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| Photo Credit: Sarah Landicho |
| Cooking up your homegrown veggies can be fun – when done safely. |
Children celebrate it, and even rock stars sing about it: School’s out for summer!
Now’s the time to really put those kids to work – in the garden and kitchen. So turn off the TV, turn over a patch of grass, and transform your lawn into a garden and your kitchen into a learning laboratory. I’ve never met a child who didn’t love to eat what he grew and helped prepare. And for good reason: Studies show that children who learn how to grow and cook their own vegetables are more likely to develop a taste for the foods that’ll keep them healthy and strong for a lifetime. (They’ll also be that much closer to true independence.) As your garden grows and it’s time to bring your harvest into the kitchen, think safety first. As friendly as the family kitchen might seem, it’s rated the most dangerous room in the house for nonfatal injuries, including cuts, burns, falls, shocks and poisonings. Children vary in their abilities, but most are ready to use kitchen equipment, measure ingredients and follow simple recipes by the time they’re 10. Younger children don’t have to feel left out, though: Ask the smaller ones to help wash produce, toss salads, stir batter, smear bread with homemade herb butter, spread a tablecloth, set the table or serve your feast. Regardless of age, supervise children before you let them loose, and post and review the following food- and kitchen-safety rules: 1. Always wash hands with soap and water before preparing and eating food. Rinse fresh fruits and vegetables under running water to remove dirt before eating. (Soap, detergent and special “produce washes” aren’t necessary – or recommended.) 2. Wipe up spills immediately – they can lead to nasty slips and falls. 3. Pick up knives by the handle – never the blade – and always cut away from your body or down toward a cutting board.
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