Food Skill Development!

It is with great enthusiasm that I introduce a brand NEW web resource for teaching food skills in our kitchens!  The tool is called Family Kitchen and designed to inspire families to cook, learn and laugh together.

The dietitians at Dairy Farmers of Canada, who designed the tool, know that kids who are welcomed into the kitchen to help in preparing meals are more likely to try new foods, eat better and have more confidence to prepare meals/snacks for themselves now and as they get older.  What a timely resource in a culture inundated with processed convenience meals and fast food!

If you are unsure where to get started, don’t worry because there is a simple step-by-step guide.  It explains to first roll out the welcome mat; inviting kids to help out once or twice a week makes a huge difference!  Second, the dietitians state to start out simple in order to build basic kitchen skills.  This would include having your child prepare a salad for the meal.  The third step is to keep building confidence by providing increasingly complex tasks.  Last, remember to keep things interesting; try experimenting with a unique ingredient or a new recipe.

In the Tips and Tools section of the website, you will find the breakdown of tasks based on skill level (Beginner all the way to Advanced).  Based on skill level and designated kitchen tasks there are suggested recipes to try!  For the Advanced skill level, you might choose to make the Chicken Pot Pie with Flaky Pastry Crust; the recipe breaks down what both you and your child can do in the meal preparation process.  Easy 🙂

Remember, providing nutritious meals for you family is one thing, but teaching your little ones food skills that will sustaining healthful eating for a lifetime is the real gift!

Enjoy this great tool: 

http://www.familykitchen.ca

Ps. There is a $5,000 prize for communicating how you include your kids in the kitchen.

GOOD LUCK & Have FUN!