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I wonder if you might try a non-children's cookbook, one that's justly popular for a mix of relative simplicity and ease, clear and appealing pictures of the resulting dish, and predominant use of real ingredients (rather than packaged, already processed food).

Examples that spring to mind are The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook and Nigella Express.  Of course not every recipe is suitable -- both those books have cocktail recipes, e.g., and it could be that Express uses more pre-prepped ingredients than would be ideal.  But maybe you already have one of these or a similar book (an early Jamie Oliver, say), and could invite the 8-yr-old to pick out a couple of dishes that appeal and try one out. 

Stuck inside with a bad spring cold yesterday, I watched a BC episode for the first time in many years.  Not for the first time, I thought how excellent the show would be as an instructional video if reduced to the actual Ina-cooking parts.  No offense to the winsome Jeffrey and his immaculate Oxford-cloth shirts, but watching him buy English muffins at the Model Bakery only stimulates in me restive thoughts about the 1%. Back in the kitchen, though, Ina erased all those with sound, practical advice (eggs must be at room temperature for blender Hollandaise, when to put prosciutto strips in the oven to finish at the same time as the asparagus, don't fry eggs at high temperature) while the camera showed each step in the process from start to finish.  Yes, I know it's not cinema verite, but done with many interspersed takes; still, the result is a lot more actual, comprehensible cooking than you see on most of the cooking shows, even putting aside the competitions.

Caveat: My advice may be worth considerably less than you're paying for it; I have neither children nor either of the cookbooks I've mentioned.  (Though I have checked out BC from the library and cooked several things from it.)

I have a handful of children's cookbooks in my collection from when my boys were younger.  The one cookbook that actually got use by the boys themselves is Better Homes and Gardens New Junior Cookbook.  It is not gourmet cuisine by a long shot but it is the one book that the boys themselves pulled off the shelves.

One of the best I have for young people is no longer in print, but readily available.

When I married in 1983, my grandmother gave me "Easy Basics for Good Cooking", published by Sunset.  Mine is hardcover, but spiral bound inside.  It's filled with how-to pictures.  It's designed for a beginner cook, not a child, so it's not dumbed-down.  I find that I still use many of the basic proportions that I learned from that book many years ago.  My copy is now tattered & worn, but I wouldn't part with it.

I see there are many used copies available on both Amazon & eBay.  Here's the Amazon link.

http://www.amazon.com/Ea...+basics+for+good+cooking

I see the reviews for this book are very good. I wish it was part of my collection. Although it's not totally directed towards kids, Yum-o! The Family Cookbook, by Rachael Ray, has ideas in every recipe for how the kids can help.

My first cookbook that was just mine was a William Sonoma Kids cookbook, they don't make that specific one anymore, but they do have a variety of different kids themed cookbooks. (https://www.ebay.com/itm/Williams-Sonoma-Kids-Cookbook-Cooking-Scrumptious-Recipes-for-Cooks-Ages-9-13/302923268264?epid=973809&hash=item4687a240a8:g:RZsAAOSw2kVbddVV:rk:23:pf:0) <-- This is the exact one I had at the time (I still have it somewhere in my collection)

I loved it at the time because the recipes were recipes that I wanted to cook or eat as a child, such as alfredo and french toast. But they were also simple enough that I could make them with little parental help. Plus with a photo for every recipe (Something that wasn't the norm when I was little, looking at my mom's cookbooks), it made it fun for me to look through and read. 

I also had an American Girl cookbook, with recipes from different eras that I loved, because at the time I loved the dolls. It looks like they still make cookbooks to this day that are geared towards kids. (https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/samanthas-cookbook-a-peek-at-dining-in-the-past-with-meals-you-can-cook-today-american-girls-collection/791545/?mkwid=s1Ds7bZht%7cdc&pcrid=70112861832&pkw=&pmt=&plc=&pgrid=21323637792&ptaid=pla-342652001932&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIicOV6Mq23gIVSJyzCh3KkwGIEAQYASABEgIY6_D_BwE#isbn=1562471147&idiq=1260625) <-- This is also the same one I had at the time.

As a kid getting a cookbook, for me it was important that I was able to do as much of the recipe as I could without the aid of a parent, but with enough simplicity that my mom wasn't worried I would burn down the house or cut myself. 

Here are some searches on amazon with some kids themed cookbooks.

https://www.amazon.com/s...3Aamerican+girl+cookbook

https://www.amazon.com/s...ams+sonoma+kids+cookbook

I bought my kids the Bite Me cookbook by Albert and Gnat when they were quite young and they loved it.  They still make things from it.  

When my son was young, I got him The Magic Spoon Cookbook. He was a picky eater, and I thought it would help him be more adventurous. We made Dutch Babies together, but he wouldn't eat it because of the powdered sugar. I don't think we cooked anything more from it, but it came with a spoon with floating glitter, and he enjoyed helping me stir with that.

As a teenager, I learned from the Better Homes & Gardens cookbook which I grew up with.