Is Cooking a Necessity?

I was on a conference call this morning to prepare for a panel I will sit on in a few weeks. The panel session, which focuses on women leaders in local food, is part of the Women's Leadership Conference at UVa. I feel quite honored to have even been asked to sit on the panel and really look forward to the discussion. I'll be sitting with three other women who have really played an impressive role in the local food movement. (As a side note - I'm finally convinced "real/local food" is a movement after Oprah hosted Michael Pollan on Wednesday. I'm pretty sure Oprah is the barometer for social movements these days. )

But back to the conversation today.....

We were discussing challenges of working in the local food movement (or maybe it was opportunities - sometimes I get these mixed up), and briefly talked about youth and young adults generally lacking cooking skills or knowledge. We didn't talk in too much detail on this subject, but a few comments really inspired some deeper thought. Specifically, encouraging consumers to purchase and eat whole foods implies a necessity for cooking and spending more time in the kitchen. Ok, this seems obvious when I put it in writing, but I had just never thought of it as a "necessity" to teach people cooking skills if we want them to buy whole food - duh. Until today, I think I've seen learning/teaching cooking as an enjoyable skill that would be a shame to lose. I've thought the same thing about canning and preserving food (see post from this summer) - a skill that is important because it is a part of our heritage - not a determinant of the success of a "social movement."

So now I'm left wondering - is learning to cook and preserve food a necessity? If so, what are the implications for "leaders in the local food movement"? On that same note, what are the implications for women in the local food movement? This is especially relevant for this panel for the Women in Leadership Conference and, of course, because I am a woman, but I think its worth pondering for anyone (including men) interested in food.

Women have spent decades working to get out of the kitchen. Are we suggesting a return to hours slaving over the stove and potentially "missing out" on professional opportunities? What about all of the women who fought so hard for women's rights and empowerment? (Laurel Thatcher Ulrich who famously said "Well behaved women seldom make history" would probably throttle me right now if she was reading this).

Well, my response is we shouldn't ignore this dilemma, but we also sure shouldn't let it stop teaching people to cook! I think there is a tremendous opportunity to think creatively and not only make "cooking cool" as was suggested on my phone call today, but to really think about how we cook and who is doing it. Cooking should become thought of as an opportunity to spend quality time with people we love creating something delicious and nourishing. Too poetic? philosophical? Probably a little, but not a total long shot. Cooking real, whole, local food doesn't have to be daunting task. Cooking should be fun!

So how do we make it fun? How do we teach people the skills while still recognizing the busy schedules many people juggle (single mothers/fathers especially)? How about those hours I've already put in sweating over a stove canning pickles and making applesauce? A memorable experience, but one I'm not sure most people would find "fun" and especially not "cool." Do people need to just get their priorities straight and commit more time to cooking (as I've heard suggested by more than one "foodie")? Are cooking skills really a necessity to the success of the local food movement?

I clearly don't have answers to all of these questions, or really any of these questions for that matter. But after spending at least a few hours thinking about this, I am sure it will take many more hours and many more ideas to come up with innovative solutions. To get that process started - what do you think???

In the spirit of this conversation about cooking local, real, whole food, here's a picture of vegetable soup I made a few weeks ago. Carrots and cauliflower fresh from the UVa Community Garden, green beans and corn from the farm and garden put away in the freezer this summer and fresh herbs clipped from outside my front door. A lot of work or a delicious masterpiece???