🍴✨ The secret to stress-free food adventures with your kids? It’s easier than you think!
The simple strategy is to read to them books about food and then cook together.
👩🍳 Reading about food works because:
📚No Stress Introduction: Reading about food provides a low-pressure way to introduce new foods to children. Familiarizing them to new ingredients- like veggie toppings on a pizza— and the cooking process in a relaxed environment reduces stress and makes them more receptive to trying new foods.
💫Positive Associations: Combining reading and cooking creates positive associations. Stories about cooking, like our Lil Foodie Books build excitement and interest. When kids participate in cooking, they associate the positive emotions from reading with the actual food preparation, making them more likely to enjoy and try new foods.
🍕Reduces Food Anxiety: Involving children in the cooking process can significantly reduce their anxiety about trying new foods- neophobia (fear of new things). When children are aware of the ingredients and involved in meal preparation, they gain familiarity, which decreases the fear of the unknown and makes them more open to trying new foods.
💫Exploration and Experimentation: According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, involving kids in cooking encourages exploration and experimentation with different ingredients. This hands-on experience fosters curiosity and a willingness to try new foods.
Hello Pizza and Hello Cookie are the first in our Lil Foodie Series of Board Books coming soon. They help little kids into the kitchen and trying new foods!
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