Building a Junior Gourmand

As a father of four children feeding them good food is a high priority.  Convincing them that the food is actually good for to eat is another thing entirely.  Imagine my surprise when, after my wife started painting the kitchen and we realized that paint and cooking do not mix, that I tried to pawn off ‘take-out’ food on my kids.  We considered all the options, to which my 7-year old mourned having to eat anything but homemade, and finally settled on french toast made with eggs from our backyard and homemade bread.

I smiled at this little episode, as it isn’t the first time something like this has happened.  My wife leaned over and accused, in mock jest, “We’ve created a monster!”  “Not a monster,” I replied, “a gourmand!”  And so it is that my 7-year old, the one that I would have least expected to convert from all things junk food to a culinary diva, has become the driving force for good food in our home.

That is really the key, isn’t it?  If we can convert the kids to good food they are going to demand it from their parents.  No more frozen pizzas or crappy industrial take-out, they are going to ask, plead, even beg from homemade, fresh, and, above all, real food.  That is why movements from Slow Foods USA, Time for Lunch, FarmtoSchool, or, for my fellow Canadians, Real Food for Real Kids are so important.  With all the time and effort we invest in trying to teach our children how to be good, perhaps we should consider feeding them good and see what changes that brings.

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