When we want to have a dessert, but do not feel like starting a big culinary project, it is handy to get a baking mix out and whip up a chocolate cake. Admittedly, the result is often underwhelming, but the advantage of having a sweet snack so fast is hard to beat. So we decided to make a batch of our own mixes and save them for later. Since my son is fond of playing with funnels and measuring spoons, it quickly turned into a game.
Both my husband and son are more of cookie lovers, while I prefer muffins. But cookie recipes often use a lot of dry ingredients, so they work well for making a mix. We chose to make oatmeal cookies with coconut and chocolate chips for this kids activity. They are soft, chewy and delicious – one of our favorite kids kitchen recipes!
- 750 ml Mason jars
- measuring spoons and cups
- bowls
- funnel
- 1 cup all-purpose floor
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 2/3 cup baking soda
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 2/3 teaspoon vanilla extract
2. With older children, it could be a great practice for using measuring cups and spoons! Pour flour, oats, coconut flakes, sugar and chocolate chips in different bowls and put an appropriate measuring cup next to them. Measuring the right amounts of ingredients was not something I could expect of my two-year-old, so I measured them myself and put the right amounts of ingredients into different bowls.
3. For my son, it was a practice of his pouring skills. At two, toddlers are getting more confident with transferring liquids and solids from one cup to another, but it is still providing a challenge for them, so they enjoy doing it! Using a spoon to get flour from a bowl into a jar is a good fine motor skills practice for toddlers, and pouring oats directly from a bowl into the jar help them learn how to pour a drink for himself.
4. After all the ingredients are in, I made labels with the instructions on how to turn this dry mix into cookies.
If you use jars of the same size as we did, feel free to use our labels! If you have jars of different size, scale the recipe up or down, print the empty label and make your own instructions.
Aside from being convenient when one of us wants a dessert, these cookie mixes make wonderful gifts for different holidays! We gave a few out during the holiday season, and my son was very proud to hand them over "from him".
- 750 ml Mason jars
- measuring spoons and cups
- bowls
- funnel
- 1 cup all-purpose floor
- 1 cup rolled oats
- 1/3 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
- 2/3 cup sugar
- 1/2 cup chocolate chips
- 2/3 cup baking soda
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 2/3 teaspoon vanilla extract
2. With older children, it could be a great practice for using measuring cups and spoons! Pour flour, oats, coconut flakes, sugar and chocolate chips in different bowls and put an appropriate measuring cup next to them. Measuring the right amounts of ingredients was not something I could expect of my two-year-old, so I measured them myself and put the right amounts of ingredients into different bowls.
3. For my son, it was a practice of his pouring skills. At two, toddlers are getting more confident with transferring liquids and solids from one cup to another, but it is still providing a challenge for them, so they enjoy doing it! Using a spoon to get flour from a bowl into a jar is a good fine motor skills practice for toddlers, and pouring oats directly from a bowl into the jar help them learn how to pour a drink for himself.
4. After all the ingredients are in, I made labels with the instructions on how to turn this dry mix into cookies.
1. Preheat oven to 370° F.
2. Pour mixture in a bowl, then add 1 egg, 1/2 cup vegetable oil & 2/3 tsp vanilla. Mix.
3. Form walnut-sized balls, then flatten on cookie sheet.
4. Bake 10 min.
If you use jars of the same size as we did, feel free to use our labels! If you have jars of different size, scale the recipe up or down, print the empty label and make your own instructions.
Aside from being convenient when one of us wants a dessert, these cookie mixes make wonderful gifts for different holidays! We gave a few out during the holiday season, and my son was very proud to hand them over "from him".
Handy Tip:
If you want to make a batch of cookies to try, mix dry ingredients first, then add an egg, oil and vanilla extract and mix again. Make walnut-sized balls, flatten them slightly and bake in 370° F preheated oven for ten minutes. But as these are going to make a mix for later, we will only need dry ingredients.