Buy This Photo Courtesy of Michael Lake Sarah Pinneo is author of "Julia's Child," a humorous look at the world of organic-raised children. The book includes recipes.
April 07, 2012 12:00 AM
As the book jacket says: This one's for every mom who's ever wondered if buying that $6 box of organic crackers made her a hero or a sucker.
"Julia's Child," (2012) the debut novel from Sarah Pinneo, is a fun — and funny — spring read.
Pinneo lampoons to a T the yuppie/hippie moms who nurse bare-breasted in the park wearing $200 jeans, the parents who buy $300 strollers and $12 boxes of organic cereal.
And she does it while also making her own level-headed case for healthy foods for kids.
Julia Bailey is a "mompreneur" with too many principles and too little time. Her fledgling company, Julia's Child, makes organic toddler meals with names like "Gentle Lentil" and "Give Peas a Chance."
She lives in Park Slope, "the most left-leaning, granola-eating, tree-hugging" neighborhood in Brooklyn. "It's populated by mothers who nurse topless everywhere and grind their own millet at the food co-op "¦ Even the playdough is whole grain," Pinneo writes.
Julia faces multiple obstacles in striving to see her dream of her products on the shelves of Whole Foods: a TV diva with food allergies, and a room full of lactating breasts, and her toughest critics, her two little boys.
But turning a profit while saving the world proves tricky. Will Julia get her big break before her family reaches the breaking point?
Both foodie and all-natural mamas will relate, as "Julia's Child" examines motherhood's choices: organic vs. local, paper vs. plastic, staying at home vs. risking it all.
Pinneo understands the work vs. stay home dilemma: A Wall Street dealmaker for 10 years, Pinneo says she's made the switch from "breadwinner to bread-baker." Now a stay-at-home writer/mom, she lives with her husband and their two sons in Vermont and New Hampshire.
Her book contains a bunch of great organic kids' recipes, as well, including Apple and Cheddar Muffets, Squash-Carrot-Raisin Bread, and Mac & Cheese with Plenty of Dairy.
And so, just in time for Easter — when your kids want Peeps for breakfast — let's talk organic kids' food ...
Lauren: What gave you the idea for this story?
Sarah: I sat down to write this book three years ago, when my first son was 5 and his little brother 3. On the park bench, there was a lot of angst-infused chatter about what little kids ought to eat. I found it all fascinating, but also funny. It was the competitiveness that really drew me in — the nutritional jujitsu, the sparring.
Julia — as a foodie mompreneur — sits at the nexus of the entire discussion. I had a lot of fun creating situations for her that would pit her high ideals against the harsh economic realities of running a business.
Lauren: What do you cook for your kids?
Sarah: My kids will eat anything. Our neighborhood Italian restaurant knows my 6-year-old as "that kid who wants extra spinach on his."
It's fun to cook for them, so I make a big meal every night, and we all eat together. Their favorite dish is pasta with peas, ham, and a garlicky white cream sauce. I try to serve a salad on the side, if only to remind my own fat cells that I still care.
Lauren: This reads like a great book club book. Have you received feedback from any clubs? Do you Skype with book clubs?
Sarah: Thank you! Yes, I'm planning on Skyping with book clubs! What fun.
Lauren: What do you want moms to get out of reading this book?
Sarah: I want them to see the humor in all of motherhood's little eddies of concern. We all try to do the right things, and cook the right things. But if you take yourself too seriously, it won't be any fun.
Lauren: What was the last meal you cooked for your kids?
Sarah: I transformed yesterday's roast turkey leftovers into turkey and bean enchiladas. My desk is in the kitchen, and sometimes I get distracted. I left the enchiladas in the oven a little too long, but there were no complaints. A little sour cream on top solves many a problem.
Lauren Daley wishes you a Happy Easter (... Eh, go ahead. Enjoy a chocolate bunny.) Contact her at ldaley33@gmail.com.
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