We talked to Nastasja Petrić about maintaining a balanced diet for every family member. How to plan meals to maximize nutritional value without spending half the day in the kitchen, how to instill good habits in children, and her recommendation for a quick summer recipe that anyone can easily prepare in their kitchen. Read on to find out more.

What do you see as the biggest challenges in maintaining a balanced diet for children, and how do you handle these challenges?

“I think it’s not talked about enough because many people idealize parenthood, but to start with, I think the biggest challenge is to cook quality meals for the whole family every day. People work long hours, commute to and from work for unrealistically long times, come home tired, and then still have to cook a meal for the family, often for the next day as well. That’s why I believe it’s easier for people to reach for semi-finished products and deliveries because fatigue takes its toll, and kids are always hungry and craving something. So, kudos to everyone who fulfills this daily task because even as a chef, I sometimes find it very exhausting. That’s why I think we should occasionally make this part of parenting easier for ourselves in one way or another.”

How do you educate your children about nutrition and healthy eating habits? Are there specific approaches or activities that you find effective?

“Involving children in cooking whenever possible, that is, whenever you have the will for it, going to markets and stores together, and talking about food, differences, cultivation, origins. A relaxed approach to feeding works only if you are aware of how certain foods affect the body, so it’s wise to explain to a child that it’s perfectly okay to eat a chocolate bar, but if we overdo it, our body will feel strange, and that awareness is needed. We can overdo it with apples, of course, but making a child aware of how their body reacts to certain foods is the first step toward a better relationship with food. Physical activity as the foundation of everyday life and enough sleep and rest. Children naturally know how to live healthily, but we can spoil it with our wrong approach.”

How do you balance the nutritional needs of your children in their daily meals, especially considering different ages or developmental stages?

“When they say they’ve had enough during a meal, I don’t insist on another spoonful or extra bite because I think it’s necessary. I firmly believe they know best when they’ve had enough. Sometimes it can be challenging if a child saves themselves for sweets or foods they like more, not eating the meal we’ve prepared, but these are normal parenting challenges, and there are ways to get through them. Certainly not by force. But a balance between family table rules and children’s desires is necessary. There’s no magical formula; everyone knows where their limit is for themselves and their children.”

MEAL PLANNING STRATEGIES

What strategies do you use in meal planning to ensure a balanced diet for your family? How do you reconcile preferences with nutritional requirements?

“I always have ingredients at home for 15-minute meals. This is my personal trick because it often happens that I don’t feel like cooking, but I don’t want them to eat something unhealthy, so I’m at least sure I have 4-5 ingredients for such meals at home. The best example is creamy pasta with vegetables. While the pasta is cooking, I prepare the vegetables or just take peas or similar from the freezer and add them to the pasta for the last two minutes. I drain and mix the ingredients with something creamy like mascarpone or sour cream, season with garlic and oregano, and serve with Parmesan. The fastest meal most kids love, and it takes a maximum of 15 minutes to prepare.”

What advice would you give to parents struggling to prepare balanced, nutritious meals for their children despite a busy schedule?

“There are several Instagram profiles that deal with this topic, which is fortunate because when my girls were little, I was the only one covering this topic. So I can freely call my girls guinea pigs, as I regularly shared everything I learned and achieved with them on my profile. We all learned together, and now there are people who professionally deal with this and help parents who get stuck when baby weaning starts, especially when the first challenges in the toddler phase begin. My advice would be to arm yourself with patience, surround yourself with people who share the same or similar philosophy about food, follow recipes that are closest to your preferences, and try to be as relaxed as possible in this seemingly tedious process, not fearing food and hunger, because that’s when beginner mistakes in meal preparation for children and families usually happen.”

Nastasja Petrić’s Recipe Choice

Especially in the summer months, homemade salsa and sataraš are indispensable parts of her kitchen. These recipes are extremely versatile and can be used as a sauce for pasta, rice, a base for meat dishes, or an addition to eggs or toasted bread. One of the secrets of her recipes is oven preparation, which makes the process easier and allows for richer flavor.

Oven-Baked Sataraš

Ingredients:

• 3 large peppers
• 1 large onion
• 8 medium tomatoes
• 5 cloves of garlic
• 1 teaspoon of sugar
• 1 heaping teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of oregano
• A little pepper
• A generous amount of extra virgin olive oil

Preparation:

1. You can cut the vegetables into large or small pieces.
2. Mix all the ingredients well on a wide and deep baking tray.
3. Bake at 200°C for about 45-50 minutes. Stir the vegetables a bit after half the time has passed.
4. The sataraš is done when the excess liquid from the tomatoes has evaporated, and all the vegetables are completely softened.
5. Serve it immediately or after it cools down. Sataraš can also be frozen.
6. If your children don’t like large pieces, feel free to blend the sataraš a bit and serve it as a sauce for pasta.
7. Optionally, add fresh basil leaves.

In conclusion, olive oil plays a crucial role in Nastasja Petrić’s kitchen, not only for its health benefits but also for its ability to enhance the flavor of every dish. Its presence in everyday meals, whether used raw or for cooking, makes it an indispensable part of her culinary philosophy. Nastasja believes that high-quality extra virgin olive oil can elevate any dish, making it the perfect seasoning in the kitchen.