Submitted by MaKayla Stroud
Southwind Extension District
4-H Program Assistant

Cooking as a Family

Wash your hands, put on an apron, and gather your family into the heart of your home to create delicious dishes and more!

Whether it comes from a box mix or completely from scratch, spending time as a family in the kitchen has many benefits such as establishing culinary skills, making yummy food, and creating lifelong memories.

The first benefit of a family unit cooking together is building and improving culinary skills.

The kitchen is a great teaching environment to help your kids build lifelong skills that will help them nurture themselves and others.

Depending on the ages of children and their abilities, what can of recipes you can tackle together. You can even make it competitive by splitting into teams to see who can make the best meal or dish.

Obviously, the main reason to work with ingredients is to make yummy food. Studies show when the adults within a household help prepare and cook food with their children, better nutrition practices can be established earlier and continued throughout their lives.

Youth who are involved in the kitchen are educated about their food supply therefore making them informed consumers.

Another reward for working together with food is creating lifelong memories. When children grow up, they may not remember the exact dessert or meal you prepared with them however they will remember the laughs, stories, and fun they had with their family.

Yes, it might take longer to prepare & cook your dish, however you are completing a daily task while writing another story within your book of memories.

So, go ahead and grab a family favorite from your recipe box or cookbook and get together soon so you can make a delicious meal while improving your cooking skills and creating a lifetime of memories.

If you are interested in other family fun ideas, go to our Facebook page or YouTube channel named Southwind District 4-H or visit southwind.ksu.edu for more youth development resources.