These are the books that are most used in our family - which can be proven by the chocolatey fingerprints and well thumbed pages! This list also include some of my favourite recipe books
1. Our new favourite book: Homemade Memories by Kate Doran
Think “childhood treats with a twist”. Not every recipe in the book is baking (and a few are more for the grownups) but my children were really excited by the beautiful pictures and super sweet ideas, as well as treats they recognised; and realised they could make themselves. EVERY recipe without exception looks so exciting, delicious and appealing. We have begun slowly baking our way through it. Our favourite recipe (so far) is for the wholemeal spelt digestives - a biscuit we all love but have not home made. As suggested we used them to sandwich toasted marshmallows!
2. Mary Berry’s Baking Bible by Mary Berry
No list of recipe books would be complete without a Mary Berry book, and this is a one-stop-go-to for almost any bake. My children love this BIG book full of classic bakes. Lovely bold bright photography shows how many of the recipes should look. The best thing of all is that every recipe is easy to follow and entirely fool-proof. There is, of course, a huge variety of recipes which also makes choosing what to bake part of the fun. If you want to make a crowd pleasing, easy, traditional British bake go for the classic “large all in one Victoria Sandwich”.
3. LEON Baking and Puddings by Claire Ptak and Henry Dimbleby
This book has a really interesting, lively and colourful feel. My children love looking through this book with me, there is so much to see from photos to illustrations and stunning, less conventional shots of the food too. This book is fun and creative and the recipes are imaginative and delicious. It is full of engaging chapters and highly useful information plus there are tons of tips too which we love. A ridiculously easy and more-ish recipe that we particularly love is for violet coconut macaroons. There is also a recipe taken from one of my all time best recipe books (Ballymaloe Cookery Course by Darina Allen) - Ballymaloe Brown Soda Bread.
4. DK The Children’s Baking Book by Denise Smart
This book is clean, clear, simple and delightful book. There is a fabulous mixture of sweet and savoury recipes. We really like the step-by-step element too, which allows older children to crack on with a recipe unaided. We have had this book for a good few years and so have probably baked everything at least once. The ginger and pumpkin slices are a family favourite, especially in the autumn months.
5. River Cottage Family Cookbook by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Fizz Carr
This isn’t strictly a baking book, but is full of baking recipes and is one of our most used recipe books. I have taken the time to read lots of the text in the book with the children as there is so much for children to learn about food and this book is smashing for this. It is inspiring to see children doing the baking and cooking throughout the book and there are heaps of great pics that feel really authentic. Choc-full of facts, projects and ideas this book is a real foody-family affair. The zesty flapjacks and cheesecake have been our most used recipes.
6. Family Baking by Sarah Randell
This is a really neat little book. Every recipe is accompanied by a charming and enticing picture of the finished product. The chapters are inviting and the book has a warm but elegant feel. It is very unfussy but still really bright and stimulating. We find the recipes to be a refreshing unique take on more classic recipes, such as the courgette, carrot and pear cake with poppy seed frosting.
7. The Hummingbird Bakery Home Sweet Home
This is my daughter’s favourite book. It has 100 simply lovely recipes, lots of cupcakes - which is what my daughter likes best. Her favourites are the strawberry milkshake cupcakes’. These look and taste wonderful and she likes to show them off to friends.
8. A Passion for Baking by Jo Wheatley
Jo is wonderful and her recipes are all much like her; sunny and charming. Jo is a mum and a nan and I think this is probably why this book feels so family oriented and great for kids. The recipes are all scrumptious and the photography is gorgeous. We love the variety of recipes and every one we have made has turned out perfectly. There is even a baking with children chapter. Too many lovely recipes to choose a favourite, but for a savoury treat go for the honey and mustard sausage rolls.
9. 500 Delicious Delights by Love Food
While we are told not to judge a book by its cover, sometimes children do and this is why we often end up baking from 500 delicious delights. The cover and title say it all, tempting, jazzy and vibrant. This book is organised perfectly for flicking through to choose what to make. The font is too small and the pictures are too but they have to be to fit in so very many recipes which is what makes it an adventure. There are recipes for everything sweet, from celebration cakes, individual bakes to gift ideas.
10. The Pooh Cook Book by Katie Stewart
A specially designed Winnie The Pooh cook book, this book is very special to me - it is the book we first used with our extraordinarily brilliant mum - and, now, my children, too. Our copy is in absolute tatters which I think is evidence of how well loved and used it has been. There are adorable recipes for picnics, lunches and suppers. Of course honey is a much featured ingredient, as it is so loved by Pooh, and each recipe has an AA Milne quote to add to the charm. I have eaten Pooh’s pizza over a thousand times in my lifetime (a savoury scone base with pizza topping) - yummy!
Buy Let’s Bake by Cathryn Dresser from the Guardian bookshop
