Little Meals for Little Ones: On the Joys of Sharing the Kitchen With Children

Cooking with children is a learning process that is giving both me and my kitchen a new lease of life. It has taught me to shift my expectations of the cooking process and the end results. Like most professional cooks, I am a perfectionist and can fret when I feel my meals are not as excellent as I desire them to be. However, when cooking with children I am learning to let go of these perfectionistic desires. If children are to be proud of their cooking achievements, it is important to take a step back and let them feel empowered to try out new techniques, use unfamiliar ingredients, and make a bit of a mess. The end result will not look as it would if I had made the dish myself. Yet that does not matter. What matters to me is their feelings of pride, and the joy they find in learning.

I accept that, after the cooking process, clothes may need to be changed and, after baking, socks certainly will need to go in the washing machine as all the flour, sugar, cocoa and inevitably butter tumbles to the floor—and gets trodden on. I also feel relaxed about “tidy up time.” After a hard hour’s baking, it can be normal  for children to need a bit of a rest in front of a film or with a good book. I don’t presume that all children are going to be good at tidying up all the time, in the same way I don’t presume them to be neat bakers or skilled cooks. I just allow them to listen to their bodies and enjoy our time together, with no expectations. And as they grow older, they can take more responsibility—to fill the dishwasher and wipe down the tables.

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Digestive Biscuits

There is little better than a cup of tea and a digestive biscuit. A favorite in our home, these biscuits are inspired by Myrtle Allen’s Cooking at Ballymaloe House. They are also lovely with butter and cheese.

EQUIPMENT

Baking sheet
Parchment paper
Large bowl
Wooden spoon
Food processor (optional)
Rolling pin
Cookie cutter(s)
Fork
Wire rack

Makes: about 20 biscuits

INGREDIENTS

130 g / 4½ oz (1 cup plus 1 tablespoon) plain
(all-purpose) flour, plus extra for dusting 280 g / 10 oz (21 ⁄₃ cups) wholemeal
(whole wheat) flour
3 tablespoons soft brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon bicarbonate of soda (baking soda) 250 g / 9 oz (2¼ sticks) softened butter
5 tablespoons honey or golden syrup

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 170°C / 340°F (Gas Mark 3). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine both flours, the brown sugar, salt and bicarbonate of soda (baking soda). Mix well using a wooden spoon.

Add the butter. Using clean fingers, blend together until the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. (It’s a bit like playing in the sandpit! Alternatively, use a food processor to mix the mixture.)

Make a well in the center. Pour in the honey or golden syrup, then mix again with your fingers until it forms a dough. Roll the dough into a ball and chill in the refrigerator for 20–30 minutes.

Lightly dust a clean work counter with flour. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough, about 1.5 cm / ½ inch thick. Cut out the biscuits with a cookie cutter—feel free to experiment with different cutters.

Place the biscuits on the prepared baking sheet, evenly spacing them 5 cm / 2 inches apart. Using a fork, pierce each biscuit three times to make little holes in the center. Bake for 12–15 minutes, until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.

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Excerpted from Breakfast, Lunch, Tea with Children by Rose Carrarini and marissa-catherine carrarini. Copyright © 2025 by Rose Carrarini and marissa-catherine carrarini. Photography © 2025 by Anne-Claire Héraud. Reproduced by permission of Phaidon. All rights reserved.