Even before the dawn of Great British Bake Off and lockdown banana bread, baking has been an activity enjoyed by families up and down the country. Not only is it a fun way to bond with your little ones and enjoy creating something tasty (usually), it’s also a brilliant learning activity and fantastic life skill for their future.
I’ve been baking with my two children since they were little, but we do tend to stick to the same recipes; for taste reasons but also because I’m never quite organised enough to have all the right ingredients in the cupboard.
The baking boxes from Kids Loves Baking are just the answer. Featuring four recipes to try out, there’s a mix of the familiar alongside new treats to try out. The ethos of the company (Britain Loves Baking) is to encourage families to make new recipes and give them the knowledge and skills to continue baking. Everything you need to create your treats is included in the box, including dry mixes and the extra ingredients you probably wouldn’t have in the cupboard, like strawberry flavouring and spare mini eggs! There’s even baking cases, parchment paper, a pastry brush and a dough scraper, so that you everything easily to hand, all you need to add is some water or an egg or butter here and there.
Here’s what was in our Easter themed box:
Mini Egg brownies
These were super simple to make, you just mix water into the dry ingredients and add mini eggs on top before baking in the oven. It was enough for four brownies, so having the baking cases in the box saved having to find the right sized tin. Top tip – make your brownie batter in your mixing jug, and then it’s a lot easier to pour into the cases!
Cranberry and orange hot cross buns
These were something I’d never attempted before, because I thought they would be too faffy! Actually they weren’t, mainly because everything was already weighed out and measured, but also because the recipe was super simple. It was a great introduction to baking this type of bun and we’ll definitely be attempting this again!
Strawberry crinkle cookies
These were the most straightforward of the recipes to make, but with a flavour and method that we’ve not tried before. The result was chewy cookies with a tasty crunchy outside, and sweet pink inside.
Sprinkle chocolate eggs
This was the messy option, but is is really Easter without a bit of chocolate-themed mess? Again this was another excellent introduction to a concept, creating shapes with melted chocolate, and demonstrated that it’s not all that scary.
I really like the attention to detail in the production of the box, plus the fact that Britain Loves Baking have worked hard to reduce plastic and waste in their products. For example, you download the recipe cards as a pdf and there are old-school paper bags for some of the ingredients.
My son and daughter loved making the recipes, and there was a good mix of levels in the box if you have different aged children (or short attention spans!)
On the Britain Loves Baking website there’s a great range of baking kits for all ages, with everything from fudge and chocolate to biscuits and afternoon tea. There’s even a giant baking kit to use for a Platinum Jubilee street party for up to 100 people!
*We were gifted a Kids Easter baking box in exchange for an unbiased review.