chocolate peanut butter bars cut in squares

Cooking with Kids

5 Holiday Treats Your Kids Can Make

Baking for the whole family will give your kids a crafty way to spend time at home this season, all while boosting their confidence and resulting in delicious desserts. These recipes, from some of our favorite bloggers, require minimal parental assistance or are easy enough for children to handle on their own, depending on their age.

Photography: Cookie + Kate

Written By: Marnie Schwartz

Reindeer Rice Krispie Treats

Big kids or teens may be able to handle making the Rice Krispie treats by themselves, following the directions from Five Heart Home, but for younger ones you can make them in advance, and then let them have fun with the decorating.

Winter Fruit Salad

Balance out all the cookies and pies with a wintry fruit salad from Lexi’s Clean Kitchen. The delicious Greek-yogurt based dressing will elevate your usual bowl of cut fruit, making it truly dessert-worthy. Kids can cut soft fruit with child-friendly knives, stir up the dressing, and help mix it all together.

No Bake Cookie Dough Balls

Everyone knows that eating the dough is the best part of baking cookies. With this recipe from Weelicious, you can do it without risking food-borne illness, and will get in some good-for-you ingredients, too. Help your kiddos pulse the ingredients together in the food processor, and then let them roll the dough into balls (and then add sprinkles) themselves.

Strawberry Brownie Skewers

If you’re feeling ambitious (or your kids are old enough to bake unsupervised), you or they can start this fun dessert from One Little Project by making brownies (either from a mix or from scratch). Or, buy some store bought ones and let your kids have fun putting together the skewers. (Just don’t be surprised if half the ingredients end up in their bellies.)

Chocolate Peanut Butter Crispy Bars

This recipe from Cookie + Kate is a modern, naturally-sweetened take on Scotcheroos. You may have to help your kids get started (you melt the peanut butter and honey on the stovetop, and the chocolate in the microwave), but the bulk of the no-bake recipe is stirring and waiting patiently for the bars to chill in the fridge.