It’s been proven time and again that the family who eats together stays together. Kids who sit down to the family dinner table to share a meal not only have healthier eating habits but they do better in school and are less likely to get into trouble during those tumultuous teen years.
On the Eve of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution I believe along with Chef Oliver that we need to take it to the next level and get our family members into the kitchen to help cook. The act of preparing a meal together is a great way to bond. Teenage boys talk when they are engaged in an activity. When my son Andrew cooks with me in the kitchen I get a lot more than the grunting, “Fine” when asked how his day went.
There is so much more to learn in the kitchen aside from how to cook. There is: team play, the dying art of conversation, following directions, reading skills, math and science skills, and broadening their food repertoire.
Start off small and work your way up the kitchen help ladder by choosing age appropriate tasks for your kids. Andrew was my official salad green washer when he was 3 years old and yes the kitchen got quite wet, but when he served me Mother’s Day breakfast of French toast and tea when he was 6 years old, all those wet floors were a dim memory.
Jamie Oliver is trying to make a difference. His Food Revolution Day is tomorrow May 19 and his goal is to turn this day into the beginning a healthy eating movement. He wants to inspire the world to fight obesity with better food. How is he trying to inspire us? He is asking us to get back into the kitchen and cook together.
Tomorrow invite your family and friends into your kitchen to prepare a made from scratch meal.
Plan the menu together, visit your local farmer’s market together, prep together, chop together, sauté together, and eat together.
We can all make a difference to the future of our family’s health and it begins with you.
Eat real food. Throw out packaged convenience foods and get back to the basics. Your health depends on it.
For recipe ideas click here.
