Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2009

10 rules encourage togetherness at the table

In "Mad Hungry -- Feeding Men & Boys: Recipes, Strategies & Survival Techniques," author Lucinda Scala Quinn shares her 10 tenets for cooking, what she calls "an action plan for how and why to feed your guys."

1. This first tenet should come before all else: Decide what's important to you when it comes to family meals. "In the same way we keep our cars running ... and make our kids brush their teeth ... I would argue that this is just as important if not more important than any of those things."

2. Educate yourself, even if you were not raised by someone who taught you how to cook. "A lot of us were raised either on fast food or raised with a mealtime that was not a pleasurable experience for any number of reasons." Quinn says you can turn to a friend or grandparent, books, the Internet and cooking shows. "More than ever there is the ability to help yourself."

3. Practice simple recipes to get started. "If you layer on too many difficult recipes and too many meals, you are going to become frustrated." If you don't know where to start, Quinn advises trying one meal a week and seeing how that feels.

4.Think strategically: Don't get caught at mealtime without a plan and supplies in place.

5. Economize resources: Reorganize your day into blocks of time. Organize and prep meals beforehand.

6. Be a mealtime evangelist: "Eat breakfast yourself. Sit down to dinner. Model the behavior and walk it like you talk it."

7. Keep 'em healthy: Home-cooked meals are healthier and allow the cook to keep processed foods out.

8. Trade food for talk: Engage in conversation when you eat as a family. Take your kids to the market and have them help in the kitchen.

9. Train them to fend for themselves: Teach them basic skills so they can be self-sufficient.

10. Be a happy cook: "Take pleasure in the fact that you're doing something good for the people you love."