Hilary Duff talks cookie pairings, balanced eating, and favorite quick meals, interview
For many people, the sight of Girl Scouts standing outside a local grocery store instantly brings a smile, a reach into the wallet, and the anticipation of enjoying those seasonal cookies. Hilary Duff and her family are no different from everyone else. While she might enjoy those Thin Mints, her preferred beverage pairing has plant-based update. Ready for some Planet Oat Milk and Girl Scout cookies?
As the top selling oatmilk, Planet Oat Milk appreciates that connecting with consumers on a personal level is vital. As a supporter of the Girl Scouts, the brand encourages everyone, including those who prefer plant-based food options, to have that opportunity to enjoy the simple treat of milk and cookies. Whether it is a full plant-based food commitment or just an occasional swap, everyone is welcome to the table.
To celebrate National Girl Scout Cookie Weekend on March 3-5, Planet Oat Milk and the Girl Scouts partnered with Hilary Duff to celebrate milk and cookies. While the award-winning actress, singer, best-selling author, and mom might have a busy schedule, she appreciates that those simple moments of enjoying a treat are essential, especially during Girl Scout Cookie season.
Hilary said, “In our house, we always buy extra boxes because we want to support our friends who have kids who are Girl Scouts – and sometimes we just get stopped outside the grocery store. It’s impossible to tell them no when they have all of their badges and you just know they’re working so hard!”
While the support is always appreciated, there are a few Girl Scout Cookie flavors that her family prefers. Hilary shared, “We’re a Thin Mint family, we love Samoas and I just had Adventurefuls for the first time, which were pretty good! I’m a classic girl, though, and Thin Mints and Samoas are the two that I grew up with. If I’m eating them from the freezer, I want them side by side with my Planet Oat Oatmilk, but if they’re not from the freezer, I want to dunk them in my Planet Oat!”
Even though those cookies and milk are a great treat, there is a time and place for them. Sometimes having quick easy food options is important. Since Hilary has a busy life, she has found a few options that work for her and her family.
Hilary said, “I really love bars so I’ll usually have some sort of a bar in my bag. I love the ALOHA brand, they’re vegan and really good. I like Hippie Snacks Ranch Cauliflower Crisps dipped in hummus or with a piece of salami on top. I’m also loving healthier deli meats – with no hormones and low salt – but a hit of protein is nice to have throughout a busy day. We’re a really crunchy, snacky kind of family so I carry a lot of snacks for me and the kids – we do dried fruit, Goldfish, etc. I also do a lot of shakes and overnight oats made with Planet Oat Oatmilk… I could keep going!”
While tasty snacks can help in a pinch, moms appreciate that getting kids to make a balanced eating choice may not be the easiest. For Hilary, she chooses not to label food.
She said, “I really try not to make anything “bad” or off-limits, but I don’t think there’s any problem with being like, “Here’s the order of things. You can have this but first you have to have this.” My kids don’t eat a ton of vegetables, but they’ll eat an entire bowl of broccoli. And they love those little crunchy Persian cucumbers – they love to have them with lemon and salt or, for Luca, I’ll whisk together a little soy sauce, ginger & garlic paste and rice wine vinegar and he’ll crush an entire bag of those Persian cucumbers! They’re getting the vegetables in, they’re getting the fiber, so I can’t really shame them for that. But my kids can have a treat every single night. We’re not that household that refrains from them having sugar – but they have to eat their dinner first.”
While many households want to have that family meal, busy schedules can make it difficult. But, with some go-to recipes, it can make putting food on the table quickly easier.
Hilary shared, “One of my favorites is to make overnight oats with Planet Oat Oatmilk. I can do it a day or two in advance, grab a jar on the way out and the kids can eat it from the car. We have chickens, so we always have an abundance of eggs, and usually have a hard-boiled egg in our lunch. We’ll take the yolk out of a hardboiled egg because the kids don’t like it, but they will crush a ton of egg whites, so we’ll drizzle olive oil, sea salt and pepper and put capers on them. It may sound weird but it’s so good, they love it! We also do a lot of quick meals, like a fried egg on half of an English muffin or avocado toast.”
With a few quick dishes at the ready, Hilary believes that getting the kids involved in the family time event can be helpful. She said, “My kids will set the table and they’ll bring the plates to the sink for me to pack the dishwasher. Not everything is always revolving around food and the kitchen and I don’t necessarily want it to. We also have a family show – not with the littles yet – but with Luca we’re watching Abbott Elementary. And even though we’re not always talking, we’re talking about what we’re watching and we’re lounging around together and it’s really nice because we’re always so fast and on the go. Banks loves getting her nails done, so we’ll do mani pedis together at home too.”
Carving out that family time is important. Hilary Duff is a busy working mom, but she appreciates that success comes with hard work. Learning that business knowledge is part of the annual Girl Scout Cookie program. Even though everyone thinks about eating those Thin Mints, the lessons that the Girl Scouts learn are far greater than the perfect cookie and milk pairing.
As a former Girl Scout, she said “I have good memories of being a Girl Scout and when you’re little like that, you’re not thinking of all the tools it’s teaching you and preparing you for, but that’s really what Girl Scouts is about. It’s preparing you for life and for who you want to be and learning how you can challenge yourself and be kind. I don’t know if I have any advice except just to listen to yourself. If you know what you want or you have ideas, immerse yourself in them because females are so powerful and so strong and so smart and I don’t know why we haven’t been told that from the beginning! My female friendships in my life are so important, especially the ones where we’re supporting each other and proud of each other – and even challenging each other’s train of thoughts and behavior, sometimes. Girl Scouts is such a lovely, important community to be a part of at a young age.”
Even today, Hilary Duff continues to push and challenge herself in her choices. With How I Met Your Father, she has found another new experience that has kept her engaged.
Hilary shared, “Speaking of challenging yourself… I’ve been in this business for such a long time, and I’ve never shot a multi-camera project before, so that was a new format for me. You get used to doing something and it becomes second nature to you. Not boring, but just like, you know it. So doing this, where you’re learning something almost like a play, was a big challenge. It was nice because the whole cast had never done multi-cam, so it kind of evened the playing field for everyone. We just came with these wide eyes like, “Tell us what to do and how to do it and we’ll do it!” instead of someone having the upper hand. It’s also been nice that I was a producing partner in the show because I got to help cast it and that makes a really big difference when working on set. I would say that it’s just been so fun. Every job has its challenges – I’ve never shot a TV show with three kids before, and I wish I could split myself in half sometimes but I can’t, so it’s a discipline of compartmentalizing what needs to happen that’s right in front of me and how I can trade hats when I need to. When I’m walking in the door at home, that fills a different cup of mine, and when I’m at work, I get to be creative and challenged and try to do my best work, and I need that part of my life, too.”
While Hilary Duff might have a busy schedule, she appreciates that balance is key to a fulfilled life. Whether it is enjoying some cookies and milk with her kids, watching a television show together, or just carving out some me time, there is a time and place for everything. Her plate might be bountiful, but it is one that seems to be cherished.