Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has written a children’s book: Which dish reminds you of your childhood?

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Don’t worry, you don’t need any materials for this book – it’s just a comfortable place to read. The new study by Jamie Oliver (48) doesn’t have any ingredient lists or preparation instructions. Instead, it tells the story of Billy and his friends going on an adventure in the woods. The children’s book “Billy and the Mysterious Giant” took its place on the shelves on April 13, 2023. What made Oliver put down the wooden spoon and pick up the pen? Chat time!

You have probably been asked this question many times, but the answer will still be very interesting: Which dish reminds you of your childhood?
Jamie Oliver: My grandparents’ porridge recipe may sound simple, but I’ve dedicated a special place to it in my comfort food cookbook. It really takes me back to my childhood, me and my sister Anna were sometimes involved in my grandmother’s morning porridge ritual. He had a certain way of doing it and he never strayed from his routine. And believe me, it was always delicious! Same for my mom’s junk. The recipe is in my Christmas book. It’s an iconic dish my mom serves at all big family gatherings.

How was the food of your childhood different from what your children eat today?
I grew up in a bar and ate fresh food. My wife and I cook every day, so my kids eat fresh food – all kinds of things. I think the biggest difference is that there is so much cuisine today that we didn’t know when we were kids. It’s funny to remember that nobody stocked up on arugula or chard. And the mozzarella was mostly hard and grated—it was a different time.

Do you cook for your family?
To be honest, Jools (his wife Juliette Norton, 48) tends to cook for the kids while I work. But there are so many recipes the whole family will love – stir-fried pasta dishes are a hit, and the great thing is that you can customize the servings to suit the after-school hours and the whims of the teens! My family often sees the more experimental side of my cooking, the dishes I play with and tweak.

After more than 20 cookbooks comes the first children’s book. In “Billy and the Mysterious Giant” we accompany Billy and his friends as they explore a secret world in the jungle inhabited by fairies, trolls and giants. How did this kind of change happen?
I came up with the idea to write a children’s book after years of putting kids to bed. When Petal (13) and Buddy (12) were younger, he would often ask me in my head to tell them a story before I went to bed. I recorded the stories on a dictaphone to make sure I knew where I was staying the night before, and before I knew what it was, I had a story for Billy and the Mysterious Giant.

How was the writing process of this book different from your cookbooks?
He wasn’t really that different after all. As I said before, I dictated most of Billy and the Mystery Giant, and then worked on the finishing touches with my editors – that’s what I did in my first two cookbooks. Work on this book was a true labor of love and took about four years. Fortunately, I had no trouble coming up with new ideas.

The food scenes are beautifully dispersed throughout the story: Billy dreams of crispy bacon rolls, cooks with his grandfather, and is said to have a big appetite. How important was it to put that into the plot and also into the characters?
I didn’t want to write a children’s book that didn’t involve any food whatsoever! Not only does it bring a lot of joy and smiles to the children’s faces, but it was very important to me that the children bond with the food they eat. They know where they come from and their importance in our lives.

In the book, both children and adults eat very healthy and rich meals. In the past, you have often emphasized how important it is for children to have a healthy and balanced diet. With the UK crisis and rising energy and food prices, is healthier eating getting more expensive?
Delicious, healthy food doesn’t have to be expensive, and I wanted to prove it with my TV show Cooking for Less. I’ve worked hard with my team to develop a series of recipes that are nutritious, cost just a dollar per serving, and are also energy efficient. I had to be creative when cooking but we found some great food! You will find many tips and tricks on my website.

In the book, Billy is sent to the principal because he has trouble reading and is afraid of going to class. Reading between the lines, it’s clear that Billy has and struggles with dyslexia. Did you deliberately put that into the story?
Yes, of course. With the book, I wanted to show that there is not just a traditional way of doing things, but a special way of doing things: the “Billy Boy way” of doing one’s own thing can turn into a Dyslexia. force. I hope it inspires kids struggling in school to find their own path, like Billy did. I chose the font to be easy to read for dyslexic people. The layout is clear and I made an audio book so that those who do not like to read can access the book. I hope that if you are dyslexic, I am proof that if you believe in yourself, you can achieve anything you put your mind to.

How has dyslexia affected your writing process?
My dyslexia made me look at the process from a completely different perspective – it may not be the easiest way, but it was the most rewarding way. I always had to find other ways to express myself and learned what I was good at and what I wasn’t. There has never been a lack of ideas and imagination – it’s just a matter of finding ways and expressing them in a meaningful way that resonates with people. But I loved it.

And finally: Can we expect more children’s stories from you?
Yes! But I won’t reveal more yet (winks).

Source : Blick