Mom: The Original Food Processor
By Janet Peterson

Editor's note: To learn more about family dinners and the women who cook them, read Janet Peterson's new book, Family Dinners.

Mothers of generations past probably couldn’t imagine what a “food processor” was — that wonderful, relatively new machine that chops, slices, juliennes, and processes (and which I use nearly every day). Nor did mothers necessarily think of themselves as “food processors.” They thought they were just mothers who provided dinner for their families as a nightly routine.

Mothers today cannot only be “food processors;” they can also enjoy the benefits of a myriad number of food processing devices, such as hand-held mixers, heavy-duty stand mixers, bread makers and bread machines, electric woks, pasta machines, table-top grills, premium-quality pots and pans, to name only a few.  Modern mothers have been given an incredible gift of time-saving tools, as well as the largest choice and availability of foods in history, to cook healthy and nutritious meals for their families.

While the task of cooking dinner can be shared with other family members (including Dad on occasion), nevertheless, mothers are primarily the cooks in most homes. It is part of the job description and a much-needed effort. Because food plays such a vital and continuous role in everyday life, a mother who cooks is to be highly esteemed. Meals around her table will be fondly remembered for generations. Mothers who cook nurture their children socially, emotionally, spiritually, and physically. Children who grow up on home-cooked dinners are indeed blessed on many levels.

One woman remarked, “In the childhood memories of every good cook, there’s a large kitchen, a warm stove, a simmering pot and a mom.”^[2]

Though to some it may seem archaic, mothers who cook are as needed in the 21^st century as they were in generations past. A researcher for the food and beverage industry, Harry Balzer concluded that meals, in most cases, are still the responsibility of wives and mothers. He said, “If Mom doesn’t cook in this country, who’s going to cook?” Without Mom in the kitchen, “we’ve lost a caretaker for our eating habits.”^[3]

A mother who teaches her daughters to cook will help assure pleasant mealtimes for her grandchildren.

A writer for National Geographic ended her lengthy article on obesity in America by pleading with mothers to cook for their children so as to provide them with a healthier life. Cathy Newman wrote, “Perhaps what this country really needs to fight fat is a mom. Make that a vintage mom, with a gingham apron tied around her waist as she places a bowl of vegetables on the table next to a skinless roast chicken.”^[4]

Julie B. Beck, first counselor in the Young Women general presidency, grew up with her ten siblings in a home where their mother created — a warm, welcoming venue around the Bangerter dinner table, not only for the family, but for visitors and missionaries as well. Julie said, “My mother is a champion nurturer. It is not uncommon for her to ask visitors if they are hungry, and one doesn’t often leave her home without first eating a sandwich or warm soup.”

Following her mother’s example, Julie also fed and nurtured her own family.

“As a young mother I did not fully understand my power as a nurturer. Though we were a busy family, I considered everyone’s presence at dinnertime nonnegotiable. It was our most consistent gathering time, and everyone planned to eat together before going on to other activities. I learned of the influence of my nurturing when your youngest daughter wrote in a college paper: ‘Dinner in our home was not just an eating ritual, but a special time for the family to communicate and to share our thoughts and stories of the day… We often sat together for over an hour as we savored the conversation as much as the food.’

“I thought I was just cooking casseroles and soup. But I had created the venue, the reason to gather. Because I prepared a meal to share with my family, something special happened. It was a simple process, and our style changed with the ages of our children…

“Mothers, who are ‘primarily responsible for the nurture of their children,’ can be a powerful force for strengthening families when they use mealtimes to gather loved ones. They follow the example of the Savior to calm, teach, and help their families remember important things as they feed, cultivate, educate, and rear at the consecrated tables in their homes.”^[5]

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You mothers who cook deserve an extra potted geranium at church, a second bouquet of flowers from your husband, and two handmade cards from each child — and hopefully a day off from cooking this Mothers’ Day — when your family cooks dinner for you!

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^[1] Sue Berkman, quoted in Kate Rowinski, ed., The Quotable Cook (New York: The Lyons Press, 2000), 56.

^[2] Barbara Costikyan, quoted in Kate Rowinski, ed., The Quotable Cook (New York: The Lyons Press, 2000), 32.

^[3] Henry Balzer, quoted in Valerie Phillips, “Americans Get Fatter, Don’t Care,” deseretnews.com, June 18, 2003.

^[4] Cathy Newman, “Why Are We So Fat,” National Geographic, Aug. 2004, 60-61.

^[5] Julie B. Beck, “Powerful Nurturing,” Ensign, Dec. 2005, 37.