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| "If you give kids interesting food that's been seasoned well and cooked well, they're going to love it." |
Chef Bobo (Robert Surles) is executive chef and foodservice director at the Calhoun School in New York City. He summarized his "kid food" philosophy at the recent FM/Restaurant Hospitality Healthy Customers, Healthy Profits event in Philadelphia and included some of his most successful techniques for getting kids to eat more nutritiously. Here are some of his suggestions:
- Brussels sprouts are the favorite vegetable of the Calhoun students because he prepares them by roasting them in a convection oven to bring out their natural sweetness and flavor. He also uses a similar technique on other vegetables like cauliflower, green beans and artichokes, with similar positive results.
- Fish is also a big hit: "I like to roast firm-fleshed fish with different glazes because it has to look good for kids to eat it," he said (fish constitutes 20-30 percent of the menued proteins at Calhoun).
- He also puts fish into kid favorites like tacos and makes modestly spicy dishes like Cajun catfish and fish curries.
- Poultry is usually roasted or served in colorful dishes like jambalayas, curries and tacos. "If it's colorful and kids are automatically attracted," he said.
- Color is also what makes the salad bar a huge hit. Calhoun's salad bar is all-you-want with plenty of seasonal fruits and vegetables, and "kids build beautiful salads," he said.
- Fruits are emphasized as desserts, though there is also usually a oneounce portion of a sweet available (no seconds).
- Finally, the cardinal rule: "Kids don't like ‘kid food'; they prefer kid-sized portions of what they consider ‘adult foods," Chef Bobo declared.
