Easy Baking Recipes for Kids

Stuck inside with the family on a dreary day? It’s time to pull out the baking supplies! These Easy Baking Recipes for Kids are the perfect way to spend a morning at home.

four photos of easy recipes to bake with kids

Get in the Kitchen! Easy Baking Recipes for Kids

When the kids and I are both feeling a little stir crazy (usually evidenced by an increase in fighting and whining), I love to redirect us by getting out the baking supplies! Baking with kids has SO many benefits. Baking together is a great way to bond and make memories, and it also teaches important skills like following directions, math, hand eye coordination, and perhaps the hardest and most important of all–patience!

My kids love peeking through the oven door to watch a loaf of bread rise or see cookies puff up into little mounds. And of course, all their hard work and anticipation is rewarded with a tasty treat! What could be better?

If baking with kids sounds intimidating, know that I’ve specifically chosen these recipes because they’re:

  • Easy for kids to make
  • Don’t make a lot of dishes
  • Use common ingredients that are easy to find

I’ve also got lots of tips to make the process fun for everyone!

father, mother, and young child making a cake together

Tips for baking with kids:

  1. First, find a way to get your kids at counter top height to help! For older kids, a regular step stool or kitchen chair work just fine. For younger kids, I prefer a step stool with sides. We LOVE The Learning Tower, because both my kids can fit on it at once!
  2. Practice safety. Share the importance of keeping hands and faces away from an electric mixer and avoiding a hot stove or open oven door.
  3. Lower your expectations. This is a hard one for me! I like to be very precise when I bake, so letting kids take over can be stressful. Be willing to get a little messy and know that it’s okay if the cookies aren’t in perfect circles. For younger kids, it can help to have ingredients like eggs and flour prepped beforehand, so all they have to do is pour into a bowl and stir. At the end of the day, it’s not about perfection, but about enjoying the time together.
  4. Actually let them help. Here’s another one that can be tough for the control freaks among us, but you actually have to let them help! Give them a scoop, let them man the whisk, or show them how to increase the speed on the mixer.
  5. Teach proper techniques. Baking with kids is a wonderful opportunity to start teaching them basic techniques. Show them how to measure flour correctly by spooning into a measuring cup and leveling it. I usually hold the measuring cup and allow my kids to scoop into it. Teach them how to tap an egg on a flat surface to crack it. And don’t forget hand hygiene! Have the kids wash their hands before you start and after coming into contact with raw eggs.
  6. Make it FUN! Let them pick out fun sprinkles, use colorful utensils and muffin cups, grab a set of cookie cutters (<< these are our favorites, and they’re super affordable) and let them pick out which recipe they’d like to make today. The more you can give them ownership of the process, the more they’ll want to be in the kitchen with you!

young child holding a spatula up to a dad to lick

Easy Baking Recipes for Kids

We've searched the recipe archives and picked out 15 of our favorite easy baking recipes for kids! Baking with kids is a great way to spend time together as a family and teach important life skills. Not to mention, you'll have something delicious to enjoy in the end! Each of these recipes for kids was chosen because they're easy to make and use common ingredients, so they're great for beginners and older kids as well.

2 Comments

  1. This is a great round-up, Courtney! No kids here, but we’re going a little stir-crazy as well and could definitely use a few of these recipes right now. I also LOVE that photo of you three in the kitchen, hehe! Hope you guys are hanging in there and taking care!

    1. Thank you Ala! I hope you are doing well and that you find some fun things to make in the kitchen while you’re home!

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