Trying to engage young people in summer activities that don’t include electronics can be as challenging as getting them to eat their vegetables. The Boone County nutrition assistant set out to provide programming that addressed both issues, using the curriculum Families in the Kitchen…Cook Together, Eat Together, which is a multigenerational program designed to assist adults working in the kitchen with children. Most of the groups were grandparents working with their grandchildren.  The 6 family groups committed to spending 7 weeks improving their cooking skills, trying new foods, and spending quality family time together.

Each week the families discussed healthy eating and how small changes can add up to big results. They worked together to make a mock grocery trip where they chose foods and then talked about different ways to use them and how to make them part of a healthy lifestyle. After reading through the recipes together and short demonstrations on which ingredients, tools, and techniques were needed, it was off to the kitchen where the recipes were prepared. With guidance from their adult leader, the youth were tasked with making the recipe together. While some were skeptical about some of the ingredients, they all did their best to create their dish with an open mind. The fact that they created it with their own hands went a long way toward encouraging them to try their creation.

The 14 hours of training resulted in the development of cooking skills and the knowledge of how to make healthier eating choices including expanding the number of vegetables they were willing to eat. And that not only applied to the youth. According to the data from a survey collected at the beginning and the end of the series, 83% of the adults improved their diet quality and amount of physical activity. Most importantly, families spent quality time together learning new skills which provided the groundwork for a lifetime of healthy cooking.