Cooking Together Makes the Meals Taste Better

By Gaby Smith

During quarantine, my family and I were trying to find things to do. Other than going outside and watching TV, there wasn’t much.

One day, my son came up to me asking me if I needed help cooking dinner. My immediate thought was, “This will be A LOT to handle … I can handle it myself.” Then, I took a mental deep breath and said, “Of course!”

Overcome with joy, he ran to his room to get his little pink chair to use as a step stool. We were making ham and cheese soup that night (his favorite!). Five minutes into making our dinner together, I realized how amazing cooking with him was. He was determined to follow the recipe, make me proud and not mess up the meal. His hands wobbled as he poured the two cups of milk into the soup pot, determine to not spill a drop on the stove. He did great!

After about 30 minutes, we finished. I’m pretty sure the meal tasted better! I realized that these moments of cooking together not only brought us closer, but taught him cooking measurements, fractions and following instructions.

We have since cooked five meals together, some nights are smooth sailing, others aren’t. As afraid as I was to try something new with my cooking routine, it wasn’t half bad!

I challenge you to try cooking with your child. Start with an easy recipe, then move onto something challenging! Who knows, maybe your meal will taste better than before!