Jamie Oliver Can't Do It Alone
As fun (or depressing, depending on your attitude) as it's been to watch Jamie Oliver try to revolutionize school lunches, there's only so much one celebrity chef can do. That's why it's been inspiring to watch a group of Seattleites get fired up by Oliver's "Food Revolution" show, founding a local action group supporting his goals and announcing a "Teach Your Kid To Cook Day" on April 17.
The inaugural event will include free cooking lessons for kids at Seattle's University District Farmers Market, with chefs and cookbook authors contributing advice and recipes. Want to participate? Even if you don't live in the Northwest, you can mark the day by teaching a child to cook any simple recipe that incorporates "fresh, whole, and wholesome" ingredients.
I watched the idea take off, as so many do these days, on Twitter, backed by an old colleague of mine, Hsiao-Ching Chou. I asked why the idea resonated with her, and it sounded as though it fit with her overall philosophies of food and parenthood: "You can eat well at any level. You just have to know how to cook. That means you have to understand how to shop for whole ingredients, how to be resourceful, and you have to put value in family mealtime."
If you're trying to avoid cafeteria food after seeing Oliver's close-up view of it, here are some ideas for brown-bag school lunches that I gathered the year my own son started kindergarten. This book has lots of useful information and recipes too. And if you like the idea of joining Oliver's revolution in a more hands-on way than signing a petition, why not participate on April 17 -- or start a Food Revolution branch of your own?
-- Rebekah Denn
memomachine on April 17, 2010 at 08:39 AM
Hmmmm.
Do they still teach Home Economics in school? If not, why not?
HopeSew on April 20, 2010 at 04:19 AM
Because Home Ec teaches kids to grow up and be independent. Corrupt states can't control grown-up, independent people!