Colton Scott, former Eudora-De Soto Technical Education Center culinary student and lead cook at Limestone pizza+kitchen+bar, holds a pan of cinnamon rolls made in class in 2013.

Over the years I’ve observed that fewer and fewer people know what it means to cook from scratch.

TV, books and now movies have done a good job showing the glamour, debauchery and appeal of professional cooking, but rarely do they convey the tie-in with why we cook with passion at home.

It’s important to know that watching the act of cooking doesn’t make you a cook, and if you have kids this is a very important point to emphasize. It’s without question that our community would be healthier and happier if more kids learned how to prepare good food. We spend so much energy telling kids to eat healthy food but not enough time teaching them how to cook it.

Perhaps they could learn at school.

From 2011 to 2013, I instructed the high school culinary program at the Eudora-De Soto Technical Education Center. Most of my desire to transition from restaurant chef to teacher was so I could reset my cooking skills and mentor young adults. Another part of me wanted to learn how blending administration and culinary techniques could strengthen workforce development and in turn improve food quality. I was impressed that our education system would hire an industry mentor with no teaching experience, and I became forever grateful that technical education exists for our students in Lawrence, Eudora and many other school districts.

Career and Technical Education (CTE) in Kansas has changed in many ways over the years and today offers a wide spectrum of specialties and career fields like agriculture, technology, nursing, auto mechanics and graphic design in addition to culinary arts. The distinction between CTE and traditional academic classes is slowly dissolving as students are free to sample as many career paths as they wish while navigating their daily course work. Longer class periods with intensive lab sessions give students time to use their hands to do more than turn pages.

The 45 students I instructed were on 45 distinctively different career paths, and only a few would actually make cooking a professional life choice. The way I saw it, if two out of 50 that explored culinary arts become top chefs, the CTE pathway was working. The true ratio of those students that would go on to work in restaurants to simply pay for food and rent is astonishingly high. The students that moved on to succeed in other career fields still learned how to cook for themselves (and others) allowing them to make healthier choices and establish independence that no other academic course could teach. And that alone is improving our food system.

The industry results of CTE are present in my restaurant where I employ four of my former students, one former student of the Lawrence culinary program and three current Lawrence high school students. Most would say they are some of our best workers. Are they positioning themselves to be TV chefs? Probably not, but they are entering the workforce getting hands-on experience with mentoring professionals in a structured environment. Teaching these kids professional skills before they enter college not only preps them to approach the world with a sense of workforce respect but also gives them sustainable means to support their livelihood by cooking for themselves.

Teaching high school was the most difficult job I’ve ever had to do. Although it’s likely cooking in a restaurant at 17 was just as tough and I’ve forgotten how challenging it was at that age. The important thing was I could cook at 17, and that skill changed the way I viewed my long-term health. Not learning to cook opens the door for convenience food to be the only choice for our children and our community. Encourage yourself and your children to explore every opportunity to teach and learn to cook from scratch. Our overall health will show the results.

Cinnamon rolls proved to be a constant practical lesson plan at the school. Time management, measuring and teamwork were all teachables that could be found in this one recipe. The time needed to mix, ferment and construct the rolls meant multiple class periods had to work together to execute the recipe. These are well worth the time investment.

Cinnamon Rolls

Makes 12 rolls

Ingredients

7 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed

4 teaspoons quick-rise yeast

1 cup whole milk, warmed (30 seconds)

1 cup warm water (30 seconds)

2/3 cup sugar, plus additional 1 teaspoon

2/3 cup butter

2 teaspoon salt

2 ea eggs, slightly beaten

1/2 cup melted butter

1 3/4 cup sugar

3 tablespoons cinnamon

Directions

In stand mixer, combine warm water, yeast and 1 teaspoon of sugar. Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix milk, 2/3 cup of sugar, melted butter, salt and eggs. Mix well and add to yeast mixture. Add half the flour and mix until smooth. Slowly add remaining flour while mixing. Once mixed smooth, turn onto floured surface and knead for 3 minutes. Place in oiled bowl and let rise in a warm place (about 100 F) for 1 hour.

When doubled, punch down dough and let rest for 5 minutes. Roll out on floured surface into a 15-by-20-inch rectangle. Brush with half the melted butter then cover with 3/4 of the cinnamon sugar mix. Roll, cut into 12 rolls and place rolls 3 by 4 on a half sheet pan brushed with butter and sprinkled with half the remaining cinnamon mix. Brush tops with remaining butter and cinnamon mix. Return to a warm place until doubled in size. Bake at 375 F for 10 minutes.

— Rick Martin is executive chef and owner of Limestone Pizza. He is a contract trainer for Lawrence Public Schools Food Service and the Kansas Department of Education Child Nutrition and Wellness, as well as a consulting chef for Just Food Kansas. He has been preparing food for the Lawrence community for over 20 years.