Kidsday talks with Food Network's Marcela Valladolid

We met Food Network host Marcela Valladolid in Manhattan recently. She was the celebrity host for a Ragu cooking contest. Her show, “Mexican Made Easy,” is one of our favorites because we love to cook!
 
How has your experience on Food Network been, so far?

My experience has been awesome. It’s the first time to have somebody cook Mexican food, and I’m Mexican. It’s really exciting to be able to share the stories of when I was your age . . . to talk about my experience growing up in Mexico and talking about my food and my recipes; Food Network was really nice because they let me make it really personal. My son’s in the show, my sister is in the show, and my dad is in the show — my whole family is in it]. So it’s been really exciting.
 
What is your son Fausto’s favorite meal?

My son’s favorite meal? I wish the answer is Mexican, but it’s sushi. He’s a sushi lover, but when I cook at home, he loves everything. He loves his veggies, believe it or not. He’s a vegetable eater. He loves spaghetti and meatballs. He loves roasted fish. But he’s good: He’ll eat a whole bunch of different things. He’s easy.
 
What is the healthiest meal you ever cooked?

I cook healthy meals all the time. That’s really important to me. I think it makes my son brighter, smarter and healthier, and gets him in a better mood. It’s really important for me to keep him eating those veggies, those proteins and not that much sugar. I think the healthiest meal that he likes — he loves it when I give him raw veggies with a little bit of sprinkled lime juice and chili powder.
 
Do you remember the first meal you cooked?

I think I was a teenager, and I was cooking for my friend, and we made — it was a really fancy dish. I made salmon wrapped in puff pastry . . . and we made a nice, creamy dill sauce to go with it. It was a really fancy dish. I impressed my friend.