Fifteen recipes to bake with kids, from chokladbollar (Swedish no-bake chocolate oat balls) that a two year old rolls themselves to cinnamon buns that a five year old rolls out. Every recipe has a line on what the child does and from what age it tends to work. Nothing needs more than what is in an ordinary store cupboard, and everything is ready to eat the same afternoon.
Baking is the craft that ends with fika, which is why children never tire of it. It is also the best way to teach a child to measure, count, wait and tidy up, without them noticing. Here are the recipes our nannies bake with the families, sorted from the easiest.
Fifteen recipes
| Recipe | How to make it, and what the child does | From |
|---|---|---|
| Chokladbollar | No oven, nothing sharp. 100 g butter, 1 dl sugar, 3 dl rolled oats, 3 tbsp cocoa, 1 tbsp cold coffee or water. Mix, roll, dip in pearl sugar. Children from two roll them themselves. | 2 years |
| Banana muffins | Mash 3 bananas, mix with 1 dl sugar, 1 egg, 50 g melted butter, 3 dl flour, 2 tsp baking powder. Into muffin cases, 200 degrees for 20 minutes. The child mashes and stirs. | 3 years |
| Scones | 6 dl flour, 2 tsp baking powder, 1 tsp salt, 75 g butter, 2.5 dl milk. Rub the butter into the flour, stir in the milk, flatten into four rounds, 250 degrees for 12 minutes. The rubbing in is the children's job. | 3 years |
| Pancakes | 2.5 dl flour, 6 dl milk, 3 eggs, salt, butter. The child whisks, you fry. From five the child can flip them under supervision. | 3 years |
| Oat biscuits | 100 g butter, 1 dl sugar, 2 dl rolled oats, 1 dl flour, 1 tsp baking powder, 1 tbsp golden syrup. Melt the butter, stir everything together, spoon out blobs, 200 degrees for 10 minutes. They come out flat, that is the idea. | 4 years |
| Pizza on homemade dough | 25 g fresh yeast, 2.5 dl lukewarm water, 1 tbsp oil, 1 tsp salt, 6 dl flour. Prove for 30 minutes, divide, roll out, top. The child rolls out and chooses the toppings. 225 degrees for 12 minutes. | 4 years |
| Cinnamon buns | The classic. 50 g fresh yeast, 5 dl milk, 150 g butter, 1.5 dl sugar, 1 tsp salt, 2 tsp cardamom, 14 dl flour. Prove, roll out, spread with butter and cinnamon sugar, roll up, slice. The child rolls and brushes. 225 degrees for 8 minutes. | 4 years |
| Kladdkaka | Swedish sticky chocolate cake. 100 g butter, 2 eggs, 2.5 dl sugar, 1.5 dl flour, 4 tbsp cocoa, vanilla. Melt, stir, into the tin, 175 degrees for 20 minutes. It should be gooey in the middle. | 4 years |
| Fruit skewers | Not baking, but the same joy. Banana, grapes, melon, strawberries on wooden sticks. Children from three thread them themselves. Melted chocolate for dipping for the older ones. | 3 years |
| Gingerbread biscuits | Shop-bought dough is perfectly fine. Roll out, cut shapes, bake at 175 degrees for 6 minutes. Decorate with icing made of icing sugar and water. Two hours, all ages, and they are ready for Christmas. | 2 years |
| Soft gingerbread traybake | 2 eggs, 3 dl sugar, 100 g melted butter, 2 dl fil (Swedish soured milk), 4 dl flour, 2 tsp bicarbonate of soda, 2 tsp cinnamon, 1 tsp ginger, 1 tsp cardamom. 175 degrees for 25 minutes. Easier than biscuits. | 4 years |
| Drömmar | Swedish "dream" biscuits. 100 g butter, 1.5 dl sugar, 1 tsp vanilla, 1 tsp hjorthornssalt (baker's ammonia), 3 dl flour. Roll small balls, 150 degrees for 20 minutes. Children love rolling. Warning: hjorthornssalt smells while baking. | 5 years |
| Seed crispbread | 1 dl sunflower seeds, 1 dl pumpkin seeds, 1 dl linseeds, 1 dl sesame seeds, 1 dl cornflour, 0.5 dl oil, 2 dl boiling water, salt. Spread thinly on a baking tray, 150 degrees for 60 minutes. The child sprinkles and breaks it into pieces. | 5 years |
| Apple crumble | Slice 5 apples into a dish, sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Crumble: 150 g butter, 3 dl flour, 1 dl sugar. Rub together, sprinkle over, 200 degrees for 25 minutes. The child rubs the crumble. | 3 years |
| Banana pancakes | 1 banana, 2 eggs, a pinch of baking powder. Mash, stir, fry small pancakes. No sugar, no flour. A snack for the littlest ones, and for the child who said no to every other food. | 2 years |
How to make the baking work
- Measure into bowls beforehand. The child pours in, you stay in control of the quantities.
- A tea towel on the floor. There will be flour on the floor. Accept it in advance.
- A low table. The kitchen table with the child on a chair, or a stool at the worktop. Children on tiptoe bake badly.
- The oven is yours. The child bakes, you do the oven. From seven they can take the tray out with oven gloves and an adult beside them.
- Wash up together. It is part of the baking, and children like washing-up water.
How we do it with our families
Wednesday is baking day with several of the families. The nanny picks up from förskola (municipal preschool, from age one), buys a banana on the way home, and the banana muffins are on the table when the parents get in. The child made them. They say so, several times.
Would you like a nanny who knows your child, knows how things usually are and notices when something is different? Book a free first meeting with the nanny in your home.
Read more: Crafts for kids · Food children actually like · Christmas crafts for children
Frequently asked questions
What can a two year old do in the kitchen?
Roll, mash, stir, pour from small bowls, sprinkle and cut out gingerbread shapes. Anything that is not sharp or hot. Chokladbollar, banana pancakes and gingerbread biscuits are the right place to start.
How do you keep baking calm?
Get everything out beforehand. Measure into bowls so the child only pours in. Expect mess, put a tea towel on the floor, and do one thing at a time. Thirty minutes is a long baking session for a three year old.
Does the child have to wash their hands?
Yes, beforehand, and you can expect them to taste the dough anyway. They should not eat much raw dough containing egg, so chokladbollar and fruit skewers are the recipes where tasting is completely free.
What do you bake with children who do not like mess?
Scones, gingerbread biscuits with shop-bought dough and fruit skewers. Little dough, lots of result, and nothing that gets stuck under the fingernails.