Busy Mom’s Survival Guide Podcast Episode 049.
Being able to put together a meal is a valuable life skill that I start teaching my children when they are as young as two years old (depending on the child).  During the early years they work beside me or their father or one of their older siblings when they are in a good mood and for as long as their attention span allows.  But as they become older and get more experience, they are able to safely cook certain foods all on their own.

This is the final podcast episode in this series on teaching your children to cook.  Emery and I conclude the series by answering listener questions.

I loved having Emery (age 13) join me during this podcast.  It was amazing (and validating) to hear his confidence when it comes to cooking.  I hope that it encourages you that it is never to late or too early to work with your children on becoming proficient in the kitchen.

And I would like to encourage you that if you are a Busy Mom that isn’t comfortable in the kitchen yourself, you too can learn!  Start with some basic soup, stew, and chili recipes and expand from there.  Don’t be afraid to experiment or be afraid to fail.  It happens.  You can always keep some eggs in your refrigerator.  Scrambled eggs are a super easy quick dinner if your planned meal “failed”.

Learn with your children and have fun while you do it!

Listener Questions

Lisa: I know your kids cook, I’d love to have recipes for what they do. Mine are 11 and 13 and I’d really like to start putting them in charge of some nights but don’t know where to start.

Rosa: How do you teach them about substitutions for an ingredients they are out of without having to ditch the recipe they want to make?

Jennifer:  How do you keep them focused to the finish?

Kathy: I am a new, stay at home mom who needs some easy recipes and good kitchen staples. I never cooked when I worked and am at a bit of a loss in the kitchen.

Beth:  I have to say, I am not a great cook. :/ My husband does all of the grocery shopping and cooking (he works from home so it’s easier for him), but eventually I will take over (when we start having children and I leave the workforce). I am going to need some major help figuring out how to shop and cook – it’s embarrassing to admit, but I don’t even know where to start. Do you cook from memory or a cookbook or both? Thanks again!

Darla: My daughter is ten and she has recently shown an interest in baking. She wants to bake by herself but it is hard for me to totally give the kitchen over to her. Because of health issues she eats grain free and coconut/almond flours are expensive (not to mention all the other organic ingredients we use). So a mistake could be costly for our limited budget family. We are a homeschooling family and I strongly believe that learning to cook is a wonderful learning opportunity and essential.

Sharon: What about cleanup?

Vicki: Can they teach me?

Episodes in the Series

• Feeding Your Family Part 1 – Your Pantry and Shopping List
• Feeding Your Family Part 2 – Meal Planning
• Feeding Your Family Part 3 – Food Shopping on a Budget
• Feeding Your Family Part 4 – Teaching Children to Cook 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 5 – Teaching Children to Cook 2
• Feeding Your Family Part 6 – Teaching Children to Cook 3
• Feeding Your Family Part 7 – Picky Eaters 1
• Feeding Your Family Part 8 – Picky Eaters 2

Resources

• How to Write a Kid-Friendly Recipe
• Sample Kid-Friendly Recipe – Split Pea Soup
• Zojirushi Rice Cooker (this is marked down $100 right now)

Do your children help to cook?  If so, what do they do at their current age?

Thanks for listening!  Please join me next week when I talk about picky eaters.

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