Help in the Kitchen

I love being in the kitchen. I gradually fall more in love with it the older I get.

Though I think my mom would disagree, I can remember loving to be in the kitchen as a kid. In sixth grade, my class had a Japanese unit. We learned to cook one Japanese meal and I can remember recreating it for my family and loving the idea that they'd eat something I made, and better yet, they seemed to like it!

I can also remember being in my grandmother's 1950's style kitchen as a young girl, and my sister and I would throw a bunch of random ingredients into a bowl and feed it to the cats. I think it was mostly water, flour, sugar and food coloring, but the cats thought our concoction was divine! It didn't kill them! 

I've always loved the smells coming from kitchens. I love walking into a home and smelling food cooking--it creates a warm and cozy feeling for me. I immediately feel welcomed into a home that smells of soups, cookies, sizzling peppers and onions, or whatever happens to be stewing away! 

I have fond memories of sleeping at my grandma's house and waking to the smell of toast and coffee. To this day, the smell of toast and coffee takes me back to her house.

Since I've had a family of my own, I've gained a lot of insight into cooking (and maybe a few pounds thanks to my new love) and food. I've learned that chocolate and butter make a perfect pair. 

Cranberry and orange make a fantastic baked anything! Really, they do!

I've learned that salad is more than some lettuce and dressing. I still love trying a new salad. It's a highlight in my life! Don't judge!

I've even discovered new ways to cook some of my favorite dishes to make them healthier--BONUS!

And yes, I love these lessons. But something I love even more is sharing all these memories with my girls. I love, absolutely love, having them in the kitchen with me.

Because I love all four of my readers, let me tell you about this awesomeness--This ravioli and this pesto make a quick and delicious lunch for busy days--I do take short cuts sometimes. And I'm okay with that (SMILE!) I may or may not add a little heavy cream to this pesto and pasta.

(SIDE NOTE: yes, my baby is sitting in a bumbo on the kitchen counter. I know the warning behind this, but whenever I let her do this it's because I'm standing right next to her. I never just leave her on the counter like this. And I know it looks like she could stick her fingers right into that toaster, but she was not that close. Plus, I unplugged it and put it away right after I took this picture.) I get them in the kitchen as soon as I can. It's my way of spending time with them--well, not my only way. But one way that I hold near and dear!

Some moms craft with their kids (and I do this sometimes, but I usually rather craft alone). Some get down on the floor and play with them. So go shopping. I do all these things with my girls too, but one of my favorite ways to spend time with them is in the kitchen.

I find it so easy to teach them so many things while we're in there together. They've measured several ingredients over the years. Some of the girls even understand fractions because of this. 

We've discussed healthy eating habits and portion control. 

I like to talk to them about whatever veggie or fruit I happen to be cutting up. We talk about it's color, smell, whether it's crunchy/salty/sweet/etc, and of course this makes them want to taste it (95% of the time). 

Bug happens to be on a green pepper kick right now because of this teaching technique! And I love this!

I can easily praise the girls in the kitchen. When they help make something and then we eat it, I always make it a point to tell them what it is I enjoy about the dish they helped make. I want to instill confidence in their skills--cooking being one of them. But more simply, I want them to know that they can create something and other people will like it. After all, this is something I still remember from my childhood. 

And for some odd reason, there are never many squabbles in the kitchen. Once we figure out where everyone will stand while they're helping, we do so well with taking turns and helping each other. So really, I guess this is a pretty peaceful process for everyone involved. 

And we've reached a new point in our routine--the girls really help clean up the kitchen! I do love the help and not having to do it all by myself, but more importantly, I love the company in the kitchen. We've even started what we call family clean up after meals now. It makes the clean up time go so much faster when there are 6 sets of hands helping instead of just mine. Yes, one or two girls are usually off doing something else and then have to get called back in to the kitchen, but it's slowly getting better. 

And by the way, I do still love creating food that my family loves. I love the fact that there are so many dishes that my family consistently requests. I love being able to provide for them in this manner. And I love to have the house smell like food when they come home from work or school because I hope it instills that same sense of "welcomeness" that I always felt.