10 Questions for Mr. & Ms. Funny Food: Bill & Claire Wurtzel

Bill Wurtzel, a jazz guitarist, has been making Funny Food plates for his wife Claire, since the early days of their 50-year marriage. Now the couple has turned a fun hobby into an art form with a social message. Their goal: To prevent obesity and reduce the risk of diabetes in children by them—and their parents—to improve their eating habits by creating meals that are not only nutritious, but also fun to make and eat. We sat down with Bill and Claire for a quick Q&A. Meet Mr. and Ms. Funny Food!

1. Bill, you've been making your healthy plates of love for your wife Claire for over 50 years. Do you do any planning before hand? What inspired the very first plate?
I've been entertaining Claire with funny food since we were dating. Our wedding announcement has a photograph of me with steak and spaghetti on my chest. Breakfasts are spontaneous using whatever ingredients are on hand- with no pre-planning. My inspiration has always been making Claire smile.

2. Claire, you love the plates not only because eating something fun made you really enjoy eating healthy, but also because they made you smile, reminded you of being a young girl in the kitchen with your mother. Tell us about the day Bill made his first plate for you.
Although I don't recall my first plate, I do remember Bill serving me breakfasts in bed with the food arranged artistically. I never expected carrots or celery on my eggs, but they looked fantastic. He continues to surprise me with new and wonderful breakfasts. Bill always asks what I want. It might be eggbeaters, or cottage cheese, yogurt or a pancake and then, who knows what else ends up on the plate. Bill knows that I count weight watcher points so he has memorized the quantities I want - 1/2 cup eggbeater, 1 cup of yogurt etc.

3. Claire, as a dedicated Weight Watcher, you've struggled with your weight and diet. How did Bill's breakfasts change how and what you ate?
I have always eaten well. My mother learned about nutrition at the Henry St. settlement House when I was a little girl. Bill has always been supportive as opposed to a partner who sabotages ones attempts of healthy eating. I don't think of myself as ever being on a diet- I just eat well. As a matter of fact, when we first met Bill had terrible eating habits. His diet consisted of cokes, canned peas and corn, steak and brownies. When he saw me enjoying fresh fruits and vegetables it enticed him to try them as well. Now Bill eats every vegetable I serve and he loves salads. We have fruit for dessert. Every once in a while Bill has to have a real high calorie dessert, in moderation.

4. There is something very improvisational about you as a jazz musician. How does that relate to your "art" on the plates, do you think?
They are very closely connected. My jazz improvisations are very much like the breakfast creations. In fact, I will be conducting a jazz improvisation and Funny Food workshop at Jazz at Lincoln Center on Feb 11, 2012. Someone who hires me for jazz "gigs" knew about the upcoming book, asked me to combine the two.

5. You two have been in love since the day you met, but found taking responsibility for one another's health to be a deeply enriching experience for you both. How has actively taking responsibility for one another's health enhanced your relationship and later your relationship with your family?
We enjoy good health and want to live long healthy lives so it's important to us to eat well and exercise. We raised our kids the same way. Our kids did not know people ate any thing other than fruit for dessert until they started having sleepovers at friends' homes. When our daughter Nina, became a ballet dancer she would come home from class shocked by what her peers ate- especially when they thought they were "watching their weight" Many of the dancers ate sweetened yogurt and bags of raisins and nuts. They didn't know the calorie content, or the nutritional value of what they were consuming. Now our grandchildren join us in making Funny Food creations.

6. When did you start making Funny Food plates and your kids and now your grandkids? How did you introduce Funny Food to them? Any favorite plates?
When our daughters were little Bill told them imaginary stories about the foods on their plate. They hurried to eat their vegetables before the "monster or lion" was going to come and eat the chicken people and the broccoli trees.

7. Back when you were making your first plates for Claire, did you ever envision your Funny Food pastime as a book, a mission, that could help a nation of children eat better?
No, Bill was just having fun with food to entertain me. And, when I first met Bill he was an artist. We used to go out somewhere and I would read and he painted. Over the years, Bill used his incredible creativity in other ways. He was the Creative Director in several top ad agencies and played jazz "gigs" in the evening. He also did a lot of travel photography. I often wondered if he would ever paint again. I realize that the breakfasts are his canvas. It was quite a surprise to us when these breakfasts took off. In fact Bill didn't even photograph them until about 5 or 6 years ago- on my insistence. He began sending them to friends and family and was astounded by the response. After there was a story about Bill as a jazz musician in the Times, Sam Roberts followed up with a story about Bill's breakfasts and you know the rest of the story.

8. What separates Funny Food from other books and methods for getting kids to eat healthy, for example, Jessica Seinfeld's book Deceptively Delicious?
We want kids to have fun in a creative and interactive workshop as a way to learn about nutrition. We know from cognitive science that we all learn best in when in a joyful atmosphere. Also, we want children to know they're eating and to take charge of what goes on their plate. We don't want to hide the healthy ingredients. We also don't want to dictate recipes- but to inspire people to eat well and make their own wacky images.

9. You recently started doing Funny Food Workshops in NYC Schools. How did the first one come about? What do the kids think? Teachers?
We began conducting these workshops a year ago. We started talking about the overwhelming statistics on childhood obesity and diabetes and thought the funny food creations might inspire kids and expand their vision of what they might eat for breakfast. Also, if a kid makes something themselves they are more likely to try eating it. In this way they expand their palate too. Pre and post assessments as well as our own observations show that the workshops are successful and teachers have been asking us to do more of them.

10. Plain and simple. What do you hope someone who picks up Funny Food?
I am shocked by the food preparation on the cooking shows. We a country in trouble if we continue eating the way we do. We would love to see families inspired to make and eat some of the healthy foods they see in the Funny Food book and change their eating habits. We would also like to see the school workshops integrated into a larger initiative to sustain the learning and reach more kids.