cooking
creative
Fast, delectable dinners:
Possible! Food Network’s Robert Irvine makes over your family’s pantry
By Sarah Miller
ROBERT IRVINE, THE host of Food Network’s Restaurant: Impossible and Restaurant
Express, is known for giving tough love to
owners of failing restaurants, and for challenging contestants vying for an executive
chef position in Las Vegas. But this month,
the Costco member is also challenging Costco
Connection readers to reshape their schedules
to ensure that healthful meals are always part
of their routines.
Irvine’s background
Irvine is all too familiar with sticking to a
rigid schedule. Still, despite traveling 345 days
a year for his two shows, he has found clever
ways to stay healthy on the go. “I work out a
minimum of six days a week and believe in
smaller, healthier meals,” he says.
Irvine’s dedication to his career has
helped him overhaul failing U.S. restaurants
on Restaurant: Impossible, and his reputation
has earned him opportunities to take on special assignments. In 2012, ;rst lady Michelle
Obama called upon the British-born Irvine to
overhaul Horton’s Kids community center in
Washington, D.C., which provides services
such as a;er-school meals.
He admits that making over establishments takes discipline, but the celebrity chef
has had some practice: He comes from a military family that valued that trait.
Irvine followed in his family’s footsteps
and joined the British Royal Navy, and
impressed his superiors so much with his
culinary skills that they helped launch his
career aboard the Royal Yacht Britannia, a
favorite dining spot of the royal family. He
later participated in the U.S. Navy’s guest chef
program by training U.S. Navy chefs in the
White House kitchens, and also served 6,000
military personnel on a U.S. aircra; carrier.
Irvine’s culinary reputation eventually catapulted him into the Food Network limelight.
Toss the old and remake the new
While Irvine makes it look easy on TV, he
explains that in real life a little planning can
make healthful meal preparation a cinch.
“;e ;rst thing I’d do is get rid of all the junk
in people’s pantries,” he says, with his usual
take-charge attitude. He urges consumers to
toss foods that are processed or high in sugar,
fat and salt, and replace them with fruits, nuts
and whole foods.
Parents can easily make over kid-friendly
favorites, such as pizza (see recipe). Irvine
says, “Kids are all about texture.” Adding
puréed cauli;ower to the pizza sauce, he says,
boosts the health bene;ts.
“I grew up on sausages, fried bread, fried
tomatoes—everything was fried,” Irvine tells
;e Connection. “But you can always ;nd
ways to modify your favorites and make them
healthy.” ;e key, he says, is to “take a dish
you like and remove the fat and sodium out of
it. ;en, add fresh herbs and spices to kick up
that flavor.” He recommends keeping rice
wine vinegar, juices, fresh herbs, honey, low-sodium soy sauce and spices on hand.
Plan ahead
Sneaking veggies into old favorites is one
method of upping the nutrition factor, but the
real heart of making lasting dietary change is
planning. “Most people’s quiet day is Sunday,”
Irvine says. “If they do their shopping, create
their menu and prep the food on Sunday, it’s
a lot easier to control your eating habits
[throughout the week].”
He recommends cutting fruits and veg-
gies ahead of time into perfect portions for
bite-size snacks and busy weeknight din-
ners. Keeping an arsenal of portable
healthful treats (e.g., trail mix, celery
sticks or apples) in the car and kitchen
can help you ;ght the urge to reach for
unhealthy options.
Don’t forget dessert
Irvine does have good news for
those who start feeling deprived: No
dinner is complete without dessert.
He suggests that as long as you opt
for small portions of low-calorie,
low-sugar sweets, dessert can still
be a part of your meals, because,
a;er all, he says, food is meant to
be enjoyed.
Make it a family affair
Another key to lasting change is making
change enjoyable. Irvine suggests that going
the extra mile to make healthful eating fun
for your entire family is absolutely worth the
e;ort. He asserts that parents can get kids
involved at the grocery store and in the
kitchen. “I used to take my [two daughters] to
the supermarket and let them pick out fruits
and vegetables. ;en we’d take them home
and I’d blindfold them and play games. I’d
give them 25 cents if they could identify the
smell, the taste—you’ve
got to make it fun!”
Whether you’re
sneaking veggies
into dishes or
making games
out of shopping
trips, improv-
ing your fami-
ly’s diet can be
a rewarding
experience. C
Sarah Miller is
a national freelance
writer and Costco
member.
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