Christchurch toddler Avie-Avana might only be 23 months old, but she could already be a budding MasterChef.
She features in cooking tutorials for loyal fans on YouTube and Facebook, with her mother Danni Rasmussen, who doubles as head chef and cameraman.
Avie-Avana was often spotted at her mum’s side, whether it was to help chop vegetables, tending to the stovetop or mixing food together in a bowl.
Ms Rasmussen, of Avonside, said the idea around filming tutorials centred on encouraging other families to cook with their children as it was an opportunity to learn and bond together.
“Cooking is at the heart of the home. It’s to show parents that it is possible and there are a lot of learning benefits to it too,” she said.
“You don’t have to cook gourmet meals, just simple foods. It makes the kids prouder to eat it as they’ve done it themselves.”
Avie’s Cooking for Toddlers often gave other families meal inspirations who struggled to think of meals to cook with their kids.
The usual fare in tutorials was simple and easy to make, such as soups, burritos, pasta, pizza and rice dishes.
It was a “good feeling” receiving messages of praise from other parents, especially when a mother of five told Ms Rasmussen her children were eating foods they would not usually touch, thanks to Avie-Avana’s tutorials.
Whether it was learning about communication, teamwork, the maths and science side of cooking or how to read recipes, children were still learning important skills in the kitchen.
“Parents are always in a rush, so it’s a chance to spend time with them and it’s easier to use that time as a learning curve,” Ms Rasmussen said.
Avie-Avana loved to eat and to get her hands dirty in the kitchen; already eating foods other kids would not eat.
Ms Rasmussen’s own mother loved to cook, but would seldom let anyone else in the kitchen to help her.
"When I was growing up, I didn’t learn myself, so I wanted to teach my own children so they knew how to in the future.”
