WGBH's Henry Santoro, host of Henry In The Hub, meets up with Chef and Author Sally Sampson to discuss her publication and teaching children to eat and cook healthy. Below is a transcription of their interview.

Henry Santoro: Chef and cookbook author Sally Sampson has made it her life's work to make sure children and their families cook healthful meals and everybody eats together. She believes that teaching children to cook sets them up for a lifetime of wellness. And that's where her nonprofit company Chop Chop kids comes in. It publishes a quarterly publication called Chop Chop of fun cooking magazine for families.

Henry Santoro: It's a pleasure to have Sally Sampson in our WGBH studios and on Henry in the Hub. Good morning.

Sally Sampson: Good morning. It's a pleasure to be here.

Henry Santoro: We should say to our audience that you and I have known each other for some time, both kicking around the Boston area and food scene for some time. So, for those people who are not familiar with Chop Chop, the magazine, please tell us what it is and what some of the regular features are.

Sally Sampson: So, Chop Chop is a quarterly magazine that's published in English and Spanish. It's national. It's 40 pages. It's full color. And we primarily feature recipes so we might have a breakfast which could be sort of an easy egg dish or smoothies. We also do a lot of side dishes. We do a column on gardening a column on some sort of physical activity and also a healthy hero where we've interviewed people like Michelle Obama or basketball players or kids who are doing really cool things.

Henry Santoro: I would imagine that Michelle Obama loves Chop Chop.

Sally Sampson: Well, one can only assume so.

Henry Santoro: Because Chop Chop is actually has been around longer than she has been first lady. Correct?

Sally Sampson: No, actually. She became first lady in January. She launched Let's Move in the next February and we launched in March. OK. So basically it's all the same b

Henry Santoro: But you're all working in concert. Correct?

Sally Sampson: Correct.

Henry Santoro: Right. But in the end the end result is the same. Yes. It's healthful eating for children and families everybody gathering around the table together something that doesn't happen that often anymore.

Sally Sampson: That is true which is really sad.

Henry Santoro: Why.

Sally Sampson: I think people are working three jobs I think people have just taken their families are more fractured. People are eating more fast food their sports are after school and I mean I think there is time just that people don't make the time or they don't think they have it.

Henry Santoro: I mean I remember it you remember it because we not only lived it but we watched Leave it to Beaver. We watch Andy of Mayberry. We watched Lassie, when families did gather around the table and everybody ate and just chatted together.

Sally Sampson: Right.

Henry Santoro: Which was a different time.

Sally Sampson: Well so are sitcoms now - I mean I don't watch sitcoms - Do sitcoms not show that?

Henry Santoro: I don't think they do. I think you know I think it's the fast food generation.

Sally Sampson: Right.

Henry Santoro: What was the lightbulb moment for you. Can you tell us about that when when this idea came to you?

Sally Sampson: Yes so my background as you know is is a cookbook writer and I've been writing cookbooks for many years

Henry Santoro: And you’ve written with the best of them.

Sally Sampson: Thank you. I got to a point where I felt like I didn't wanna write cookbooks anymore. I wanted to do something more meaningful and I wanted to do something in health care. So the original idea of Chop Chop was for doctors to prescribe cooking during well-child visits so that all children would learn these skills. And so I approached a bunch of different doctors that I knew they loved the idea and then it kind of spread from there and we're now in 50% of all pediatricians offices in the country. But also in schools after schools Indian reservations sort of wherever you find children

Henry Santoro: And a lot of this begins at the school where these you know breakfast and lunches need to be served to kids who need their nourishment. And and I know that school lunches especially in Massachusetts they're trying to change the math trying to make them more healthful. Are you involved in that?

Sally Sampson: Not really because our message is it that is a good thing. It's a really good thing but we can only work on so much at one time and our message is really cook real food at home with your family.

Henry Santoro: Right.

Sally Sampson:  So bring your own lunch.

Henry Santoro: But obviously this school should still clean up there what they're serving.

Sally Sampson: Yeah I think you're right.

Henry Santoro: I know that our friend Jody Adams has been trying to change schools. What are some of the recipes that that you start kids out with?

Sally Sampson: We start with the very young we started to write and we actually just recently launched - it's called the Chop Chop Cooking Club. It's a free online cooking club. And the idea of that is that you start really simple and really small. And then you build from there. So for instance the first recipe the first lesson is a smoothie. So it's you learn how to do these particular things and then you gain the skill. So if you learn how to do a smoothie in a blender, now you know how to use a blender. Right. Learn how to peel a carrot, for the next thing. Then you can peel an apple you can--

Henry Santoro: Teach a man to fish.

Sally Sampson: Exactly.

Henry Santoro: And these kids have the opportunity to win prizes.

Sally Sampson: They do. And they also send in pictures so we have just a million pictures of kids who have made something and they take a picture and they send it to us. And they're so proud and it's really wonderful to look at the pictures.

Henry Santoro: The magazine is published in both English and in Spanish. It's endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics and use Sally Sampson have won a James Beard Award for publication of the year. You would make Julia Child very proud.

Sally Sampson: Aw. That is very sweet.

Henry Santoro: But what is the next what's the next step for you because you have clearly created a brand with Chop Chop. You've got the cooking club you've got the magazine. Where do you see it going next what's the next level?

Sally Sampson: Where were you and chopped up SR so chopped up for older adults. Because it's also a pop singer. I don't know if I should say that. I don't want to take it out. Yes we can take it out again because I probably shouldn't….

Sally Sampson:  So we actually also recently launched chopped up WIC. So that's just for WIC recipients. And so if it's 16 pages it only uses wake ingredients. It's a it's a slow start. So that's even though we've had it for a little while we consider it sort of our future.

Henry Santoro: And it's really exciting because now you're getting inner city kids into eating the foods that they're familiar with but doing it in a healthful way.

Sally Sampson: Right. And if you tell someone who's on WIC these are the foods you can eat and you don't tell them how to cook them, you haven't gone very far. So it's really exciting.

Henry Santoro: And I have to say it pains me when I am in the supermarket and I see the WIC card come out and the bags of chips....

Sally Sampson: No no no youre talking about SNAP.

Henry Santoro: Oh OK.

Sally Sampson: So. WIC is women infants and children and they get a list of foods.

Henry Santoro: So they get the cheese and the dairy the milk right. Right. It's a great list of foods.

Sally Sampson: And actually we could live on it. It's it's a really good list SNAP. We also actually do customized version versions of the magazine for SNAP offices. It's still the same thing. I mean it's trying to get SNAP recipients to eat better also.

Henry Santoro:  Right. How can people get the magazine and how can they get involved with the Chop Chop lifestyle and community?

Sally Sampson: Our website is chopchopmag.org. And you can subscribe there. You can join the cooking club for free a chopchopcookingclub.org.

Henry Santoro:  And you know you traveled around to different towns in Massachusetts you know bringing challenges to each town?

Sally Sampson: Well so now we actually just finished. It's called Watertown cook so every elementary school kid in Watertown got chopped up for four issues and you know we're challenged to see can we get a whole town cooking. And we actually just sent out the survey today to see what our results are like. I will keep you posted.

Henry Santoro:  Please do. Well Sally Sampson thank you so much for coming in the magazine this Chop Chop the fun cooking magazine for families.

Sally Sampson: And as she said it's ChopChopmagazine.org

Sally Sampson: Mag. Chop Chop mag.

Henry Santoro: Yes. Thank you so much.

Sally Sampson: Thank you.

Henry Santoro:  Always a pleasure to see you.

To listen to the extended interview with Sally Sampson and WGBH's Henry Santoro click on the audio file above.