were going to give me heaps about changing my mind – but they didn’t really. Truth is I hadn’t eaten them for about 5 or 6 years… and in that time I am sure my taste buds must have changed – because NOW I LOVE THEM!!!

So the moral of my story – just because you don’t like a food once – doesn’t mean you won’t like it forever. On another day, cooked in another way, or in a different setting when you are in a different mood,… so give foods a second chance – you may just find your new favorite.

PS: Think what you would miss out on if you never tried  a food more than once – what foods have you ruled out??

I love it when I find other people who are on the same mission as me!! Next week the NZ Nutrition Foundation’ s Food Week 2012 runs. I am totally supporting the  Just Cook concept so will be on TVNZ U at 6pm on Tuesday the 8th May to encourage everyone to Just Cook !! This is really supports  my It’s My Turn To Cook Tonight Bosch School Holiday Cook in Program.  I want all of the kids who were on the  holiday program are  to get in behind Just Cook and rustle up at least one family meal. We know after their week on the School Holiday Program they are absolutely able to! And if you weren’t on my program (haha I know you will be next time cos the prizes were sooooo good!!) then you should give it a go too – I got such good feed back how much you enjoyed the challenge/ chance / opportunity to actually make a whole meal…so rise to the occasion – you may surprise yourself!

Food Week’s  theme is  Just Cook. Just cook a family meal and sit down and enjoy with your family. But hey – I think it is fun to cook for your friends too!

Just Cook runs a couple of competitions too  - so check out www.justcook.co.nz and see if you can get involved!

Wow, what an amazing week its been!

Most parents want us to be able to rustle up a snack or meal, know how much to eat and the difference between a good choice and a not-so-good choice. The impact of us not being able to do this pretty obvious and is sending a few parents into a spin!

So my mother Glenda and I wrote a book life love food kids to give your down to earth strategies and practical tips to help parents.  My mother considers the serious stuff (nutrition, self esteem, eating too much junk food or not enough vegetables etc) and I bring her back to earth so she remembers how we think and operate. Her website for parents is www.foodsavvykids.com  – and yes it is safe for you to send them there – she won’t insist that they feed you only cottage cheese and celery sticks – I have made sure of that!!    

Life love food kids is a book about journeys.  My mothers food journey – from when she was a little girl to now. It’s about what happens when childhood memories, the science of nutrition and the teaching of cooking get mixed up with family and life.  And my journey about getting myself ready to leave home and wanting to know enough about food so that she can look after herself.   As I say “It feels good to know I know enough about food to take good care of myself.”

I have just watched the movie Julie and Julia and I loved it – has fired me up and I have cooked each night this week – has been fun – my favorites have been  a potato tortilla ( so easy and really tasty) and an apple tarte tartin – a sort of upside down apple pie…  I think I need to blog more and I have just found the inspiration… although I have to say that was a LOT of recipes no wonder Julie nearly went crazy…

I think you should start the year off the way you mean to finish  learn to be more independent this year… these are my 5 reasons you need to ‘ get some cooking skills’…

That's my little brother William on the cover with me!

If  your parents are thinking you should learn to be food savvy  - here is the thing I have co-wrtten a book for parents  with my mother.  My mother looks at the serious things ( nutrition, self esteem, eating too much junk food, food skills etc )  - I bring her back to earth so she remembers how kids think and operate…Together we have something that is really realistic!

 Life love food kids is a book is about a couple of journeys…

 There is my mother’s food journey – from when she was a little girl to now. It’s about what happens when childhood memories, the science of nutrition and the teaching of cooking get mixed up with family and life. 

 My part in her journey is about me getting ready to leave home and wanting to know enough about food so that I can look after myself. 

My favorite saying is ‘a journey of 1000 miles begins with a single step’. This is really true about food – each time I have learnt a fact or how to do something has been a step towards my independence.

I think the lessons from our differing perspectives will help your parent to  help you travel along the same path as I have. It feels good to know I know enough about food to take good care of myself. 

Claire

PS – it will be on sale in about 4 weeks – watch this space!