An activity designed for parents/adults and their children to make "white-sugar-free" snacks together, at the open preschool in Lövgärdet.

The concept of "öppna förskola" or "open preschool" in Sweden is to support families and children socially. It is a place that is open for any parent/adult and their children 0-6 years old. It is a place to play, read, sing, and socialize with others. Lövgärdet is a culturally diverse and rich suburban neighborhood in Gothenburg. There are many people from various cultures. Being multicultural ourselves and having spoken to parents at this specific location, we know that there is a disconnect between the amount of sugar that people would like their children to have access to, and the Swedish agenda of limiting sugar consumption. We saw that introducing sweet, yet "white-sugar-free" snack recipes may help parents use these alternatives with their children.

We are also conscious of the disconnect between some parents/adults, who prefer their children to stay out of the kitchen, and the Swedish mentality of promoting independence and autonomy through involving children in everyday activities that are suitable for their development and age. So, we created a safe environment, where parents/adults and their young children—as young as 8 months old—could participate in the making of these easy recipes of "white-sugar-free" snacks. We encouraged the parents/adults with "Mess is welcome, exploration is welcome, just have fun making together."

It was visible that most parents/adults were not used to involving their children in the kitchen during cooking or baking. There was a bit of panic when ingredients spilled on the table and we had to encourage the parents/adults to keep going.

Once it was time to try out the different recipes that we have made, everyone was impressed of how easy it was to make these "white-sugar-free" snacks, yet still enjoying the sweetness of these alternatives. The printed recipes we had at the workshop were popular many months later too. Even one year after this activity, people at the open preschool asked for them to be printed again.