Think preparing quick, healthy and delicious meals are a pipe dream? Cooking for Dads creator Rob Barrett says that just ain't so. We talked to this dad-turned-chef about taking the reigns in your own kitchen, getting the kids to eat veggies, and his favorite DIY pizza recipe.

AndrewZimmern.com: You’re the host of Cooking For Dads, an online series of instructional cooking videos. How did you get your start in the kitchen?  What inspired you to launch the site?

Rob Barrett: My parents really prioritized raising independent children.  From an early age we were encouraged to learn to do things for ourselves.  So when I was five or six,  I asked my mom for some cookies and she said, "Here's the Betty Crocker Cookbook, you've seen me do this many times.  You make them and if you have any questions I'll be in the next room." That started the ball rolling.

The videos and site were launched after talking to some friends who thought they couldn't cook.  I was making a meal the next day and thought if they could only see it done, I bet they would say, "I can do that." I made the first episode and it just took off.

AZ.com: The site has a broader appeal than just dads. Who else is (or should be) checking out Cooking for Dads?

RB: My demographics are almost 50/50 men and women.  i get a lot of emails and pictures of food from kids, too. It always makes me laugh when someone writes to me and asks, "I'm not a dad but can I still watch?"

AZ: What are your three go-to recipes for parents looking to prepare a quick and healthy meal

RB:  People have sent a lot of pictures making their own home made pizza for a family pizza night. That's one of our favorites as well.

If someone's just starting out, I recommend starting with something easy like the melts.


And one of my main go to's is the Red Pepper and Sausage pasta.  Any time you can get kids to eat peppers, it's worth it.

AZ.comBiggest kitchen snafu?

RB: From the very first episode I decided to use my mistakes rather than reshoot them.  So If I bought the wrong ingredient I go ahead and use it, because that's what happens in real life.  Some times things just don't work out, I keep those in the episode. The worst one was buying chili with beans (for the Game Day Dip) after giving a big speech about not getting the beans in the grocery store.  As I was pouring it out my camera man said, "Those sure look like beans." We left it in.

AZ.com: In addition to Cooking For Dads, you’re an accomplished musician and composer. What’s on your iPod?

RB: I just released my third CD, Celebration, and so I was listening to that in the final stages. Just do a search on iTunes for Rob Barrett, Jr. and it will come up.  I stlll listen to a lot of Bruce Hornsby, David Wilcox, John Mayer, and Shawn Colvin.

AZ.com: Favorite music to listen to while cooking?

RB: We have two play lists we listen to a lot - "Girls We Love" and "Guys We Are Fond Of."  Those get a lot of rotations.  What I'm more addicted to is having a glass of wine when I'm cooking.  Some good music, fun food and a little wine, now we're talking.

AZ.com: You live in Eden Prairie, Minnesota. What are your favorite places to grab a bite in the Twin Cities?

RB: We are some what addicted to Punch Pizza and frequent there a lot.  We've alos taken to doing happy hours at local restaurants like Chino Latino and Woody's Grill.  Good food is even better when it's half price.  We just discovered Bar La Grassa, loved it and can't wait to go back.  My new favorite dessert is the Salty Chocolate Cake at Pairings in Minnetonka.

AZ.com: What’s in your fridge?

RB: Way, way too much.  We live and die by the Costco sword.  Trader Joe's and created it's own pantry in our laundry room.  There are so many fun products, it's hard to keep up with everything we want to try.  Our fridge is often filled with bottles of half filled sauces - peanut sauce, oyster sauce, hoisin sauce, Trader Joe's pasta sauce (which we didn't care for), Soy Vay ...  Tonight we have leftover chicken pot pie in there that my wife made last night (from the Barefoot Contessa).