Cook it!: Andrew Kay, Down with the kids
Join me on Hove Lawns for the Brighton and Hove Food and Drink Festival
Since the launch of Latest TV I have been making programmes for the channel that are specifically about food. International Chef Exchange has been an exciting adventure, working with the Brighton and Hove Food and Drink Festival and bringing chefs here from Holland, Sweden, Sicily, Guernsey and Vancouver. There will be seven, hour long programmes in total and the bonds that have been made between the visting chefs to Brighton and the Brighton chefs who have returned to their countries are very strong. I have loved the whole process and hope that we can continue with the project in the future.
Cook It! has been equally exciting. Much as a I love restaurants, I really love cooking. In recent years I have been dismayed by the change in the way people eat, shop for food and depend on convenience foods. Cook It! has been all about empowering people to get back in their own kitchens and cook with confidence. We have worked with brilliant local chefs, challenging them to create simple dishes that are tasty, healthy and easy to make – and at the same time economical. I wanted to show people that you can make a tasty meal in the same time as it takes to re-heat a ready meal, and know that the ingredients are the best that you can afford. We include weekly tips, features on building a store cupboard of essentials on a week by week basis, spreading the cost and giving viewers a rich palette of flavours with which they could tempt the palate.
Both programmes have given me immense pleasure and also a great response. I love it that people come up to me in the street to talk about Cook It!. Best of all though has to be the weekly section Cook It! with Kids! It was the part of the programme that was most worrying. My co-producer and director, Mr Sourdough himself Nick Beddows, was very nervous. After years of experience in TV he stood by the old adage, never work with kids or animals. Well I wanted to have kids cooking animals, amongst other things. Funnily enough, from our first day in the studio it was obvious that the kids slot was going to work. On day one the kids were brilliant, engaged, excited and delightful. And so it went for thirteen epsisodes. Nick and I were thrilled.
I have always enjoyed cooking with my nephews, both picky eaters, and introducing them to things that are tasty, fun and healthy. It’s not all about dull stuff either, we have made tasty alternatives to commercial products that are easy to do, both savoury and sweet.
This coming weekend I will be down on Hove Lawns doing my other favourite thing which is host the Live Food Show, great fun, great chefs and great food. Sponsored by Southern Water and Supporting Rockinghorse Children’s Charity, our Children’s Food Festival goes large – and we mean LARGE – for one special day at the end of the school holidays.
We’ve always championed accessible food events for little ones and this year is epic. On the Live Food Show stage we’ll have performances from Signor Baffo, and I will be filming a special kid’s food edition of Latest TV’s ‘Cook It!’ show.
My First Word nursery and children’s party organisers Whizz Bang Pop will be keeping little ones entertained whilst local restaurants will be hosting interactive workshops for little foodies including Moshimo, Chocoholly and Curry Leaf Café. This will also be your final day to help us choose the winner of the Great Brighton Ice Cream Contest hosted in partnership with our pals at Boho Gelato and Rockinghorse. We’ve also got the Wobblegate Apple Juice ‘Wobblympics’ challenge, and you can learn all about the importance of keeping your teeth and gums clean after eating with the Dental Health Spa team. Our charity partners Rockinghorse will be on hand, whilst FareShare will be busy on badges and facepainting (and teaming up with festival sponsor Yelo Architects to get creative with food packaging waste).
Please come and join me and the food festival team for what promises to be a great family day out – you may even get to join me on stage as we film Cook It With Kids! for a later broadcast.
A parent or guardian must remain with their children at all times at this event. Our workshops, performances and interactive activities are all free to participate in. Food and drink will be available to purchase, and there is an additional cost for any fairground rides (of which a donation will be made to the Rockinghorse Children’s Charity).
