When Bill Wurtzel looks at food, he doesn’t just see blueberries, bananas, or pancakes. Like a sculptor, he coaxes out rabbits, trains, and faces. Once he even fashioned a Mona Lisa out of a plum.
It’s all spontaneous. “I am a jazz musician and when you’re playing jazz, you’re playing a couple of notes and it tells you what the next ones are going to be. The food tells you what it’s going to be. It falls into place,” he said.
It’s hard not to crack a smile at these edible creations looking back at you. Wurtzel calls it “funny food.”
For kids, they’re just irresistible. He and his wife Claire, an educator, started running workshops for children. The children buzz with excitement, with oohs and aahs of recognition as Bill shows them examples.
Then he asks them for suggestions as he makes a plate, slipping in some nutrition lessons along the way and about the importance of eating healthy breakfasts.
“What do you see?” he’ll ask, pointing to a pancake. The kids’ imaginations soar: a cloud, a bun in your hair, a bug.
“It’s also an artistic experience,” said Claire. “He’s really getting the kids to observe.”
And then they make their own breakfast plates. “It’s amazing what kids will make if you give them the freedom,” she said. They mention Cyclopses, monsters, machines, cars with little people.
And for the finale: breakfast.
“If they make it, they eat it,” said Claire. “There’s no question. It’s the only thing that gets them to try the food.”
The Wurtzels were astounded at the number of kids who had never tried certain foods. Even at PS 261 in Brooklyn, where the neighborhood isn’t poor, Claire points out, many children had never tried blueberries before.
Inspiration
Bill Wurtzel started making these charming, funny breakfasts for his wife Claire, his “muse,” as he calls her, even before they were married more than 52 years ago.
At the time, Bill ate so poorly, Claire said, it shocked her. “He never ate vegetables outside starchy ones such as peas or corn.”
What did Bill eat for breakfast? “Brownies and Coca Cola,” he said.
Finally, after numerous times sitting across from Claire, who’d enjoy her Brussels sprouts or other vegetables with relish, his curiosity was piqued and he got hooked on fresh vegetables and fruits.
Life Lessons
“Funny food” is not only about good nutrition and art, it also imparts some life lessons.
Claire said, “I remember once, a child said, ‘What happens if something goes wrong?’ Bill said, ‘You just go with it.’ We showed them. There was an egg that broke. It became a funny-looking face with the hair dropping down.”
“In jazz, there’s nothing such as a wrong note. You work around it,” added Bill.
The Wurtzels wrote a book, which came out last year, titled “Funny Food: 365 Fun, Healthy, Silly, Creative Breakfasts” (Welcome Books). The book was selected as a Best Children’s Book of 2012 by the Bank Street College Book Committee. It offers suggestions for what parents can make with their children, should they need a little inspiration.
And every Friday they post up a breakfast plate on Facebook.
In addition, Bill has an exhibit of 50 images showing at Bank Street College through Dec. 10.
Bank Street College exhibit:
610 W. 112th St. (between Broadway and Riverside Drive)
Monday–Friday 8 a.m.–8 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Free admission
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