JAMIE OLIVER’S FRESH FATHERING
By Yuki Hayashi
We adored him as the laddish Naked Chef, but when he turned into a family man, young mothers everywhere fell into collective “swoon mode.” But there’s more to Jamie Oliver than being a delish dad. One of the world’s most recognized celebrity chefs, the 32-year-old Brit has starred on hit cooking shows and has authored a shelf full of books, including Jamie’s Dinners: Family Meals for Everyone (Hyperion). In recent years, though, the father of two has proven that there’s substance beneath the sizzle, spearheading a campaign to put wholesome and tasty meals on school lunch menus. Canadian Family chatted with Oliver about food, parenthood and family life.
On the eating habits of daughters Poppy, 5, and Daisy, 4:
“We’ve been fortunate in that both of them have been good with food ever since they were little. My wife, Jools, is a great mum, and she was always pureeing fresh organic fruit and veg
when they were tiny, and then later on chicken and meat and fish, so the girls are quite into trying new things.”
On getting food off the plate and into a fussy kid:
“The key is not to get annoyed if your kids don’t try the food. If you make a big deal of it, things just get worse. Just try again after a few days, and then again a few days later, and sooner or later you’ll get them tucking in.”
On weeknights in the Oliver household:
“Jools cooks because I’m often working late, although I do try to get home [early] once or twice a week to see the girls for their supper and put them to bed.”
And weekends:
“I cook on the weekends, which are always set aside as family time. We all go to our country house in Essex. We look forward to good salads fresh from our garden.”
On fighting obesity meal by meal:
“I know it’s easy to bosh something together in the microwave, but there’s so much more
satisfaction when you see your kids eating something nutritious. In my book Jamie’s Dinners, I tried a few recipes that you could knock together in about five minutes — and that was going a bit slow!”
On becoming a food activist:
“As soon as Poppy started growing up and we were thinking of schools, it concentrated my
interest in school food. The food I had when I was a kid is miles away from what the kids today are eating, and that was because of various British governments changing the laws so that big catering businesses could come into the schools and offer cheap crap instead of the good grub we used to eat.”
On getting his kids moving:
“We’re usually up in the country, so the kids can run around the garden and wear themselves
out. The girls also go to dance classes and things like that.”
On snacking by example:
“If they see you enjoying an apple or a bowl of strawberries, they’re more likely to try it themselves.”
On his favourite thing about parenthood:
“Just being able to spend time with the girls and watch them grow into brilliant little people.”
Read about two other papas we’re proud of:
MIKE WEIR: COMING OUT SWINGING
