WASHINGTON 鈥� Forget the usual necktie and golf shirt. This Father鈥檚 Day, give dad something that will warm his heart and his stomach 鈥� a homemade meal.
Chef , who has restaurants throughout the country, including The Riggsby, Tico, Alta Strada and Casolare in D.C., said there鈥檚 no greater gift than time spent cooking with kids.
鈥淚 think those are the most beautiful memories, the time centered around the kitchen,鈥� said Schlow, who is a dad to a 5-year-old and a 13-year-old.
He is not suggesting that you make dad do all the work for his Father鈥檚 Day meal. Rather, he has a few ideas on how to get everyone involved in preparing a delicious dinner.
Dine on dumplings
A go-to dish of his when it comes to cooking with kids is dumplings. Pick up a pack of wrappers from the refrigerated section of your grocery store and let the kids come up with a few ideas for fillings. From meat-stuffed dumplings, to , to , the options are endless.
鈥淥nce the filling鈥檚 made, you can kind of send them off on their own and they can have some fun, and either mom or dad can steam (the dumplings) off or cook them,鈥� said Schlow, who added that this is a great make-ahead party dish, since the stuffings can be prepared hours in advance.
Get ready to grill
Grilling is basically synonymous with Father鈥檚 Day, and Schlow said while it may not be wise to have little ones man the charcoals, they can help with prep. Put them to work mixing marinades, slicing veggies and helping with sides.
Schlow鈥檚 cookbook, 鈥�,鈥� dedicates an entire to chapter to hosting the perfect cookout, and if your Father鈥檚 Day plans involve having some friends over, he has some advice.
If your group is relatively small, he said you can get away with cooking almost anything. But if you鈥檙e entertaining 10 or more, you might want to rethink the menu.
鈥淢aybe don鈥檛 try ribs on a day where you have 30 people coming over; keep it to something small and easy,鈥� he said.
And think beyond hot dogs and chicken. Schlow is known for his meaty and messy burgers (you can find the on his website), and he said steak is always a crowd-pleaser.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 know too many people that say no to a big, juicy steak, especially if it鈥檚 cooked nicely,鈥� Schlow said.
鈥淵ou can also do beautiful grilled vegetables, grilled portobellos and things that can be at room temperature also so that everything doesn鈥檛 have to come off the grill at exactly the same time. I think that is also a nice trick for a really successful barbecue.鈥�
Keep it chill
At the end of the day, Schlow said whatever you make for dad 鈥� and with dad 鈥� will turn out great, because it鈥檚 less about the final product and more about the time spent together.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a day to just relax and celebrate and not make it too fussy 鈥� I think that鈥檚 the big win for a good Father鈥檚 Day. If the weather鈥檚 good, be outside, just enjoy each other and remember what you make isn鈥檛 as important as who you鈥檙e spending it with.鈥�
And mixing up a cold cocktail for dad doesn鈥檛 hurt either. You can find a on Schlow鈥檚 website 鈥� just swap the packed snow for crushed ice.
Need more recipe ideas? Check out Schlow鈥檚 鈥�;鈥� ; and 鈥� all available on his website.
