0:02

Welcome to Katie's Crib, a production of Shondaland

0:04

Audio in partnership with iHeartRadio.

0:07

Any advice for parents who are packing lunches for their

0:09

first time kindergartener, which I'm about

0:11

to do.

0:12

Make it very easy for them. I would

0:14

always think about how are you going to get the most nutrients

0:17

in every single bite? So

0:19

like raw fruits, raw vegetables.

0:22

Don't make it hard for them. Don't make

0:24

anything where they have to like peel stuff

0:26

off, like make it easy.

0:29

Do a bento box so immediately you lift

0:31

it, you see all of your choices, because you'd

0:33

be shocked that sometimes kids will

0:35

end up eating the cucumber

0:38

for the cookie because I

0:40

don't know. Their bodies are different than ours.

0:42

Thirsty and they just wanted

0:44

something else exactly. Hello,

0:53

everybody, Welcome back to Katie's Crib.

0:56

Today's guest makes me salivate.

0:59

Her food is delicious.

1:00

She packs the best kids

1:03

lunches I've ever seen. And for all of your mothers listening

1:05

who have school age children, I'm

1:08

sure you follow people on Instagram or have looked

1:10

people up on blogs or whatever where you see

1:12

all these moms making like the most amazing

1:15

packed lunches ever, and you feel like a failure

1:17

because your lunches suck compared to that. It

1:20

ends here. Stop feeling

1:22

like shit about yourself. We've got the

1:24

one and only Catherine McCord here today,

1:27

who is the Instagram

1:29

behind we Delicious. I'm

1:32

telling you all of her posts and pictures

1:34

and recipes and descriptions

1:36

of how you pack a kick ass kids

1:38

lunch that they actually eat, and how to get them to eat

1:40

it. She makes it seem

1:43

achievable, easy and doable, and

1:45

I.

1:45

Actually use all of her tips and tricks.

1:47

Not only that, but I know her personally because

1:49

she's a former actress who I've done

1:52

seen classes with together when we were up

1:54

and coming like twenty years ago in LA. I don't

1:56

even think i've seen her since then, so we've got a

1:58

lot to catch up on. Let me

2:00

tell you about her. Her name is Katherine McCord.

2:02

She's a formal model, actress, and television

2:04

program hostess. She's the founder of we Delicious,

2:08

a website dedicated to helping parents expose

2:10

their children to wholesome, delicious, homemade

2:12

food. She's a best selling author of three

2:14

books, The Smoothie Project, Welicious,

2:17

Lunches and we Delicious Enhanced

2:19

edition, and at the time of our recording, her

2:21

fourth book, Meal Prep Magic Time

2:24

Saving Tricks for Stress Free

2:26

Eating, was just about to be released

2:29

as of early April. Now it's available

2:31

wherever books are sold, so make sure you get a

2:33

copy. McCord is married to film producer

2:35

and former movie studio executive Jonathan

2:37

Gordon. A couple have three children, Kenya,

2:40

Chloe and Gemma Catherine.

2:43

Hi, it's been forever, Hi,

2:51

I was busy doing your very

2:53

sassy, sexy intro.

2:56

Was it sassy and sexy? I hope so?

2:59

And what the hell

3:01

scene did we do in Lesli Khan?

3:03

Do you remember this?

3:04

Oh my god, I love that you just remember

3:06

that. I have no idea what the scene was, but

3:08

we.

3:09

Were paired up.

3:10

Yes, I think I was twenty

3:13

five, so that's fifteen years

3:15

ago. Yeah, And you're so

3:17

tall and beautiful, and I just remember

3:20

us being assigned a scene together. And

3:22

I had a one room studio

3:25

apartment literally a piece

3:27

of shit, but really anuffort made

3:29

for small people, like for people

3:32

only four foot five and below.

3:34

And you are very tall and modelesque.

3:37

As we know, you were a former model

3:39

actress and television post. But

3:42

I remember us rehearsing the scene and my

3:44

couch was also a futon was also the bed

3:47

I was staying in, and we were trying to like

3:49

block the scene around my apartment,

3:51

and I'm like, this tall,

3:54

gorgeous creature can't even take a step

3:56

in this piece of shit, tiny

3:59

thing.

4:00

I'm so happy to see you.

4:02

I can't believe what it is that you've made

4:04

of your life, your three beautiful children,

4:06

the incredibly successful books

4:09

and website and Instagram, and information

4:12

that you are bringing to all of

4:14

us mothers out there in a very

4:16

saturated market. I have to say, like,

4:20

I get so much inspiration

4:23

from you and the food

4:25

you are giving to your children.

4:27

How did this come about?

4:29

I was very obsessed from a very

4:32

young age in cooking from

4:34

Kentucky. My grandparents were into farming, growing

4:36

their own food. So they

4:39

had a big old compost in the back

4:41

that they would just throw everything and it would have

4:43

like insane tomatoes and peas,

4:46

all this stuff growing off of it. I was

4:48

just like super obsessed from a very

4:50

young age. There was no oil or but

4:52

it. It was just a scoop of bacon, grease and everything.

4:56

I had Bonappetite and Gourmet

4:58

when I was ten years old and had a subscribe. Shouldn't

5:00

obsessed with cookbooks, And it wasn't until I

5:02

went to culinary school. I mean that was like definitely

5:04

the trajectory. Somehow, like modeling and

5:06

other things got in the way, but like, that's the thing

5:09

I really always wanted to do.

5:11

Wow, you make

5:13

food looks so good.

5:14

I don't for those of you listening who don't

5:17

follow Wheelishes on Instagram,

5:19

and you want to watch her children go with her

5:21

to the farmer's market and show

5:24

what her spread looks like and how she

5:26

shops and how she then translates

5:29

it into food for the week, and it's

5:31

so remarkable. And your children

5:34

are literally like sitting on curbs at

5:36

farmers' markets, like crushing raw frickin'

5:39

brussels prus. Yeah,

5:41

okay, so that's how you got started.

5:44

Yes?

5:44

Do you think that because

5:47

of you your kids have been raised in the same way

5:49

or one of your three kids is

5:51

like a very picky eater or something, so you've

5:54

gotten to experience my side of the coin.

5:56

Hi, By the way, I love that you're asking this because

5:59

I have been thinking about this so much lately,

6:01

because I have a sixteen

6:03

year old, an almost fourteen year old, and

6:06

a seven year old. They have all grown up in the

6:08

same house. They all eat

6:11

everything. I will put everything in quotes,

6:13

but everything. My son, though, became

6:16

a vegetarian when he was five on

6:18

his own, like we

6:21

were like, who are you? And even when he was little,

6:24

meat or if he would chew, and he was never

6:26

into it period the end. My middle daughter

6:29

she looks at a steak like it

6:31

is the Mona Lisa. It is

6:33

the most beautiful thing she's ever

6:35

seen at all times. So I

6:37

do think that nature versus nurture

6:40

being around food, like they'll all eat every

6:42

fruit and vegetable. So I do

6:44

think that I was able to be like, Okay,

6:47

here it is exposure. Let's

6:49

go to the farmer's market. Let's have it on your plate,

6:52

let's have it steamed and roasted, air

6:54

fried brags

6:56

like with saws without without

6:58

Yeah exactly. But I do think

7:00

that all you can have experiences

7:03

like what My middle daughter will not eat orange

7:05

cheese. It is a hard pass. She threw

7:07

up mac and cheese when she was six years old

7:10

and that was it. But I

7:12

do think a lot of it has to do with

7:14

the way they're raised and like the

7:16

exposure.

7:18

So let's say she doesn't give like orange cheese.

7:20

Was there a time where you were still putting orange cheese

7:23

on the plate and like offering it for her

7:25

to decide and maybe change her mind? Or is it

7:27

just taking off the menu for her? And if you're making

7:29

something with orange cheese for dinner for everybody,

7:32

you don't make it on hers, Like how

7:34

do.

7:34

You do that?

7:35

So okay, let's even go back earlier.

7:37

If your kid's like, I'm not eating broccoli,

7:40

ugh, You're going to try ten different times,

7:42

ten different ways, and they will eventually like

7:44

it unless there's some kind of I do

7:46

think that there are predispositions to just

7:49

not liking certain foods, and that's okay,

7:52

But I would say

7:54

that almost every fruit or vegetable like

7:56

that's something that we It

7:59

takes some more, it takes some work. If

8:01

something happens to a child that they're like,

8:04

we did twenty three and meters with my

8:06

son, Yes, and he has eighty seven percent

8:08

predisposition to be to vegetarianism.

8:11

That type of thing.

8:13

Is just is real.

8:14

It's very real. But I

8:17

think it's exposure. I think you have to keep trying

8:19

with kids, and there is such a thing as picky

8:21

kids and kids that have no control in their life,

8:23

and so they all food becomes the

8:26

one thing they can be like, I'm not

8:28

gonna eat that.

8:29

A bunch of seasons ago, we had this amazing

8:32

nutritionist, pediatric nutritionist

8:34

come on, who was very much about

8:37

when you're making a plate for your kid,

8:40

it's like you always give them

8:43

a definite, like something that they

8:45

always eat regardless, and you always

8:47

give them a maybe, and then you can

8:50

always also give them the no.

8:52

God.

8:52

Now I'm in this thing with my two year old daughter where the

8:55

minute she sits down at the table, if there's

8:57

something on her plate that she doesn't like, she points

8:59

at it. She may a gagging sound. Jesus

9:02

to sit down unless it's removed from her plate.

9:04

And I know I'm speaking for all of us moms out there,

9:06

like I'm tired. I'm like, fine,

9:08

fuck it, I don't care, get it off the fucking plate. Like

9:11

whatever are we having pasta wheels

9:13

again? Pasta wheels again? Do

9:15

you stick by that I'm

9:17

making one dinner for the whole

9:20

family. Is that something you've you

9:22

put in to effect early on with your kids.

9:24

Yeah. The first Reelicious cookbook is called One

9:26

Family, One Meal, because I was like, I'm not going

9:29

to be a short order cook. I'm not going

9:31

to be like who wants eggs? And who wants waffles?

9:33

And who wants pancakes? And you want blueberry? It's

9:35

too much. When I was growing up, it

9:37

was like, here you go eat it. This

9:39

is it. We are a catering

9:41

to our children. Generation are

9:44

We're so concerned about their happiness and

9:46

every bite that goes in their mouth and their friends

9:48

and everything, and we need like the solution

9:50

for me which has become a win. And

9:52

this is what I do at dinner every night. I do a

9:54

diy dinner and I put

9:57

out everything because

9:59

also when you have a vegetarian, it's easier

10:01

that way. So it's taco nights, so there's ground

10:03

turkey, and there's guacamole and salt.

10:06

But you have to eat a vegetable

10:08

or a fruit. It is not an.

10:09

Option at every meal.

10:11

Every meal. It's like a hard it's just it's

10:13

a hard pass to not

10:16

But I do always tell my kids, like we do

10:18

donut Fridays where we go at for donuts.

10:20

Oh god, yes, that right,

10:23

at the time reporting.

10:24

Let it be known that's also be donut Friday.

10:27

It has to be donut Friday. But it means that other

10:30

days, like I made chia

10:32

pudding for breakfast and I'm like, oh, there's no

10:34

fruit, but I know that my daughter's snack

10:36

has a fruit. The exposure if

10:38

they're not seeing it, and then all of a sudden it shows

10:41

up, even with a two year old. Though, I

10:43

think dy is such a great move

10:45

because when kids have

10:48

their plate just show up and they're

10:50

like ford objects. I have

10:52

no control. I don't what is all this opposed

10:55

to, like two choices, Like we've always

10:57

done the two choice rule in our house. Do you have carrots?

10:59

A do you want celery or apples

11:02

or whatever it is? So I think giving

11:04

especially younger kids

11:07

some choice, that's your choice,

11:09

really.

11:10

Right, because I'm cool with either thing they pick

11:13

exactly. So are all these

11:15

things on a buffet and

11:17

then they sit down or is all of these bowls like in the middle

11:19

of your kitchen table is if you're feasteering

11:22

Family's not funny.

11:24

It's funny you asked that we happen to have an

11:26

island and a kitchen table. So I tend

11:28

to put the food on the island and

11:31

like people stand up as they want more, doesn't

11:34

matter, it's what works for your family. Like the

11:36

DIY situation, it just

11:39

works better. My other company, One Potato,

11:42

it's very much built on that, where it's

11:44

like here's the idea of the meal. But like

11:46

you can break it down. One

11:49

Potatoes a family meal delivery

11:51

company, so you can get up to three dinners,

11:53

bento boxes, fully prepared smoothies,

11:57

lunches, everything. The

11:59

meal are made to be very DIY

12:02

and that you know, if you have a kid that just

12:04

hates carrots, but you want to make this meal,

12:07

you can just leave the carrots at It's not a big deal.

12:10

I just can't believe what your children

12:12

need, Like I can't believe.

12:13

Like I feel like we're doing pretty

12:16

good, Like I've got one who love steak, one

12:18

who hates steak, one who likes salmon, one

12:20

that's hates salmon, one that likes broccoli,

12:22

one that hates broccoli, but one that loves they

12:24

both love c couvers.

12:26

Like I.

12:27

Every parent has.

12:30

Their battles to pick right that are

12:33

just massive triggers in

12:35

themselves. I'm weirdly

12:38

not completely freaking out that my kids

12:41

don't crush vegetables. Look,

12:44

do I wish it was different? Sure, Again,

12:46

it's not keeping me up at night. However, there

12:48

are other things for those listening that do keep

12:50

me up at night. But I have a lot

12:52

of moms that this is the

12:55

battle. This is the worry about

12:58

what are they eating? How much are they eating?

13:00

Is it good for them? Is it healthy?

13:02

Are they eating their lunch? What

13:05

do you tell parents and moms you're

13:07

working at just to deal with the stress of

13:09

this.

13:10

I think you have to look at it as like in

13:12

three or four day chunks or even seven

13:14

day chunks, because also, let's just

13:17

remember like little people's

13:19

dot their system is

13:21

just developing and they're trying to figure it out.

13:24

And you may have a child that just can't

13:26

poop, and so they're like, I'm constipated,

13:28

but they don't know that they're constipating. You're like, why aren't

13:30

you eating? Do you not like this? There's so much

13:33

self loathing and so much like emotional

13:36

stuff that goes into it, and I think you have

13:38

to just let it go sometimes. That's

13:40

why I like the DIY because make a

13:42

bunch of foods and hope that like

13:45

Timmy eats broccoli on Tuesday

13:47

and Wednesday, but maybe he's just not feeling

13:50

it on the next two days. I think that you

13:52

have to look at every week as like

13:54

an overall win and not

13:57

as like every meal. There's so much

13:59

pressure. Sure, and you can even do things

14:01

which I've seen incentivizing some kids,

14:03

and like everyone has a different kid that everyone's

14:06

different with this, but like we did a palm

14:08

palm jar for a whole different

14:11

thing, but you can do a pom pom jar for food. Like

14:13

you're gonna get a palm palm for every

14:16

new vegetable you try, and when the jar is

14:18

filled up, you we're gonna go like

14:21

a special day to I

14:23

don't know, the park. It doesn't have to be

14:25

food related, or it can be a

14:28

cake party. We're gonna get a special cake for you.

14:30

Or kids are very visual in

14:32

that they can see that win. Oh my god,

14:34

I ate all those different vegetables.

14:37

So you're you're putting the stress

14:39

on exposure versus

14:42

like actually enjoying.

14:43

It's like actually trying things.

14:46

But what you just said, like my child

14:48

only likes cucumbers and carrots, I'm like, that's awesome.

14:50

Cucumbers and carrots are two highly nutritious

14:53

foods. Sure that those are wins.

14:55

Instead of being like that's all they eat,

14:58

look at it. Spin it into a positive

15:00

and every time that they your

15:02

child now eats cucumber's, carrots

15:05

and broccoli. You want kids to feel

15:07

empowered when you start to think

15:09

that you, as a parent, are responsible for twenty

15:12

one meals plus snacks per

15:14

child for eighteen years. It's

15:16

the one thing you cannot get away from

15:19

unless you know your kid is like stealing

15:21

the keys to your car. Like the reason

15:24

that all the cheese It's got in your house

15:26

was because of you. We have to take some responsibility

15:30

but also be easier on ourselves.

15:33

Totally. Did you have cheese

15:35

its or goldfish in your house?

15:37

No? I make them homemade.

15:40

Oh my god, get the fuck out

15:42

of here, goodbye.

15:44

No, I'm kidding. It's amazing.

15:46

But wait a minute. Here's my hack is I make a ton

15:48

of them and then I freeze them, so you pop

15:50

them out and then they defrost in thirty seconds. You

15:53

have them all the time, but you only make one batch

15:55

like a month or every month or two.

15:58

And they are actually as good as of regular

16:00

ass goldfish.

16:01

They're better, but because they're made with homemade

16:04

cheese, like real good.

16:06

My dad is watering.

16:07

I love it so good, They're so good.

16:20

Talk to me about reward based

16:22

food stuff? Is that like the no go in

16:24

your house. I don't think anyone knew

16:26

in the eighties or nineties that this could

16:29

equal out into food

16:32

issues. And my husband and I are

16:34

two products of that, where like, Okay, you had

16:37

the greatest thing happen, you get

16:39

some fucking junk food. Or you had

16:41

the worst day of your life, guess what you

16:44

get to go house? An Italian meal and a canoli

16:46

whatever it is.

16:47

You know what I mean?

16:47

But like we either the best and the worst

16:50

are both rewarded with food. Talk

16:53

to me on this topic.

16:54

I think it's very specific person a person.

16:58

I think that if you can somehow I'll

17:00

wrap it into less reward and

17:03

being like should we go get an ice cream tonight or should

17:05

we have donut Friday?

17:06

Yeah, like a tradition, like a routine

17:09

versus like because you got

17:11

this, you get this.

17:13

But I'm personally a bigger fan of

17:15

that. We don't really do any reward

17:17

based food, but I do understand the idea

17:20

of it, and like why we do it because

17:22

it's something all the time, and it's sweet and

17:24

it feels good, and it builds so much

17:27

excitement in kids that it's somehow

17:29

like between like a janky gift a piece

17:31

of plastic and an ice

17:33

cream. People tend to just be like, oh, the ice cream

17:35

is easier. I wanted to I

17:37

don't think it's that we try not to do it. It's more we unconsciously

17:40

really don't do.

17:41

It, which is probably good in the better

17:43

in the long run.

17:44

With everything with your kids, you like wishing

17:46

we could rewind it and be like, oh, why didn't we just

17:48

start this habit earlier.

17:50

On when you can now like

17:52

people listening to us, like I'm trying to get inspired,

17:54

like I'm sitting here, like, fuck, I

17:56

have a five year old.

17:57

It's too late. It's too late, Ruin.

18:00

No body is just built on

18:03

goldfish in a prayer.

18:04

No. But I mean that's why I've always loved like cooking

18:07

with kids, because I think that more than anything,

18:09

it goes back to the point of like it's showing up

18:11

on their plate once they understand

18:14

like how what it takes to make

18:16

something, and that it's all kids want

18:18

is to spend time with their parents. Period the end

18:21

yes, period, they act out because

18:23

they're like, look at me, I want to tench yes, I just

18:25

want attention because you're on your phone,

18:27

you're working, Please be with me. Making

18:30

time to cook with your kids as often as possible,

18:32

letting them participate in dinner.

18:34

Here, can you sprinkle the vinagrette on the sala?

18:36

Can you sprinkle some salt on something? The

18:39

tiniest job makes kids

18:42

at a dinner table, then be like when someone

18:44

goes, oh this is delicious, be like, yeah, Timmy

18:46

helped with that, and then Timmy feels awesome.

18:49

So now Timmy's like I should eat it

18:51

because I made it. And just

18:54

build them up, make them feel powerful without

18:56

in those little.

18:57

Jobs great call.

19:00

I remember even my son like he's terrible

19:02

at it. But I'm like, do you want to help the fact that he's

19:04

like, yeah, I want to help set the table? That's

19:06

crazy and it's with crap like it's with horrible,

19:08

like my table setting. Don't put in your head

19:10

that anything looks remotely cute.

19:13

Oh no no, but even table settings

19:15

like I see it could be paper napkins and paper

19:17

plates. Who cares like it? Let

19:19

them get creative because that's a funny one because

19:22

even on Thanksgiving, my kids get like really into

19:24

it, and my mother would always be like, they

19:26

need to use the nice china, they need to use

19:28

the nice napkins. I'm like, I could

19:30

care less. Let them make it look like Disney

19:33

in there, yes, because they take so

19:36

much pride and that's tradition

19:38

to a kid.

19:40

What is your advice for the moms

19:43

like me who are not good at cooking

19:45

and don't enjoy it. I mean, I like

19:47

baking with my son, and I am good at

19:50

copying your lunchboxes, which I want to get

19:52

to because I think it's remarkable. But like, I

19:54

literally can't make the dinners you're making.

19:56

I make.

19:57

I can make a scrambled egg, a frozen waffle,

20:00

a pasta in a water with a

20:02

can of sauce, like I can't. I

20:05

just am lost, Like I'm lost.

20:08

So you're gonna get your kids,

20:10

your spouse or whatever. Everyone

20:13

needs to make a list of their ten favorite foods

20:15

and you're gonna keep those on hand at all

20:17

times. It could be tortillas, cheese,

20:20

and cucumbers, and so you're gonna

20:22

make Caesa das. I am actually

20:25

quite as simple cook like Welicious is all

20:27

built on like simple, easy recipes, and I

20:29

hate doing dishes, so it

20:32

has to be like as few dishes as possible

20:35

and think about just like this

20:37

most simple, two three, four

20:39

ingredient foods that you can possibly make up.

20:42

That's why the DIY situation just like

20:44

having things a few things cut up because

20:46

kids like you don't have to cook for them,

20:48

you'd be shocked, like my kids are, Like, give

20:51

them a thing, a hummus and some vegetables and

20:53

they will cruise through it. It

20:55

doesn't have to be like this extraordinary

20:58

meal every night. There's no problem with

21:00

buying a rotisserie chicken.

21:02

We do spaghetti once a week, non

21:04

negotiable with the side of broccoli, Like

21:06

that's it unctual. And also I

21:09

have to say the only thing I do do, which

21:11

I is a tip for anyone listening who's also

21:13

not a cook. When my kids get

21:15

home from school, they're like the most hungry four

21:18

o'clock and I try to put out dinner

21:20

around five thirty, but sometimes it's more

21:22

pushing six and I put out a huge platter

21:25

that I've already cut up at the beginning of the week of

21:28

the cut up peppers, cucumbers,

21:31

carrots, some snap peas,

21:33

and a shitload of organic

21:35

ranch dressing. My kids freaking love ranch

21:37

and I don't care. And they just shovel

21:40

in like a ton of vegetables that way, and

21:42

so that by the time I get to dinner, if

21:44

they carbo load here and they're

21:46

just having the spaghetti in the wheels and maybe

21:49

I don't know what we're doing for protein, but whatever, I

21:52

feel like at least I did something.

21:54

Okay, No, But by the way, that's the

21:56

hottest tip known to man. Feed

21:58

those like little rat is thing when

22:00

they're starving, give them the vegetables,

22:03

give them the foods that because they're so hungry,

22:05

they're much more apt to eat it then

22:08

than at dinner time with all the pressure

22:10

on them.

22:11

Yes. Yeah, that's when my daughter

22:13

started trying like raw green beans. Like

22:15

she finally was like yes, thank you God.

22:18

And then the next day it was over. By the way, people

22:20

listening, it's like, nope, we're back to eating green beans.

22:22

That was a miracle. I don't know what happened. But then

22:24

try it again, right.

22:26

Yes, no, grow them be like I saw you

22:28

eat green beans. Should we grow some green beans? Should

22:30

we grow some basil. We have like a garden

22:33

tower that we grow stuff and I'll pick herbs

22:35

off. That's cool. And I'm a passion fruit

22:38

nerd, so we have like literally hundreds

22:40

of passion fruit dropping for mercy. But

22:43

whatever, wherever you live, lemon's grapefruit. That

22:45

stuff can go wild. It's a little bit easier.

22:48

But go to the farmer's market because

22:50

like the farmers, they cannot wait

22:53

for that little two year old adorableness

22:56

to walk up and be like, be interested,

22:59

and they'll hand it to them. That's

23:01

our thing, like we instead of church, we go to the farmer's

23:03

market on Sundays.

23:04

Oh, that's your thing.

23:07

My kids work at the farmer's market. Now. They

23:10

both have jobs. Yeah, they've been. My son's been working

23:12

there for two years and my daughter a year. They

23:14

work, Yeah, every Sunday. It's real fun. Do they

23:17

do?

23:17

What are their jobs?

23:19

They sell sweet potatoes and scallions and

23:21

gar Like my son wanted a car and so

23:23

he's I was like, you got to work for it. I

23:26

got to work for it.

23:27

Yeah, that's it. Do

23:29

you do dessert every day? Every

23:31

night? Never? What's your dessert deal in the

23:33

house?

23:34

Okay, so this is actually much more personal

23:36

than psychology psychiatry.

23:39

My mother, like dessert

23:42

was super taboo in my house. Sugar was very

23:44

taboo, so I think it made

23:46

me a bit of a hoarder as like

23:48

I was like donuts and like ice

23:51

cream, like I would do anything

23:53

to get it. So I was very

23:55

conscious in raising

23:57

my children that I was not going to do that. I

24:00

would say every night, we have dessert.

24:02

But dessert they may be like I want

24:04

an orange, I want we

24:07

make a lot of ice cream, so it's it's almost

24:09

like a smoothie with less milk, so just

24:11

pur it. It's like tastes like ice cream, but it's like really

24:13

just period fruit and some you can. I we

24:15

add frozen cauliflower. But I think

24:18

dessert is like you made it through the day.

24:20

I don't know something sweet.

24:22

I'm with you, I don't understand.

24:24

Like I'm so impressed by my friends who are like, oh,

24:26

like dessert isn't a thing in our house, Like we just finished

24:29

dinner and we're done, and I'm like, wow, that's so amazing,

24:31

Like I can't do that, Like

24:34

I'm sure, shit, don't expect my children to do that.

24:36

Like I also like to have my

24:38

little cookie or my little dark

24:40

chocolate.

24:41

I'm like that.

24:42

And again that isn't a trigger for me. It

24:44

might be for some of the people listening.

24:46

Do you what's the vocabulary you use

24:49

in your household around this is healthy?

24:51

This is not healthy? What do you say?

24:54

I think we do a lot of what is your body feeling?

24:57

And does that kind of feel good in your body? I

24:59

think Jem's grown My littlest has

25:01

grown up definitely hearing that the most your

25:03

body needs. I didn't make this up as science.

25:06

Like flour sugar, it's gonna make you tired,

25:08

You're gonna crash. So I've always

25:11

tried to get away from bread first thing

25:13

in the morning. It is the hardest thing in the American

25:15

breakfast, Like American breakfast

25:17

is just like a bagel, a waffle.

25:20

It's really it's a part. That's why I wrote the Smoothie

25:23

Project, because having a smoothie is

25:25

really what you should do, because it's

25:27

just true vegetable and protein.

25:29

And so you're like, you're sending your kids to

25:31

school, they're already tired

25:34

most likely, and you're on a focus

25:36

for eight hours. You'll be fine. It's

25:39

yeah, they're totally they get there dead

25:41

to the world.

25:42

Wow, I never even thought about that. What

25:45

a great.

25:45

Yeah, my kids are definitely like frozen waffle

25:47

bagel cereal, Jesus,

25:50

if you.

25:51

Can prep smoothies the night before, like in

25:53

a bag, I mean in a bag and so you

25:55

just dump it into the blender, like frozen fruits

25:57

and vegetables whatever. We have a

26:00

smoothie station so like literally it's like,

26:02

well, it takes me two seconds. Jemma's

26:04

my seven year old, she's grown up on it, so it's

26:06

like her thing. She loves it. And

26:08

my older kids definitely my daughter and

26:11

my son.

26:12

Many days, God, I gotta get back

26:14

out. We went through a smoothie phase and then I like forgot

26:16

about it. But what's interesting a smoothie

26:19

station. See when

26:21

you put the blender away, which ours

26:24

is away. It's a sort of a bad

26:26

idea because you a forget

26:28

about it, but be you like never want to take it out and

26:30

clean it and all this shit. But you're right, it should

26:32

really just be. It should live out there.

26:35

Okay, So envision your kitchen. What small

26:37

kitchen appliances.

26:38

Sit out teapot

26:40

which I use all day, okay, the

26:43

like air fryer, toaster every

26:46

day best, well,

26:48

a coffee maker, but none of us drink coffee.

26:50

It's more friarity.

26:51

But that's

26:53

very important.

26:54

A lot of the utensils and stuff that we don't

26:56

use. Yeah, I should put a freaking blender

26:59

out there and I might use it all the time.

27:01

Yeah, you know glender like one of those little

27:03

magic bullets or something. You just

27:05

think about all the foods you can get, like we literally

27:08

like a blueberry cheese smoothie, so chias

27:10

heats, frozen blueberries, call a flower or

27:12

spinach. You don't taste it and it's call

27:14

far is more protein cup for cup than any other

27:17

vegetable.

27:18

This is great.

27:18

I'm going to try to do this for breakfast because

27:21

we are in the worst thing

27:23

going on right now.

27:24

Bad. If you want to hear something embarrassing my

27:27

children and I have to stop. It's

27:30

my fault.

27:31

My children went through like a

27:33

big boycott breakfast problem

27:36

right.

27:37

Like eating like breakfast no interesting.

27:40

Also because my kids are big milk

27:42

they like milk, got it?

27:44

No fair fair so, but like when

27:46

they're having a little bit of milk with breakfast,

27:48

which when does that stop?

27:50

I got to talk to the pediatrician he's five, What the

27:52

fuck am I doing?

27:53

Tea.

27:53

It's the teeth.

27:54

It's the teeth that's the reason not to talk to

27:56

the dentister versus the pediatrician. The dentist

27:58

will be.

27:58

Like, get the milk out because it's all

28:00

sugar.

28:01

Because it's all sugar. But do this, okay, I'll trade

28:03

you here. Ask them, would they what color

28:06

milk they'd like? Or my

28:09

daughters love chocolate peanut butter smoothie

28:11

and all that is cocoa powder, which has no sugar, So

28:13

figure because then you can keep their milk but you

28:16

can get some more like nutrition in there.

28:19

Wow, guys,

28:21

this is all huge. I'm so impressed

28:23

when I take my son to school and people have these

28:26

thermoses filled with like incredible

28:29

tortolini's with shit, and I'm like, excuse

28:32

me, what it's turkey sandwich or

28:34

peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I don't know what we're

28:36

doing here. Sometimes they might be cut into

28:38

a shade, but like, thank

28:41

god, my kid loves a sandwich,

28:43

loves it, and how weird

28:45

it's so boring.

28:47

I love a sandwich. That's why I would

28:49

eat peanut butter and jelly every day of

28:51

my life.

28:52

He goes back and forth, peanut butter and jelly or a turkey

28:55

sandwich, and he loves it, and it's

28:57

always gone, it's never in there.

28:59

What's on the turkey sand much?

29:00

It's so easy, it's seated.

29:03

Dave's Killer bread.

29:06

He likes I sometimes. I do vegan

29:08

as sometimes and he likes straight up Helman's.

29:11

Mayonnaise, A man after my own heart.

29:13

And then he likes jelly turkey, and he

29:15

loves romaine. But it has to be a Caesar salad.

29:18

He loves the Caesar.

29:20

I'm telling you, there's so many rules kids.

29:22

Have, so many kids are but Natas like, why.

29:25

So many rules? Okay? I like him.

29:27

I would do his, but the bread would have to be toasted,

29:30

and there'd have to be a ton of romaine. There'd also have

29:32

to be mayo and mustard, maybe a little

29:34

bit of avocado and then tomato.

29:36

Oh delicious.

29:39

My yeah. My middle daughter, she's a thermist. She's

29:41

a hot thermist kid.

29:42

What's in the thermos?

29:44

It's always different. Her big one is gioza,

29:47

And I'm just gonna tell you, I absolutely do

29:49

go to Trader Joe's and buy those gioza and put them

29:51

in my air fryer in the morning.

29:52

Absolutely, they're delicious.

30:04

Okay, two things, any

30:06

advice or parents who are packing lunches for their first

30:08

time kindergartener, which I'm about to do.

30:11

And also let's do start there.

30:13

Let's just remember that there's now more

30:16

kids at lunch. There's so much sensory

30:18

stuff. All they want to do is go play. Food

30:21

is the last thing they're thinking about. That is

30:23

for the majority of kids, not all not

30:25

a full roll. Make it very easy

30:27

for them. I would always think about how are you going to

30:29

get the most nutrients in

30:32

every single bite? So like

30:34

raw fruits, raw vegetables. I

30:37

mean, the reason I like sushi sandwiches, which is where

30:39

you roll at the bread and you fill it and roll it and cut

30:41

them into little wheels is it's much easy exact

30:43

them. Bastard gets

30:45

it in cheese stick like whatever

30:48

it is. Don't overwhelm them,

30:51

don't make it hard for them. Don't make

30:53

anything where they have to like peel stuff

30:55

off, like make it easy. Do

30:58

a bento box so immediately you

31:00

see all of your choices, because you'd be shocked

31:03

that sometimes kids will end up eating

31:05

the cucumber for the cookie. Because

31:08

I don't know. Their bodies are different than ours.

31:10

We thirsty. They're thirsty, and they just wanted

31:12

something else exactly. I

31:15

used to be so upset my kid.

31:17

I always put a little if it's like a Justin's

31:19

peanut butter cup or something, and my

31:22

nursery school teachers are like, he

31:24

always eats that first, and I'm like yeah,

31:27

and then he eats his lunch.

31:28

I don't care. I'm like what again.

31:31

I think it's for some people.

31:32

I hear moms in my life like you

31:34

cannot have that until

31:36

you have something else, or a lot of the language between

31:38

like you're not getting up until you have one more

31:41

bite. And we

31:43

went down that path for a couple of

31:45

weeks and it felt really icky to

31:47

me, and it felt just not how

31:50

we parent. But again,

31:53

again, this is such a personal thing for

31:56

people, like I think this is I think food

31:58

and being.

31:58

A parent is so hard. There's

32:01

so much of your own stuff, there's so much about

32:03

how you were raised.

32:04

Food fights, it's the worst. You have to just remember

32:07

that. Like the goal of meal time,

32:10

especially when your kids are little and all

32:12

the time, is to be together, to

32:14

spend time together. If

32:17

you are offering good food, they

32:19

will eat the good food. It's just a

32:22

matter of what the foods

32:24

are. And just make it simple

32:27

cheese stick and some crackers and

32:29

a handful of strawberries. Fine, that's

32:32

fine, you don't have to make spend two

32:34

hours making enchiladas that no one's gonna

32:36

eat. Also, let them go

32:38

to the grocery. Let them go to the farmer's market

32:40

and pick one new food. Like my

32:43

seven year old surprises me at every turn because

32:46

she'll be like, oh, I want these beach mushrooms.

32:48

She's like obsessed with beach mushrooms. And so

32:50

I put beach mushrooms in pasta. Now I air fry

32:53

them. She was the one who discovered that.

32:55

I never would have thought that she would

32:57

be brave enough for like willing to try

33:00

that. So I think that letting kids

33:02

have some power over the discovery.

33:04

Let's go find a food at the

33:06

grocery. What is it? Do you want to learn about it? How

33:09

is it grown? Where is it grown? Just let

33:12

kids discover.

33:14

There's just so much respect for the kid themselves,

33:16

Like whether they're diy ing their own

33:19

food, or they're helping you pack their lunches

33:21

the night before, or they're going to the grocery or they're

33:23

going to the farmer's market, like are

33:25

there helping you actually grow it in the backyard.

33:28

This is all massive. Any

33:30

advice for parents who are starting first

33:32

foods with their little ones, did you just

33:34

purate all of it yourself.

33:37

With ken yam? My oldest I did curate

33:40

everything and they cut things in little pieces,

33:42

and then by child number two I did a half

33:45

and half because I was exhausted and had to make dinner.

33:47

And by the third kid, I was like, good

33:49

luck on that, Like you're gonna eat. You're gonna

33:51

eat what we're eating. So there is no wrong

33:53

way. They all turned out to be great

33:55

eaters. I think that it's just what works

33:58

for you. But I do think get in

34:00

the early eaters, like under twelve

34:02

months and especially under ten months. It's exposure

34:05

as much as anything, either breast

34:08

milk or formula. And

34:10

then let's start with avocado

34:12

and try it for a few days. Don't give

34:14

up. That is the one thing. Just because broccoli

34:17

was spit out day one, keep trying.

34:20

Put some toasted sesame seeds on it, put

34:22

a little brags on it, let them eat

34:25

it in funny ways with them. It's

34:27

all foreign to them at this point, So just

34:30

making it something fun, funny, silly,

34:33

whatever it is.

34:36

You have a book coming out. I'm so

34:38

pumped, and at the time

34:40

of this probably releases this recording. It will be

34:42

out so you can get every single place books

34:45

are sold. It's called Meal Prep Magic, Time

34:47

saving Tricks for stress free Eating.

34:50

If this book shit wasn't written for me, I

34:53

don't even know. Tell me about this book

34:55

and how it came to be.

34:57

Meal Prep Magic came to be really

34:59

during the pandem because what had happened

35:01

to me was I was like trapped

35:03

at home, not going to the grocery, and

35:06

only because my husband had

35:08

bought two hundred and twenty cans of beans.

35:11

He just was like, oh the box knocking

35:13

up.

35:13

Yeah.

35:13

Of course, of course was like, oh my god.

35:15

What am I gonna do with all this? But I wrote the book

35:17

by much more of a category than

35:20

breakfast, lunch, dinner, Like, you've got

35:22

a lot of beans, what are you going to do? The

35:24

biggest idea is that we have so much

35:26

stuff clutter in our kitchen. Let's

35:29

get it out. Let's pare it down so

35:32

that your kitchen is organized, so you

35:34

know where things are, so it moves

35:36

more efficiently. And then meal

35:38

prepping just being able to meal prep, and

35:41

that really goes to the DIY part. If

35:43

you can spend two hours one day

35:45

a week prepping different fruits and

35:47

vegetables, make a batch of rice, make

35:50

some pasta, make some roast chicken, mix

35:53

and match different meals through the week.

35:55

I'm telling you, it makes life so much

35:58

easier.

36:00

Meal prep magic everybody.

36:02

That's really what it's

36:04

all about and what we all need, because if we

36:06

just took a couple hours earlier in

36:08

the week, it would save all that time

36:11

later in the week. What is the

36:13

favorite lunch meal of each of your children

36:15

that you make from the new cookbook?

36:17

And why ooh, that's actually

36:20

interesting. One. My son

36:22

is obsessed with this blender banana chocolate

36:25

chip bread. So you just dump everything in a blender. It's

36:27

so easy and it's all gluten

36:29

free too. Put all the ingredients,

36:31

so oats and bananas and

36:34

like all the ingredients and then you just put into

36:36

a loaf pan and it's just it's

36:38

so delicious. My littlest

36:41

one loves the crispy salmon burgers because

36:44

she loves salmon. That's like

36:46

her biggest one. And then what is Kloe like the

36:48

most? Chloe is like my eater that

36:50

she's like everything. I love

36:53

it. I love it. She's just like

36:55

anything I put in front of her she loves. I'll

36:58

say the overnight Bell waffles

37:00

are pretty amazing, creamy chia pudding, four

37:02

ways. Oh, and freezer stash breakfast

37:05

burritos. You

37:07

make them, you wrap them in foil, you unwrap

37:09

it, throw it in the air fryer. So that's what I

37:12

end up doing. I take them in the freezer and

37:14

you can put them right in the air fryer or the oven or

37:16

the toaster, or you can put them in a refrigerator

37:18

and do the same thing the next day. But they're all

37:21

wrapped up. They're all like exactly ready

37:23

about. You can write your kid's name. If someone

37:25

likes cheese, someone likes salsa, and they're ready

37:28

to go, and they're like, especially my

37:30

daughter loves a savory breakfast. That's

37:32

a good one too.

37:35

On the good so delicious.

37:38

Yeah.

37:38

Is there anything you'd like to teach your

37:40

own children that you wished you

37:43

had or were taught growing up in

37:45

regards to food.

37:47

I think my grandmother was the one who was just like

37:49

every all fruits and vegetables were beautiful

37:52

and they were like a gift to our bodies.

37:54

I think that for me, I want my kids

37:57

to have the connection of what goes

37:59

in here, what goes in your mouth is

38:01

good for your body, but it's also

38:03

good for your brain. So not thinking

38:06

of food as a band aid. And

38:08

I had a happy day, I'm gonna eat. I had a sad

38:11

day. I'm gonna eat instead just being like, what's

38:14

like, that's the way that I eat. What's good

38:16

for me is going to help my body run like

38:18

an engine, and like I need my engine

38:20

to like really move. So how do I feed it?

38:24

I love it? I love it. Are

38:26

your kids having any birthdays coming up?

38:29

We just went through a bunch of birthdays. My

38:31

middle daughter her birthdays in a week from

38:34

today.

38:35

Wow, what

38:38

would you What advice do you like to give your

38:40

kids as they get closer to their next birthday

38:42

or let's say your daughter.

38:44

I just want my kids to be kind, Just be kind

38:46

people. Just be good, good to the earth,

38:48

good to your friends, good to yourself. That's

38:51

the one thing I think we all forget. Be good to yourself.

38:54

Oof, that's a great

38:57

one.

38:58

Yeah, I forget that all the time, and we

39:00

always ask people in closing finish

39:02

the sentence, parenthood is

39:05

the.

39:06

Hardest thing you'll ever do. I

39:08

want to be like, it's joyful. It's the

39:10

hardest thing.

39:11

You can say it here.

39:12

It's the hardest thing you'll ever do. And

39:14

the more kids you have, there's you're always catching

39:17

someone.

39:18

Oh my god, I can't imagine having three.

39:20

I literally cannot imagine it the greatest.

39:22

Everybody who's listening, tell us where

39:24

we can find you and the name of your book

39:26

again.

39:27

At Welicious on all

39:29

social media, and you

39:32

can get Neil prep Magic absolutely

39:34

every bookstore and on Amazon.

39:37

It's delicious, Welicious.

39:39

It's so helpful, inspiring, important,

39:43

Catherine. I. I'm

39:45

so impressed by.

39:46

This whole thing you built, sweet Like

39:49

it's really amazing.

39:59

Thank you guys so much for listening to today's episode.

40:01

I want to hear from you. Let's

40:04

chat questions, comments, concerns. Let

40:06

me know.

40:07

You can always find me at Katiescrib at

40:09

Shondaland dot com. Katie's

40:13

Crib is a production of Shondaland Audio in partnership

40:16

with iHeartRadio. For more podcasts from

40:18

Shondaland Audio, visit the iHeartRadio app,

40:20

Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite

40:23

shows.