Think about how many meals you and your family cooked and ate at home last week. It’s estimated that about half of all Americans cook at home at least five meals each week. That’s great. There are lots of good reasons for doing this including improved nutrition, saving money and promoting family mealtimes.

Repeated research has shown that when people cook meals at home, they eat more fruit and vegetables. Cooking at home can be healthier because home cooked meals can contain more whole food ingredients, less preservatives and can help with special diets and allergies.

Home cooking is also great for the pocketbook. Studies have shown that preparing meals at home can save both time and money. Home cooked meals can provide leftovers for future meals and help reduce food waste.

Cooking together as a family can help children learn useful life skills. Not just cooking but reading, planning, communication, creativity, cleanliness and problem solving. Having basic cooking skills sets the foundation for family mealtimes. Eating at home also allows sharing family cultures and traditions.

You may be saying, those are great thoughts, but I really don’t know how to cook. Not everyone has the knowledge or confidence in the kitchen to cook. Many people today have grown up with processed and packaged foods as well as fast-food eateries and have not learned cooking skills. We can help!

Our Family and Consumer Science Extension Agent, Avery Ashley will be hosting an Introduction to Home Cooking series. These classes are for people with beginning to intermediate cooking skills. Don’t think you’re too old to learn. Remember, Julia Childs didn’t learn to cook until she was in her mid-30s.

Classes in this cooking series will start on March 6 from 5:15 until 6:45 p.m. and will continue every Thursday for five weeks. They are being held in the demonstration kitchen at N.C. Cooperative Extension at the Government Center in Bolivia.

Each week will feature a specific common cooking method, share techniques and offer meal management tips. There will be a live cooking demonstration and (of course) food samples. Participants will be given homework to do during the week. Here’s the planned topics for each week:

• March 6—basic meal planning, food safety, measuring, knife skills and using the food that’s already in your fridge or freezer. There will also be a demonstration and tasting featuring herbs and spices.
• March 12 – this week will discuss different types of rice and beans and stock and soup making. There will be a discussion about mirepoix and roux (it’s OK if you don’t know what those are—you’ll learn).
• March 20 –topics will include salads, sandwiches, tortillas, and snacks. The demo will show how to make fresh salad dressings and pan-fried tacos.
• March 27—preparing and cooking vegetables and fish. Comparison of fresh, frozen and canned foods. You’ll learn about the mallard reaction and why it makes vegetables taste better. The demo will feature roasted and sauteed vegetables.
• April 3 – the final week will feature poultry, eggs and casseroles. Poultry, eggs and Casseroles

These classes are free of charge. Participants are encouraged to attend all sessions as the skills build upon the previous week’s class. There are only twelve spots available, and we expect them to fill fast. For more information, contact N.C. Cooperative Extension here in Brunswick County at 910-253-2610.

Not a good time for you? Or not in a great location? We’re planning to take this series on-the-road throughout the county. Be watching this column and our website for details on other dates, times and locations.

Whether you’ve been cooking for years or you are brand new to cooking, you can always learn something new at a cooking class. Join in.

Cooking: the practice or skill of preparing food by combining, mixing and heating ingredients

Syracuse is a Family and Consumer Science Team Member with the N.C. Cooperative Extension’s Brunswick County Center. She can be reached by calling 910-253-2610 or email clsyracu@ncsu.edu