How Family Dinners Helped Me Love Veggies)
Small Bites Adventure Club summer intern, Carolina, reflects on how her mom got a picky eater to love veggies. Carolina is an industrial engineering major at Georgia Tech.
One of my most vivid memories as a child is eating my mom’s vegetable soup. The smell of a homemade meal would fill my nose even before I entered the kitchen. I remember sitting down at the table and a giant, colorful bowl of adventure staring back at me. It was a little scary, but my mom told me to take one spoonful for each year of my age. Suddenly, I wasn’t counting anymore and what had been a bowl of carrots, onions, and zucchini was now an empty plate. Seconds, please!
Carolina enjoying dinner with her mom and family.
While I grew up over the years, I would always remember the magical powers of my mom getting a picky eater to eat veggies. After walking in the door, covered in mud from soccer practice, I would find warmth at the dinner table— with my family and a yummy bowl of soup. With each spoonful after school, I could feel the vegetables fuel up my brain and body. Whenever I was missing my cousins and grandparents in Argentina, I could enjoy my mom’s soup and be reminded of what home tastes like.
To me, sharing a meal is a tradition meant to be cherished. This simple act has the power to cultivate positive memories that nurture us to grow into the best version of ourselves. By adding color to our plates, we can add color to our lives and our relationships.
Carolina enjoying dinner with her mom and family.
Investigate the soil… what’s growing in there? Take a sample from two places outside: where “nothing is growing”, and where “something is growing”- weeds, grass, etc. Get a magnifying glass and compare the two samples. Are they different colors? Do they feel different? Do they smell different? Did you find any worms or other critters?
All of our food comes from soil, sun, water and air — thanks,Earth! If you are having a sandwich for lunch, take a good look at all the ingredients. Can you figure out how all the ingredients came from the soil? What are the steps it took to get from the soil to your lunch box?
Carolina’s Family Veggie Soup
Carolina’s Family Vegetable Soup Recipe
This is not an official recipe, just what I remember with my mom!
Carolina’s Family Veggie Soup
4 Carrots = diced
2 Zucchini = cubes
1 Butternut squash = cubes
1 Onion = diced
Chop vegetables into bite-sized pieces. (Kids can help! Check out our knife skills video here.)
Find a large pot. Add olive oil and then add onions
Cook for 5 minutes on medium heat.
Add zucchini and carrots, cook for 5 more minutes. Add water and/or vegetable stock.
Add spices: salt, pepper, oregano, and let everything simmer for 30 minutes.
Sprinkle some cheese on top and serve with love.
Want tips on how to get kids to try new foods? Check out this short video!
