Paper Palate

The Food Network’s Robin Miller recently spoke with Cynthia Hubert of my local paper, the Sacramento Bee. As a nutritionist and cookbook author, Miller offered tips on packing healthy lunchboxes for kids (and I guess for adults, too). Here are a few excerpts from the interview and you can check out the whole thing here.

Q: You’ve been a food journalist for 12 years. How did you land the Food Network gig?

A: One of the producers saw me on “The View.” I’d just had my second son, Luke, and I was talking about how I manage my crazy life. Food Network asked me, “Do you think you have enough material for a pilot?” I said, “I’ll make sure that I do.” The response to the show was just overwhelming. We’ve just finished Seasons 5 and 6.

Q: What do your viewers and readers most want to know?

A: The No. 1 question that I get nationwide is, “How can I get my picky eater to eat good food?” One of the keys is getting your kids involved in the cooking process. Mine use blunt scissors to cut herbs; they stir and whisk ingredients. It’s science and it’s math. It’s fun, and it empowers them. When they help cook, they can’t wait to taste what they’ve made. My kids are 5 and 3 years old, and they’ll try anything now.

Q: How do you keep them away from junk food?

A: I’ve never used it as a reward, and it’s never been a forbidden thing, either, so it’s not a big deal. My kids have never had sodas, so they don’t crave them. But we do get French fries. We eat chips and salsa. We have pizza once a week, and we put pepperoni on it. I’ve given Kyle a slice of whole grain bread, a few pistachio nuts, some cheese and some doughnut holes for breakfast, and sometimes it’s the doughnut holes that he leaves on the plate. He’s always eaten what we eat, so when we go out to dinner, he’ll order things like tilapia and garlicky broccoli.

Q: Kyle’s now eating lunch at school. How’s that going?

A: He lasted a few days on the school lunch program. He’s a little beanpole, but there wasn’t enough food for him, and not enough choices. I see lots of chicken nuggets and fried chicken sandwiches on the menu. Today, I sent him off with pasta and parmesan, some whole-grain crackers, a cheese stick, and whole-grain pretzels and yogurt. I guarantee you he’ll come home with an empty lunch box.

Q: How do you find time to pack him a healthy lunch every day?

A: I always make it the night before. I do it while dinner is in the oven or while they’re brushing their teeth. It doesn’t take more than a few minutes. I put together five or six little packages of things, and I like to include a small surprise, like cutting the whole-grain bread into hearts, or including a bag of yogurt-covered pretzels or dried cranberries.