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Food People, Parent Picks: we ask our favorite chefs, food writers, and industry insiders who we interview in our Order Up! Series to share the products, books, and bites they can’t live without.
Small Bites:
Part children’s book. Part cook book. 100% the most adorable story of discovery, family, food, and feelings: Get a copy of Chef Tatiana’s children’s book Arlo and the Secret Ingredient [Bookshop, Amazon]
🍽️ Spring & Summer on a Plate – fresh from Peas & Hoppiness
There’s something magic about seasonal eating — and Peas & Hoppiness knows how to bring it to your table. Each week’s menu highlights the season’s freshest produce (think juicy strawberries, bright greens, tender asparagus) and turns it into simple, delicious meals. Bonus? Seasonal ingredients are often more nutritious and more affordable, so it’s a win for your body and your grocery budget.
Make Family Meal Time Easier with Peas & Hoppiness Meal Planning App from our friend registered dietitian Ann Kent. Use code ONEPOTATO30 for a 30-day trial.
As Pride Month winds down, we’re grateful for chefs like Tatiana Rosana—who show up, speak out, and make space. Whether she’s representing queer families in fine dining or helping her son Arlo curl his fingers safely around a kid’s knife, Tatiana reminds us how powerful visibility can be. Inspired by food, love, and family, Tatiana even wrote a children’s book – Arlo and The Secret Ingredient! You can read more about her dedication to representation in the kitchen as a queer woman, mom, and Latina in her Order Up! interview.
We’re honored to share her Food People, Parent Picks—the real-life tools, snacks, cookbooks, and comfort foods that help her embrace the joyful chaos of parenting while staying rooted in family, flavor, and pride.
Food People, Parent Picks with Chef Tatiana
🥣 What’s a weeknight dinner you actually make on repeat at home?
We make tteokguk—Korean rice cake soup—all the time. It’s super simple and Arlo loves it. Those chewy rice cakes? Total kid magnet.
🍴 A kitchen tool you swear by that every home cook should own?
A mandoline slicer. [At One Potato, we’ve heard this one before!]
🧄 Your go-to shortcut ingredient that always saves the day?
Gochujang. I know I’m sounding very Korean right now, but it’s such a flavorful staple in our house. I usually work nights, so my wife does most of the home cooking—and this is always within arm’s reach.
🧂 Favorite pantry staple that adds a big flavor punch?
Besides gochujang? We always keep dried herbs and spices around. They’ll totally rescue any meal on the fly. [Revisit our interview with Sana Javeri Kadri, founder of Diaspora Spice Co.]
🔪 What’s a kid-friendly tool that makes cooking with your son more fun (or less chaotic)?
The Opinel Kids Knife Kit. I recommend it to everyone. It comes with a peeler and a finger guard that teaches proper grip and curling technique. Arlo learned how to hold a knife safely thanks to this—it’s been a lifesaver. People are nervous about giving their kids a knife, but this one teaches lifelong skills in a safe, smart way. [Pair the occasion of picking up this knife kit with revisiting Community Voices story, The Birthday Knife by Taylor Hobbs!)
🥔 Snack-time MVP—for you or your kid?
Fritos. Potato chips. Malanga chips. Basically, anything salty and crunchy. Arlo is obsessed with malanga chips, and we have to order them in bulk from Miami because he only likes one specific kind. It’s serious.
📖 A cookbook you reach for when you need inspiration?
Memories of a Cuban Kitchen by Mary Urrutia Randelman. It’s old-school and so meaningful to me. Cuban food was never written down in my family—it was all about cooking by feel—so seeing recipes from my culture laid out like that really struck me. [Get it on Bookshop or Amazon]
🧆 One dish or ingredient that instantly reminds you of home?
Black beans. They’re my comfort food, hands down. I remember learning to cook them with my cousins and my grandmother—it’s a core memory, and that taste always brings me back.
🍣 Last food experience that truly delighted you?
After our elopement, my wife and I spent two weeks indulging in Napa—amazing food, amazing wine—but the most unforgettable moment happened at a tiny sushi spot in San Francisco. I was so over drinking and just wanted something simple, so I ordered a green tea. And as soon as the steam started to fade, they brought me a fresh one—no words exchanged. That quiet attention to detail floored me. It was more memorable than any fine dining experience we’d had. That’s the kind of hospitality I aspire to.
🥘 What’s one thing you’ve stopped stressing about in the kitchen since becoming a parent?
The mess. Ohhhh, definitely the mess. We’ve learned to embrace it. My wife’s very Type A, so it was an adjustment for her, but now we just go with it. If Arlo’s helping out, spills are inevitable. Flour on the floor? Fine. He’s learning. We’re together. We’re present. That’s the part that matters.
🍋 Favorite food gift to give or receive?
Homemade lemon curd. It’s bright, sweet, and such a treat to make or get. I also love when friends bring me back spices from their travels—especially from places I haven’t been. A friend once brought me spices from India that totally blew my mind. Food gifts like that are the best kind of souvenir.
