A Quick Bite With Savannah Miller

There are the Redgrave sisters, the Gabor sisters, Judy and Audrey Landers; there are the Olsens, the Simpsons, and the Hiltons. Typically, with celebrity sisters, one is a little less flash worthy than the other, and she’s the one you want to be. Or at least, she’s the one I’d want to be. Give me great bone structure and talent without the crazy of stardom.

Savannah Miller may be best known as Sienna’s sister, but at 33, her accomplishments are stellar, with a first class degree in fashion design from Central Saint Martins, a freshly launched eponymous label http://nelly.com/uk/womens-fashion/brands/savannah-2523/ (she and Sienna stepped down as creative directors of Twenty8Twelve last year) and three children and a teenage stepson (her husband, Nick Skinner’s son from a previous relationship). They live in a charming stone house in the English countryside and Miller travels back and forth to London for work. Goodness knows how she pulls it all off. Yoga and meditation, she says help, but rather than striving for balance, Miller’s learnt to embrace the chaos.

Q: What is your earliest food memory?
A: Eating sea urchins fresh out of the sea on a little fishing boat with my parents in Capri.

Q: Are there any foods that your mum used to make that you now cook for Java, Moses, Lyra and Bali?
A: Lemon roast chicken is a firm favourite in our house and Mum made it for us every Sunday for years.

Q: Who or what is your biggest influence when it comes to the way your feed your family today?
A: Definitely my mother, although she is very fond of cream. I look to my step-sister, Natasha Corrett, for healthy food inspiration. Her book Honestly Healthy http://www.honestlyhealthyfood.com/ has saved us from many a cream moment. My daughter would live on bagels and cream cheese or macaroni cheese if she had it her way.

Q: I’ve read that you are a passionate gardener, and grow your own fruits and vegetables at home in Gloucestershire.
A: We grow a token amount of salad, herbs and beans in the summer. Working and children don’t leave any time for much else but I do find gardening really therapeutic.

Q: Eating peas directly out of the pod or salad fresh from a garden must make you feel really in touch with nature.
A: Funnily enough my kids will only eat the salad straight out of the garden. They are also really into raw peas straight from the pod although these mostly come from the local farmer’s market.

Q: Do you think that playing a part in planting, sowing and weeding vegetables makes a child more likely to embrace carrots and courgettes?
A: Definitely, but my kids will generally only eat those vegetables if they are heavily disguised in a soup or spaghetti sauce.

Q: Are there any foods your children won’t eat that you wish they would?
A: They are a bit selective about fish which I hope will change, and they aren’t great on pulses and grains either, although quinoa and brown rice are getting more of a look in these days especially if I hide them in a bit of white basmati rice covered in butter.

Q: Are you strict about lollipops and crisps and other sticky treats?
A: We really try not to overdo that stuff because they turn into crazy people if they have too much sugar. But I am not a junk fascist by any means. There is always room for a bit of junk in my life.

Q: How do you make family meals a part of what must sometimes be a crazy routine?
A: We all sit down for breakfast and dinner everyday. Living in the country makes that easier, I guess. We all prefer to eat early too and I think I would go mad if I had to cook two separate dinners every evening. Although, it is definitely a lot more relaxing sans les enfants and with wine and candles.

Q: What about your own diet? How do you maintain healthy balanced eating habits while juggling four children and a career in the fashion industry?
A: I generally eat a pretty balanced diet. I am not super strict with myself but I love vegetables and fresh juice.

Q: Aside from gardening and cooking, what do you do to remain grounded?
A: Yoga at Jivamukti Yoga Centre when I have the energy and I just discovered great relaxation CD called Unplug which has great 10-20 minute relaxations and meditation exercise. I highly recommend it. Generally though I am pretty manic and not at all grounded but having four kids and a business to run excuses that!