How to turn meal prep into quality family time

Cooking can be a great social activity, making it an opportunity to bring your whole family together for some bonding time.

If you struggle at first to find time to cook as a family due to work schedules or after-school activities, try picking just one night each week when everyone is available to work together to prep dinner.  

Here are some easy tips to transform your meal preparation time into quality family-bonding time.

• Plan your family meals together. Everyone will enjoy cooking more if they know that the foods being prepared are one that they like.
• Keep recipes simple to help reduce added stress. This is an opportunity for your children to learn more about the food they eat and how it's prepared.
• Find age-appropriate tasks for each member of your family. This will help ensure that everyone feels engaged.
• Don't worry about perfection. Instead, this is a great time to engage your children in conversation as you prepare the meal together.
• You could play music while you work together to help everyone get into a good mood.

Getting your kids involved in preparing and cooking your family dinners is also a great way to spark their interest in nutrition and healthy eating. Eating together may also reduce emotional and behavioral issues in children and may promote an increased feeling of wellbeing.

Turn solo-dinner prep into quality family time and enjoy shared experiences and conversation over a delicious meal.