Actress Sarah Michelle Gellar insists on involving her two children in meal preparation because the kitchen tasks double as bonding time for the family.
The Buffy the Vampire Slayer star and her husband Freddie Prinze, Jr. are both culinary enthusiasts, and they have made sure to pass on their love of food and cooking to their daughter Charlotte, seven, and four-year-old Rocky, who love to chat away as they help mum and dad get dinner on the table.
“It’s quality time we wouldn’t get if I prepared meals while they watched TV in another room,” she tells Good Housekeeping magazine. “I love every minute in the kitchen with my kids, even the mess; I’ve learned to embrace it.”
“I find that in the car on the way home from school, I often get one-word answers when I ask about their day,” Gellar continues. “But when we’re cooking, I get in-depth stories.”
The actors also encourage their interest in food by taking meal suggestions.
“You’re more likely to have a successful experience when they’re invested from the start,” the 39-year-old explains. “Then get them involved in the process – give them the shopping list at the market, or let them chop and measure with pride. They won’t even realise they’re developing better motor skills or working the fundamentals of math, science and language.”
And Sarah Michelle is convinced keeping her kids involved has made them more willing to try different foods.
“People always tell me how lucky I am that my kids are adventurous eaters, but I don’t believe that it’s luck at all,” she says. “By my involving them in the process, not only are they more likely to try something new, but also I can count on them to make better choices when I’m not around.”
The star has incorporated recipes she enjoys making with her kids in her upcoming cookbook, Stirring Up Fun with Food, which is released next month (Apr17). The title is a play on her baking kit firm Foodstirs, which she launched in 2015 to provide busy parents with everything they need in one box to whip up sweet treats.
