FUN FOOD WITH
Duff Goldman teaches cooking and science in ‘Duff’s Happy Fun Bake Time’ on Discovery+
He’s written “Super Good Baking for Kids” and hosted the “Kids Baking Championship” series. Now, celebrity chef Duff Goldman is starring in a Discovery+ show for families in collaboration with Food Network. “Duff’s Happy Fun Bake Time” co-stars a cast of puppets from the Jim Henson Company.
Like Michelle Obama’s Netflix series, “Waffles + Mochi,” the program’s aim is teaching children about food. Goldman, a professional baker, will explain the science behind his mouthwatering recipes, which are designed to be fun for kids to make at home.
In the grown-up world, Goldman is best known as the star of “Ace of Cakes” and “Buddy vs. Duff” as well as from his guest appearances as a judge on various competition shows. He’s also built two businesses, Charm City Cakes bakery in Baltimore and Los Angeles, and the DIY treats store Duff’s Cakemix, with four Southern California shops. And his virtual cupcake decorating classes — including a unicorn-themed session on May 22 and zoo animals on May 29 — can be accessed at www.charmcitycakes.com.
Here’s what he had to say about his latest television adventures, which includes sea monsters, aliens and more.
Q How did you get involved in this?
A Well, I was in my kitchen, I was baking, and I was watching “Sesame Street,” because I love kids’ shows. I was just like, this is such a work of art, such a good show with the writing, the beauty of the art — everything about it is really great. And I thought wouldn’t it be really fun to do a cooking show with puppets? I know people have tried before. It was never awesome. So I kind of came up with this whole idea and brought it to the Jim Henson Company like, “Hey, I got this idea.” They said, “Yeah, let’s do it!”
Q
This is a new kind of show for you, right?
A
This is definitely something different. My idea was that there would be an actor playing the part of the big guy in the kitchen. When I brought that up, Henson was like, “No, no, no! It’s gotta be you!” I was not planning on being in front of the camera for this.
Q
But you’re on TV all the time. The folks out there in TV land love you …
A
Yeah, but that’s just me eating a brownie and telling you why it’s good.
Q
This show has a fun mix of animation, puppets and live action. Talk us through the characters.
A So Couscous is the sous chef, and she’s really in charge. She’s got me and this slacker sloth, S’Later, Edgar, a crabby crab, and the Dragon Oven, who puts everything in his mouth. He’s obviously not well behaved. There’s a very excitable robot elephant, Dizzy, who’s the mixer just stuck to the wall. And then there are six eggs in the fridge, and they’re all different grandmothers. They’re called the nonna eggs. So every time we open the fridge, we get yelled at by six grandmothers. Couscous is there to keep us on track.
Q There’s a musical grocer, too?
A My sous chef, my partner in Charm City Cakes, Geof Manthorne, is a friend from college. He’s a singer-songwriter. We’re really tight. So I said, “You’re going to be the produce guy. Whenever I need something, you show up.” He brings a mandolin or guitar and sings a song about whatever we’re doing.
Q Children’s programs are becoming so cool — and this show teaches science. Why?
A What I’m really hoping is that kids will get more interested in the food that they’re eating when they understand what’s happening.
Like you can understand what the eggs do in a cake, then you taste the cake and it’s, “OK, I see, this is really fluffy.” It creates even more curiosity, not just about cooking, but about everything. Having kids curious, I think, is the most important thing we can do.
Q What do you make on the show?
A We make some cakes, we make some cupcakes, we make pasta from scratch. We make sweet snacks and salty snacks. We make ice cream, like, five different ways. We make bread, and then we make these crazy sandwiches out of it. Each episode has three or four recipes.
A If an adult doesn’t quite understand, nine times out of 10, they’re going to pretend they do. If kids don’t understand they’re going to be like, “Hold on. What does that mean?” They ask questions. They want to know. So you have to go back and really be able to explain any part of the recipe.
Q As a pro chef, you’ve taught adults. How is teaching kids different?
Q Fun challenge! How did you like acting? What’s it like on set?
A I was star-struck when I found out some of the projects these people had worked on — you know, “The Dark Crystal,” Muppet movies, you name it. These are the A-listers of the puppeteering world. They were so welcoming and went out of their way to make it easy for me. Their improv comedy skills are so great, they could rescue any scene. It was really incredible getting to work with these people, just a dream.