Home Recipes Meal Types Desserts
Anna Thomas BatesUpdated: Mar. 05, 2024
Kids love spending time with mom and dad in the kitchen. Here's a slew of easy baking recipes your kids can (almost) make all by themselves!
Basic Banana Muffins
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This banana muffin recipe goes over so well with kids. Not only are these banana bread muffins like cupcakes, but they’re ready, start to finish, in just half an hour! —Lorna Greene, Harrington, Maine
Pixie Dust Cookies
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These crisp and buttery cookies are based on a favorite Scottish shortbread recipe. They're just the right amount of sweet—and fun to decorate! —Peggy Goodrich, Enid, Oklahoma
Rocky Road Cookie Cups
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Traditional rocky road ice cream has nuts, marshmallows and chocolate. Using prepared cookie dough makes it easy to put the flavors together in these fast, kid-friendly rocky road cookis. —Charlotte McDaniel, Jacksonville, AL
Apple Snickerdoodle Dump Cake
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With an apple farm just down the road, I'm always looking for creative ways to use up those bushels. We love this cozy apple snickerdoodle dump cake with caramel drizzle and a scoop of vanilla or cinnamon ice cream. —Rachel Garcia, Honolulu, Hawaii
Easy Cake Mix Bars
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I take this dessert to work for Friday pick-me-ups. It's one of my favorite yellow cake bar recipes. I love to share them because they're so easy to eat, easy to make and easy on the wallet. —Amy Rose, Ballwin, Missouri
Pecan Caramel Candies
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Salty and sweet, these candies are the perfect little snack. Form a kitchen assembly line with your kids, and the making becomes just as fun as the eating. —Julie Wemhoff, Angola, Indiana
3-Ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies
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It is amazing how much flavor is in these simple 3-ingredient peanut butter cookies without brown sugar. I make them very often because I always have the ingredients on hand. —Maggie Schimmel, Wauwatosa, Wisconsin
Confetti Cake Batter Cookies
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Mom and I took up cake decorating. Funfetti was our favorite cake, so we used the mix to make cutout cookies. Plain or decorated, they’re a fave at parties. —Danielle DeMarco, Basking Ridge, New Jersey
Fudgy Mint Cookies
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Chocolate lovers will get a double dose when they bite into this cakelike cookie. The cookies are especially popular served alongside a big scoop of mint chocolate chip ice cream! —Renee Schwebach, Dumont, Minnesota
Pecan Pie Mini Muffins
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While these are delicious year-round, you could easily turn them into an edible Christmas gift. They look festive on a decorative tray wrapped in red or green cellophane or tucked into a giveaway cookie plate. And don't forget to include the recipe so your recipient can enjoy this treat over and over again! —Pat Schrand, Enterprise, Alabama
German Chocolate Dump Cake
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We make this for Sunday lunches when the whole family gets together. The cream cheese topping is so good that it doesn't need frosting. —Donna Holdbrooks, Waco, Georgia
Easy Oatmeal Cream Pies
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These easy cookies use only five ingredients and taste very similar to a store-bought cookie. Of course, everything's better from your own kitchen! —Crystal Schlueter, Northglenn, Colorado
Apple Pie Bites
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These apple pie bites are fun for kids to make. Simply wrap strips of pastry around apple wedges and shake on some cinnamon-sugar. Then just bake and watch them disappear! —Taste of Home Test Kitchen
Cinnamon Monkey Bread
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Is it possible for four kids to cook together without total chaos in the kitchen? Yes, with the right recipe! This cinnamon roll monkey bread is a favorite with my bunch. They get to “play” as they roll pieces of refrigerated biscuit dough into balls. —Lisa Combs, Greenville, Ohio
Peanut Butter Cookie Cups
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I’m a busy schoolteacher and pastor’s wife and I wouldn’t dare show my face at a church dinner or bake sale without some of these tempting peanut butter treats. They’re quick and easy to make and always a hit. —Kristi Tackett, Banner, Kentucky
Peanut Butter Kiss Cookies
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Everyone who tries these beloved gems is amazed that they use only five ingredients. Baking cookies doesn't get much easier than this. —Dee Davis, Sun City, Arizona
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To make a dairy-free dessert, I created chocolate peanutty bars. My kids and their friends gobble them up. I've written about it on my blog, joyfulscribblings.com. —Dawn Pasco, Overland Park, Kansas
Gooey Chocolate-Peanut Bars
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These are so easy to make and take no time at all. They’re great to package up for those college kids looking for something from home. Everyone will want this recipe. —Elaine Grimme, Sioux Falls, South Dakota
Originally Published: October 29, 2019