Teens and cooking

Dear Parents,

As I mentioned in yesterday's post, my children decided to do some cooking while my husband and I were away on vacation.  Prior to our departure, my son took on learning how to use the Barbeque, and it turns out that the kid is quite the grill master.  If your children are interested, cooking is one of those things that creates great family memories, and at the same time really serves to build their independence and basic life skills.

Food has always been a big part of our family celebrations, as I imagine it is in most families.  Our family really loves to eat and making good food in anticipation of something special is a great way for the family to bond.  After traveling and trying different foods from different countries, I am finding myself interested in exploring new recipes to try out.  Teens can be engaged in various aspects of the food preparation depending on their level of interest. 

In our case, I found the level of interest on a daily basis is minimal, however, when they started thinking about the week ahead and what they wanted to eat in our absence, they became a lot more interested in how to season, what temperature to cook at and how long, etc.  We returned to excited stories about what they made, how good it was, etc.  Truthfully, though, now that we are back, they are not volunteering to cook, and are looking forward to being cooked for again!

To Your Family,

Jane Cabrera
The Parent Success Coach