As the weather turns blustery and the holidays approach, this is a great time to teach your kids to cook. Cooking is a great family activity, teaches important and life-long skills, and gives the whole family an opportunity to talk about the kinds of food they like to eat. Studies show that students of families who eat a nightly meal together have higher tests scores and higher self-esteem.
Even if you can’t always eat together, there are plenty of ways to “share” a family meal, and one of those ways is by cooking meals together on the weekends that the family can pop into the oven or microwave later in the week. The idea is to share time together even if soccer, meetings, or band practice means it’s impossible to sit down at the table together.
Celebrate the indoors by cooking and sharing food and nutrition with your family with our tips and information.
It’s Cook with your Kids week on the Food Network. This special week will celebrate and give ideas for families cooking with their kids.
Renowned chef Emeril LaGasse has just released a new cookbook, There’s a Chef in My Family: Recipes to Get Everybody Cooking (HarperCollins, $22.99, ISBN 0060004398.) There are tons of interesting better-than-peanut-butter-sandwiches recipes in this easy-to-follow, graphically rich book. Kids and parents will LOVE trying out recipes like one-step breakfast casserole, beans galore salad, or oven crispy cheese fries. Each recipe includes an ingredient list, step-by-step instructions, and a list of tools you’ll need to gather before you start cooking.
Even if you don’t get Food Network, Emeril shares tips to help you cook with your kids in this Q and A session.
Q: What lessons can kids learn in the kitchen?
A: “Cooking together is a great way for the whole family to spend time together. Make it fun. Let them help-and let them do it their way. At first, they may make a bigger mess to clean up, but your kids will learn valuable skills in the kitchen. By simply learning to follow a recipe, we practice reading and organizational skills. Math skills are key in learning to measure ingredients. Since cooking is all about chemistry, we even get to learn a little science. The habits you learn in the kitchen-safety, cleanliness, teamwork, responsibility, and patience-work outside the kitchen, too. Cooking is also a great way to teach your kids about nutrition and healthful eating.”
Q: What did you learn from cooking as a child?
A: “One of the things I liked best about my mom, Miss Hilda, letting me cook was that she let me figure things out on my own. It made me feel grown-up and responsible. Encouraging your kids to figure things out for themselves is a good idea, as long as you’re available for help and guidance along the way.”
Q: What is a good first dish for a child to cook?
A: “When I was a little boy, I used to love to watch my mom cook. Little by little, I began cooking by myself. I started with simple stuff, like vegetable soup and French toast. At first, things like chopping and whisking were kind of hard. But hey, I kept on and the more I did these things, the better I got.”
Q: Do you have any suggestions to encourage kids to try new foods?
A: “In general, kids will try what they see their parents enjoying. Educate your kids about different ingredients and encourage them to try new things.”
