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Rising to the Occasion:
 Tips for Seasoning Your Meals with Soul
with Karen Mitchell-Wilcher

Back to School Night…and Days

September signals back-to-school and hopefully cooler weather after the summer
scorching, hot weather throughout most of the nation. As schools reopen and families return to the school year schedule, parents may find themselves slipping into a school daze as they juggle family tasks, children’s activities, and careers.

Start a new routine by enlisting your children to lend a hand, helping to make snacks and dinner. Though you may need a heaping spoonful of patience in the beginning, the end result is well worth the effort, creating a win-win situation for everyone. By getting your young family members involved in meal prep, they learn:

  • About food and how to make wholesome food choices
  • Family food heritage and traditions
  • Cooking skills
  • Importance of teamwork

Last but not least when you get the minor-league team involved, it helps to lighten Mom’s tasks.

The best way to introduce this is to start slowly, one day a week, by choosing a recipe that you know your kids enjoy. Try Pita Pocket Sandwiches with their favorite fillings, spaghetti with meat sauce or oatmeal cookies. Pita sandwiches are easy, can be made in advance, and are a great take-along when you’re heading out the door for all of the after-school activities. Add some fruit, cookies and a drink for a solution to the on-the-go meal dilemma.

Spaghetti with meat sauce is also a good choice for junior chefs working with Mom or the designated cooking coach. A jar of ready-to-use spaghetti sauce blended with cooked ground beef, turkey, or chicken, and extra seasoning can be prepared quickly. And if your family has a special spaghetti sauce tradition, this can be the first step toward learning the secrets to the traditional family recipe. This is also a good choice for cooking once for two meals---spoon the meat sauce over baked potatoes for a quick to fix dinner or lunch later in the week.

This school year, add something new to the 3R’s—reading writing, ‘rithmatic, and recipes. It’s is a great help for Mom and it will teach children about food and making wise food choices.