As any Washington insider knows, it's not easy to make it in D.C. Still, Geoff Tracy opened two successful restaurants, Chef Geoff's and Chef Geoff's Downtown, before he turned 30. He's since added a third restaurant, Lia's, and he and his wife, MSNBC's chief Washington correspondent, Norah O'Donnell, recently added a third child to their brood. Now he and O'Donnell want to share with other parents their hard-earned lessons on that most vexing challenge: getting kids to eat.
Q: As a chef, are you involved in what your kids eat?
A: Actually, I have cooked every meal for them since they got off the bottle, from about 6 to 13 months, and my wife and I are writing a book about it. Essentially, I felt that the quality of mass-produced baby food was pretty poor, and I thought it would be much more natural for me to produce it—it would be fresher; it would be cheaper. I once talked to another father who said he was embarrassed, because he would buy the food in the stores and when he was feeding it to the kid he couldn't even stomach the smell of it—it nauseated him. And I said that's probably a sign that we shouldn't be feeding our children this stuff.
Q: Isn't all that cooking quite time consuming?
A. My theory is that in one hour a week you can produce all the food for the entire week, and ice-cube-tray it and pop it out into a Ziploc and put it in the freezer. I did it for twins in only one hour a week, with the exception of a few recipes that take a little bit longer to cook.
Q: Did they have favorites?
A: The basics, the things that were sweet—purees of apples, pears, butternut squash, blueberries—they really got into. I had one dish that was probably the most nutritional dish I could do, which was a combination of this beautiful red quinoa and peas. They wouldn't eat a bite of it. It was a really interesting process, finding out what they would eat and what they wouldn't. Making the food for them was a great way for me as a father to participate in the nutritional process.
Q: How do you think this active approach to food will influence their eating habits as they grow older?
A: I hated food as a kid, and food came from the kitchen and was just placed in front of me to eat. I wasn't part of the process. You have to let the kids see you cook. It is important to incorporate and include them in the process so they become vested in the food.
Q: What is the most memorable meal you've eaten?
A: Norah and I ate a 17-course meal at the French Laundry in Napa on October 5, 1999. The food was great, but what was most memorable was that she said yes after I asked her to marry me.
Q: What was your biggest cooking disaster?
A: I was a sous chef for a restaurant in Virginia. The restaurant did not serve breakfast, but nevertheless the general manager had booked a breakfast party for 30 people. Unfortunately, he never told me about it. As the chef who opened the restaurant every day, I was the only person there. I had to set the table, cook, and serve the food, completely unprepared.
Q: What is your guilty food pleasure?
A: I have never considered food something to feel guilty about.
Q: What is your favorite thing to cook at home?
A: Blueberry pancakes. The twins and my wife love them.
Q: Who inspired you to become a chef?
A: A successful restaurateur named Rich Rosenthal gave me my first summer job as a busboy. At the end of the summer, he told me how great I had done. But, warning me of the challenges of the business, he advised me to become a doctor or a lawyer and stay the "bleep" out of the restaurant business.
Q: What is your best cooking tip?
A: Teach yourself the basic cooking techniques—sauté, grill, braise, poach, roast, and fry. Once you know them, you can prepare almost anything. Second best tip: Use more salt.
Q: What is your favorite kitchen tool:
A: My Vita Prep. It is a blender on steroids.
Q: What are your tips for getting picky kids to eat?
A: Let them help with the cooking; let them pick fresh vegetables and fruits when you go to the market; use fresh ingredients and don't overcook them; and if all else fails— yogurt.
Q: If you haven't shopped in a week and need to prepare a quick family meal, what do you make?
A: Any dry pasta with my 20-minute tomato sauce and Parmigiano Reggiano.
Q: How often do you cook versus order take out?
A: At home I cook three to four meals a week. The rest is brought home from one of my three restaurants, or we have sushi delivered. Norah and I try to get out for a date night at least once a week too.
Q: What is your favorite food-related cause?
A: The Horace Mann Garden Project. It is a school across the street from my original restaurant. The kids grow herbs and vegetables in their own garden. I think it is a great way to connect kids with food. I do cooking demonstrations for the kids twice a year using their ingredients. Last time I made handmade gnocchi with herb-pesto cream and got 43 out of 44 kindergartners to eat it!
