Cooking For Teens: Empowering and Inspiring Your Future Chef

In a fast-paced world, we tend to adopt a fast food mentality in nearly every aspect of our lives. We can't help but pass this along to our youngsters. With the pace, T.V. dinners and microwave foods become a standby in many homes, attested to by the multitudes of folks in supermarket check-out lines loading conveyor belts with thin, flat boxes of various frozen entrees. It behooves us as parents to empower our teenagers to function in a kitchen in such a way that they are not dependent on preservative-laden foods prepared for a quick re-heating in the microwave. Not only can we impact their health, but also their confidence and success, by teaching them to cook. Cooking, for teens, is an opportunity to achieve, improve, and thrive.

 Home Ec. class, once a standard course in secondary education, has been relegated to elective status in many school districts.  It is left to one's parents to equip the future adult with kitchen skills.  For the parent who enjoys cooking, this is probably not a huge concern.  You probably have already included your child in the kitchen routine.  For the parent less inclined toward culinary arts, however, this might be ominous. Learning together is rewarding as well. 

 The Food Network is a terrific source of inspiration. You may not be training up the next iron chef, but you can glean ideas from the presentation of various cooks and various styles. Many nights, I settled my youngest son with a viewing of "30 Minute Meals", and he was fascinated with what he saw. One of my daughters loves to decorate cakes, gaining ideas as she watches various challenge type programs. Even my 13 year old son loves to spout facts about various foods based on some of the programming. Cooking is certainly not restricted by gender in our world, and can be an interesting opportunity to interact with your teenage boys, as well as girls.

As they learn procedures in the kitchen, basic life skills are established, following directions being one of the biggest. As they learn to complete a process such as bread baking, scientific principles come into play. While you may not realize it, nor take the opportunity to lecture, there is that opportunity for connections to be made between their book learning and their experience. Lectures aren't needed, as the learning will be individual, unique to the teen in action.

Scientific discovery takes place. Alteration of a recipe produces a variation in result. With frequent opportunity to work in the kitchen, your teenager has the chance to experiment, and again, will glean from the experience. As my teenage daughters worked with a pita bread recipe earlier today, they compared it to a previous recipe they had tried, noting that it was slightly different, as was the baking method. The first pieces to come out were much too crisp. They adjusted accordingly, and in the end, were much happier with the final product than with the previous recipe. Their siblings, likewise, were pleased.

As their cooking is encouraged and permitted, problem solving skills are allowed to develop in a practical manner. One of my daughters decided she wanted crepes for breakfast on her birthday. She researched recipes, and also presented me with a snippet of a television spot dealing with the food. We selected a recipe from a cookbook, and used a small non-stick pan to make the crepes. She permitted me to make most of that first batch, stepping in and trying on her own at the end. She has since repeated the meal several times. The next time, she made the batter at night and allowed it to rest in the refrigerator. The result, much better. She has altered the pan in which she prepared the thin pancakes, and has even tried turning the small pan upside down. She is actively working on a practical problem, and is achieving improved results. Likewise, she is working with her fillings, as she tries different fruits, attempting to achieve palatable results in ample quantity.

The teen who has spent time working in the kitchen and cooking is empowered to thrive as an adult. Most teens love to eat, and to raid the refrigerator. It doesn't take much to include even the most reluctant teen in simple preparation of a dish that can be shared, a dessert to take to a family holiday get-together, or a salsa for that Super Bowl bash. Include him or her in steps, at first, rather than placing the entire preparation in his or her lap. Have your youth chop the tomatoes, or onions. Allow his or her input when it comes to flavor selection.

A great starting place is with a cream pie, using a whipped topping, pudding mix, and a graham cracker crust...simple enough, yet tasty. Assist the first time. The next time, just be available to answer questions. Keep a few ingredients on hand so the treat can be prepared without a special trip to the store. Offer some thoughts on variations. Perhaps some additions into the filling, whether crumbled cookie pieces, chocolate chips, marshmallows, or banana slices. Next thing you know, your teen will be creating without your suggestions. Your suggestions can be phrased in a "what if" manner that ignites the creative thoughts. "I wonder how it would turn out if we froze it," for example.  My daughter started out baking bread by assisting me.  Soon, she was preparing everything, and altering recipes.  Whether dinner rolls or artisan pizzas, the results are delicious.  She thrives, and excels because she has the opportunity to explore.

 Boxes and mixes are not "no-no's", rather they are stepping stones to cooking and baking from scratch.  These provide opportunity to become accustomed to measuring and other basic kitchen skills.  In equipping your teen with these basics, you will prepare them to eat better and more economically as an adult.  Many a youth graduates high school and heads off to college without the ability to cook.  The skills are not difficult to acquire, nor do they need to be highly refined.  The confidence to attempt various recipes can be developed during the teen years, and the benefit will last a lifetime.  Armed with the know-how, your teenager need not be restricted to T.V. dinners and salt laden sustenance as a young adult.