The recipe for his very first batch of homemade cookies came straight from the crinkled-plastic Toll House chocolate chip packaging. Parker Haymart comes from a pre-made cookie dough family—baking always meant unwrapping a refrigerated package, forming the cookies and sticking them in the oven. The 10-year-old’s decision to make the dough from scratch this time around was a stab for independence.

“It kind of had to do with doing something for myself,” Haymart said. “I guess proving to myself that I could.”

He tackled each step of the process on his own: he cracked the eggs, he folded in the chocolate chips and he waxed the pan. The only part taken out of his hands was the baking itself, as a parent swept in to handle the red-hot tray as it came out of the oven. His family was quick to sample the fruits of his labors, burning their tongues in the process.

“They probably weren’t nearly as good as the dough from the store,” Haymart said. In spite of that revelation, Haymart was giddy with excitement. A once seemingly formidable feat had been conquered.

Over the years, baking has become routine—even ritual. He prints or writes up the recipe (to avoid butter smudges of floury fingerprints on his phone screen), queues up some music and gets to making a mess. Every baked good that comes out of his oven inevitably leaves his kitchen in shambles.

“There’s always flour flying everywhere,” Haymart said. “Which I very begrudgingly clean up after.”

Though his kitchen has borne the evidence of brownies, snickerdoodles and experimentation with pies, chocolate chip cookies have remained his staple. Through lots of trial and error and dozens of batches, Haymart’s recipe has evolved from the Toll House classic to what he considers to be the perfect chocolate chip cookie.

His cookies are a labor of love. The first step is browning the butter, requiring a watchful eye but lending a caramelized nutty flavor to the end product. Then comes two types of sugar, flour, eggs and vanilla extract. He folds in the chocolate chips next—sometimes using as many as three varieties, along with chocolate chunks for better distribution (although his dad prefers them with no chocolate at all). Haymart believes the little things make all the difference.

He’s also taken to giving his cookies as gifts. They’re always well-received, and he thinks that the time and effort that go into making them mean more than something he could buy.

“I like to think of it as a more heartfelt gift than just an object,” Haymart said.

The cookies are a staple of family gatherings and friend’s birthdays, and they make frequent appearances at Forum events.

His chocolate chip cookies have become a way for him to express his love for family and friends. Baking someone’s favorite dessert is an uncomplicated alternative to words, allowing him to show how much he values the people he loves.

“It’s a way for me to signify that I care about them and I want them in my life,” Haymart said.

He gets satisfaction from making his friends and family happy, even if all it takes is one excellent cookie.

Every time Haymart whips up a batch of chocolate chip cookies, he remembers just how much of an impact a small act of love can have and never forgets to save his dad a cookie without the chocolate chips.