Ben has become quite the cook since joining our household. He’s reached the point where I can tell him he’s responsible for dinner and generally trust that something decent will appear on the table at the appropriate time. That’s progress. But I’ve decided decent isn’t quite good enough anymore.

For the next four weeks, I’m sending Ben to cooking classes four times a week, two hours at a time. The program is designed as an introduction to culinary fundamentals, so he’ll be learning a variety of cooking methods rather than simply memorizing a handful of recipes. Knife skills, sauces, proteins, vegetables, seasoning, timing, presentation, and all those little techniques that separate someone who can follow a recipe from someone who actually understands what he’s doing in a kitchen.

I’m looking at this as an investment in his service. To be fair, Ben already possesses two absolutely essential culinary skills for a household with children: peanut butter and jelly sandwiches and macaroni and cheese. I’m certainly not allowing him to lose those. There are nights when sophisticated cuisine can go to hell because somebody is hungry, somebody else has to be somewhere in twenty minutes, and dinner needs to appear now.

Cody and I, however, can benefit from expanding Ben’s repertoire. I’d like to be able to request something a little more sophisticated without having him nervously reaching for his phone to look up what half the words mean. I’d also like him to become confident enough to look at what’s available in the kitchen and create a good meal without needing detailed instructions from me.

That’s one of the things I enjoy about training a service submissive. Training doesn’t always involve restraints, punishment, or something overtly kinky. Sometimes training means sending him to school and expecting him to come home more useful than when he left.

Eight hours of culinary instruction every week for the next month should accomplish that nicely. And Cody has already volunteered to help me evaluate Ben’s homework. We’re very supportive employers.