OMG! I’m In College And I Never Learned to Cook! Mom Offers Simple Tips to Help Students Prepare Their Own Meals and Eat Healthy

College is supposed to be a place of higher learning that prepares young people for the challenges of taking on a greater role as an adult in a civilized society. While there is no doubt the value of the degrees earned in those hallowed halls, one mom has a striking complaint about it all.

“How can you consider yourself educated and sophisticated if you don’t know how to cook a decent meal?” asked Hollis Ledbetter, author of OMG! I’m In College and I Never Learned to Cook (www.omgcookbooks.com). “Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for higher education for the purposes of being able to earn a living and contribute to the world around them, but I’ve never seen a college course titled ‘How to buy groceries, cook dinner and do your own laundry!’”



Ledbetter, a mother of four children (one still in college, the others all have families of their own), sensed the irony of colleges teaching students to become engineers, lawyers and doctors who – without mom’s help – are still likely to burn down the kitchen while trying to boil water.

“Parents and kids need to know a few key things before the adventure of higher education begins,” she added. “Kids need to learn how to cook and parents need to know how to teach them. Taking a semester of home economics in high school does not equate to knowing how to safely defrost a chicken, carve it, prepare it and cook it so that it actually tastes like something other than shoe leather. It’s one part art and one part science, and they aren’t going to learn either from any class at school.”

Her tips for parents include:

Just Teach the Basics – You don’t have to teach your children how to make eggs benedict and how to mix the hollandaise sauce from scratch. Boiling water, broiling meats, making pasta that doesn’t stick to the pot like bathroom caulk – these are the basics. Everything else, they should learn on their own.

Don’t Coddle Them – You’ll save money and they’ll eat better if you encourage them to buy groceries, instead of eating fast food or PopTarts all the time. Hold the line on the food budget you give them and they’ll hold the line on a good diet.

Her tips for kids include:

Definition of Cooking – Microwaving a Hot Pocket is not cooking. Cooking involves taking actual vegetables, fruits and meats, and preparing them – either by cooking or mixing – to form a snack or a meal. If all you can do is make pre-packaged macaroni and cheese, and nuke a burrito, that’s not cooking.

Safety – There is a reason why some foods are refrigerated and why some are not. Learn the difference between the two. I guarantee you don’t want to learn the hard way, when you try to put mayonnaise that was left out all night on a turkey sandwich and wind up in the ER.

Healthy Foods – Here's a good reason to eat homemade healthy foods. If you buy groceries instead of eating out all of the time, you'll not only eat better, but you will save tons of money – money that could be spent on that new smart phone, laptop or tablet you've been dreaming about. Overall, in a nine-month period, it is easy for a single person to save between $1,000 and $2,400 simply by NOT eating out.

“There is an old proverb that says, ‘If you give a man a fish, he’ll eat for a day; if you teach a man to fish, he’ll eat for a lifetime,” Ledbetter said. “Of course, it stops before they mention if he knows how to cook the darn thing. If you can help encourage your kids to prepare their own meals, they’ll eat healthier and be happy in the kitchen for the rest of their lives. And, I think that’s a more valuable lesson than they’ll ever learn in school.”

About Hollis Ledbetter

Hollis Ledbetter is married with four children (one still in college) and six grandchildren. She has worked as a fitness instructor for the YMCA teaching aerobics, pre-natal exercises and woman’s strength training. For the last 17 years, she has worked in real estate and for the last four, she has been writing cookbooks.

New- Time and Money Saver

Launching this month - Build A Menu (www.BuildAMenu.com) is an online menu planning service that prepares weekly meal plans based on grocery store sales. The site does the work for you! Choose from weekly recipes and put together weekly menus using the Build A Menu calculator which gives a running total of your expected grocery costs – making it easy to control how much the family will spend on food each week! Just pick the store you want to shop, choose your meals and print your well organized grocery shopping list and chosen recipes.

Healthy Eating for Children During the Holidays

Over the next six-eight weeks, families will gather around the dinner table for important occasions of the year, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah and Kwanzaa. Everyone will be cooking their special recipes for that perfect turkey and stuffing, or prime rib and Yorkshire pudding. But the big question is how to enjoy the holidays without over-indulging?

And the question doesn't just apply to adults - it applies to children as well. Christmas Cookies, Thanksgiving Pies, etc - the desserts are special, endless in sight and everyone loves to sample just a taste. So, how do you celebrate the holidays without gaining weight?

For Children:

1) Traditionally when we stuff the stockings we think about putting all kinds of candy in them. This year try and give them small gifts like a homemade coupon book with things like "one dinner alone with Mom" or "one baseball game with Dad." That way you are being healthy and creating opportunities to make memories.

2) Encourage your kids to get a group together and go caroling in your neighborhood. This old tradition is fun, and you will get a little exercise walking from house to house.

3) Include your children in the holiday baking and teach them how making small substitutions can lower the fat and calories in their favorite foods. Using xylitol instead of sugar, skim milk instead of whole milk, wheat or oat flour instead of white flour, and egg whites instead of the whole egg are some examples.

For Adults:

1) When you know you are going to a holiday party don't "save up" your calories and not eat before you go. Eating small meals throughout the day will prevent you from overindulging on too many goodies at the party.

2) Bringing your own healthy dishes to parties is a good way to insure that you will have something to eat if everything served there is laden with fat and calories. Hummus and veggies, fruit and yogurt dip, and turkey roll ups are some healthy ideas.

3) If you see something that looks too irresistible try this strategy. Take small amount and take one bite. This should keep you from the "I can't have it" mentality that makes you feel deprived.

4) Calculate how many miles you have to do on the treadmill in order to burn enough calories to compensate for your favorite holiday treat. Do the miles and eat the treat without guilt!

Healthy "Trick or Treats" Recipes

Let your little monsters enjoy the ghost and goblins of Halloween without the highs (and lows) of a sugar rush. Catherine McCord, founder of the family friendly culinary site, Weelicious.com has come up with these simple and delicious healthy “trick or treats” that ensure the monster within every child is kept at bay.

Popcorn Trail Mix Recipe:

4 Cups Popcorn, popped

½ Cup Chocolate Chips

½ Cup Dried Cherries or Cranberries

½ Cup Roasted MixedNuts, almonds, walnuts or peanuts

1. Place all of the ingredients in a bowl and combine.

2. Place mixture into individual treat bags.

3. Serve.

Spookie Grilled Cheese

Butter

8 Slices Pumpernickel or Dark Rye Bread

4 Slices Cheddar Cheese

1. Heat butter in a griddle or skillet over medium heat.

2. Using a halloween theme cookie cutter, take four slices of the bread and cut out the centers.

3. Place a slice of cheese on the 4 remaining pieces of bread and top with the cut out bread slices.

4. Heat the butter in a skillet over medium heat and cook the sandwiches whole side of bread facing down for 3 minutes.

5. Flip and cook the sandwiches cut out side down for 2 minutes or until golden and cheese has melted.

6. Serve.

Grave Brownies (Makes 14 Graves)

3/4 Cup All Purpose Flour

3/4 Cup Cocoa Powder

3/4 Tsp Salt

15 Tbsp Unsalted Butter, melted

1 1/2 Cups Sugar

2 Tsp Vanilla Extract

3 Large Eggs

1/2 Cup Semisweet Chocolate, chopped (You can also use chocolate chips)

1. Preheat oven to 325 F.

2. Whisk the first 3 ingredients in a bowl and set aside.

3. In a standing mixer or bowl, whisk the melted butter, sugar and vanilla.

4. Whisk in the eggs one at a time until combined then slowly mix in the dry ingredients.

5. Pour the batter into a greased and parchment lined 9x13 baking dish and bake for 30 minutes.

6. Cool, cut into bars and top with “grave stones”.

*When cutting your brownie, use a long serrated knife and wipe it off in between cuts.

* To make gravestones, cut construction paper into stones and decorate as desired. Place a toothpick on the backside of the stone and attach with a piece of tape and poke the gravestone tooth pick into the brownie.

Catherine McCord- a model, actress and mom of two- launched the renowned cooking site, Weelicious (www.weelicious.com) in 2007 to show parent how to cook recipes that are kid-friendly, quick, andnutritious. With a culinary background at NYC’s prestigious ICE and a passion for food, Catherine makes cooking accessible using a few fresh, easy ingredients to make recipes that will appeal to a range of ages.