When I first started cooking with children, I didn’t have a ready-made method. I searched for recipes by intuition, tried, observed. In the beginning, I was often driven by ambition: I wanted to show parents what we could achieve together with their children — sometimes even choosing complicated recipes. But in the end, I wore myself out, the kids were tired, and the joy of the process was lost.
Over time, the children themselves became my teachers. They showed me that less can truly be more. What matters most isn’t the final result but the chance to be in the process — to explore, to find a quiet rhythm, to enjoy without rush or pressure.
An Example from the Book: Star-Shaped Cookies and a 3D Christmas Tree
In the winter book, there’s a recipe where star-shaped cookies are stacked into a festive 3D Christmas tree.
If you try to do everything at once — mixing the dough, cutting the cookies, baking, assembling, and decorating the tree — a child will quickly run out of energy. At some point it becomes too much, and the joy fades away.
A completely different experience emerges when you break it into steps:
• Day 1. Mix the dough and cut the stars (they bake in just 7 minutes).
• Day 2. Decorate and assemble the tree — more festive, with lights and atmosphere.
Sometimes you can adjust in other ways: prepare the dough yourself, and then give your child their own small board, cookie cutters, and a piece of dough. Let them create freely. Their cookies can be enjoyed right away with milk or tea, while the adult takes care of the “tree project.”
A Bit of Psychology
For adults, “finishing what we started” feels essential. But children live in the moment.
• Their joy comes from touching the dough, pressing it with little fingers, cutting funny shapes.
• Adult ambition (“it should look perfect, we should finish everything”) often turns into stress and frustration: “I did this for you, and you only stayed for two minutes!”
• In reality, the child has already received something valuable — sensory, emotional, and social experience. And that is far more important than the number of cookies completed.
Gentle Tips for Parents
🌟 Celebrate even small moments together — even if it’s just five minutes.
🌟 Do a little less than you planned. It’s better to stop early than to overload.
🌟 Break the process into stages: the younger the child, the shorter the “sessions.”
🌟 Let the child choose when and how to join in.
🌟 And most importantly — enjoy it yourself. When a parent genuinely delights in the process, the child feels it and is naturally drawn in.
The Takeaway
Children remind us not only how to cook together but also how to slow down, savor small steps, and value the process itself. And the cookies? They’re just the sweet bonus to this shared joy ❤️.
Maybe you’ve had a similar experience? What helps you slow down in the kitchen with your child?
ICONIER Digital Agency