12 Easter baking recipes to make with the kids
Katy Salter
The school Easter holidays are upon us. Why not don your aprons and get in the kitchen for a spot of Easter baking during the spring break? Your junior bakers will love trying their hands at easy bakes like Easter biscuits, cupcakes and rocky road. There’s also a few more challenging options for older kids and teens, like homemade Easter eggs and hot cross buns.
We can’t guarantee your kitchen won’t be covered in flour and melted chocolate afterwards, but you will have fun along the way. The biggest question is: who gets to lick the spoon?
What makes a great kid-friendly Easter bake?
The Easter holidays are the perfect time for a spot of baking with the kids. There’s the long Bank Holiday weekend for a start, providing enough time to bake a batch of hot cross buns, attempt their first Easter dessert or decorate some fun cupcakes to share with the family.
There’s bound to be a few rainy days over the holidays too, so why not make the most of time inside to get them measuring, stirring and kneading some biscuit dough or cake batter?
A good kid-friendly Easter bake doesn’t have too many steps or ingredients. Chose something that cooks or sets quickly (biscuits are ideal for impatient little chefs) and is both fun to make and easy to divide and share. We’ve also included a few slightly more challenging recipes, like hot cross buns and a DIY Easter egg, for older kids and teens. Happy Easter baking!
Our best Easter baking recipes to make with kids
Grab your cutters and rolling pin: it’s Easter biscuits time. Our spiced Easter biscuits have a gentle hit of mixed spice and nutmeg, or you could try adding currants to the dough. Fill a piping bag and have fun decorating them with pastel icing (brace for mess).
We can’t guarantee the kids’ mini marshmallow placement will be as neat as in the pic (or that a few marshmallows won’t get eaten along the way) but they’ll love decorating these cute spring lamb cupcakes.
Another recipe where a few decorations might get ‘lost’. These seriously chocolatey cookies are the perfect base to decorate with your favourite treats: try Mini Eggs, mini marshmallows or freeze-dried berries.
If you’ve all had too much chocolate, try an easy savoury bake. Scones are a satisfying bake to make with the kids: they love cutting them out and brushing them with egg. And if they don’t all look exactly the same size and shape: who cares? Try them with our heavenly wild garlic butter.
Nothing beats the scent of homemade hot cross buns wafting from the oven. If the children have only ever tried shop-bought, they’ll be so proud of making their own (even if the crosses are a little wonky).
Chocolate hob-nob style biscuits
If your family is trying to cut down on dairy or animal products, try this plant-based recipe. The oaty bases are topped with a thick swirl of chocolate. If you’re making these with more than one child, have a spatula ready for each to avoid fights over who gets to ice the biscuits.
We’ve combined two classic Easter treats in one epic bake. Whisk up a batch of classic vanilla cupcakes. Then, once you’ve topped each with a swirl of buttercream, pop a chocolatey nest on top. Fill each nest with mini eggs or a halved Creme egg.
If there’s someone in the family who can’t eat gluten, make sure they don’t miss out on the chocolatey fun. This fudgey flourless cake is a great introduction to gluten-free baking, as it doesn’t require any specialist ingredients.
Martha Collison’s coconut macaroon nests are a fun twist on the classic Easter creation. Just in case you were worried there wasn’t enough chocolate involved…the nests have plenty of space to cram with Mini Eggs or other Easter chocs.
Chocolate and marshmallow Mini Egg traybake
This traybake is full of things kids love: chocolate cake, chocolate icing, marshmallow and…more chocolate. (NB Mini Eggs are not suitable for children under 4, so use pieces of hollow chocolate egg for that age group).
These old-school rice krispie treats make a great vessel for filling with leftover choc (if there is such a thing) or the family’s favourite bars: we’ve used bits of Crunchie and Mars Bars.
Older kids will love attempting these DIY Easter eggs. Once you’ve got hold of an Easter egg mould, they’re not actually too tricky to make, and the kids can have fun filling them with each other’s favourite sweeties.
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