As a fellow baking enthusiast and mom, I understand the joy and fulfillment that comes from creating delicious treats for loved ones. Baking is not just about making food; it’s about creating memories, fostering connections, and spreading joy. That’s why I’ve put together this gift guide, filled with items that I personally love and would be thrilled to receive as a gift.

The Perfect Gifts for Baking Moms

1. Mini Bundt Cake Mold: Ideal for moms who love to entertain, this mini bundt cake mold is perfect for creating sweet little treats to end a meal when hosting. Pair it with a lovely cake mix from Williams-Sonoma for a thoughtful gift bundle.
2. Colorful Baking Sheet Set or Gold Baking Sheet Set: Every baker needs a good set of baking sheets, and this set with various sizes and shapes is sure to please. Perfect for baking cookies, pastries, and more, these baking sheets are a kitchen essential. Pair them with a spatula and dish towel for a complete baking kit.
3. KitchenAid Cordless Hand Mixer: A game-changer for bakers, this cordless hand mixer allows for easy movement around the kitchen and is perfect for taking on the go. Whether whipping up cookies or making whipped cream, this mixer is a must-have for any baking enthusiast mom. I’ve brought mine on vacation with me!
4. Brownie Baking Pan with Edges Only: For brownie lovers who always want the crispy edge, this brownie baking pan is a dream come true.
5. Mixing Bowl Set: This nesting mixing bowl set is great for bakers who like to have a variety of bowl sizes on hand for baking projects. Say goodbye to mismatched sets and hello to organized baking with this practical gift. Pair it with a pancake mix and a spatula for a delightful breakfast-themed gift bundle.
6. Dessert Person Cookbook: Treat your mom to a dessert baking cookbook from popular chef Claire Saffitz. Filled with mouthwatering recipes and expert tips, this cookbook is sure to inspire countless baking adventures.
7. Cake and Cupcake Decorating Tips & Set: Kickstart your mom’s cake decorating journey with this comprehensive decorating set. Perfect for creating stunning cakes and cupcakes, this set is a great way to unleash her creativity in the kitchen.

This Mother’s Day, show your appreciation for the baking enthusiast mom in your life with one of these thoughtful gifts. Whether she’s whipping up cookies, cakes, or pastries, these essentials are sure to elevate her baking game and bring joy to her kitchen. Here’s to celebrating the love, memories, and delicious treats that make Mother’s Day extra sweet!

Why a Snack Cart?

The idea for the snack cart came from wanting to give my girls a sense of independence when it comes to choosing their snacks. I wanted them to have easy access to a variety of options while also freeing up cabinet space in our kitchen. With the snack cart, everything is neatly organized and visible, making it easier for the girls to make their selections without any of us having to dig through cabinets.

Choosing the Snacks

When selecting snacks for the cart, I focused on items with lower sugar content, aiming for 6 grams or less per serving. This meant prioritizing fruit, such as apple sauce pouches, clementines, and peach fruit cups, as well as healthier alternatives like Teddy Grahams, snack bags of peanut butter-filled pretzels, and Annie’s Homegrown chewy granola bars. I also keep additional fruit, low-fat string cheese, and yogurts in the fridge for added variety.

This week, we stocked up with apple sauce pouches, strawberry apple sauce pouches, clementines, Sun-Maid yogurt covered raisins, mini yogurt raisins (we love them for church and the car) peach cups, Heavenly Hunks, peanut butter filled pretzels, granola bites, Teddy Grahams and Annie’s Homegrown chewy granola bars.

This will last us 2-3 weeks!

Establishing Rules

To encourage healthy choices, we established some guidelines for the snack cart. Fruit is mostly unlimited, while the other snacks are more controlled, with the girls allowed to choose one per day. This helps them learn about moderation while still enjoying a variety of treats.

Involving the Kids

One of the best parts of the snack cart is involving the girls in the selection process. We go shopping together, and I allow them to pick from a selection of pre-approved options. They love trying new things and are always excited to see what’s in the cart each week. It’s also a great opportunity for them to practice decision-making and explore different flavors and textures.

Benefits for the Family

The snack cart has had numerous benefits for our family. Not only does it give the girls a sense of independence and responsibility, but it also helps my husband and me focus on other tasks, knowing that the girls can easily grab a snack when they’re hungry. It’s especially helpful for us as we work from home, allowing us to stay productive without constant interruptions.

Overall, creating an after-school snack cart has been a game-changer for our family. Not only does it promote independence and healthy choices, but it also streamlines our snack routine and reduces stress for everyone involved. If you’re looking for a simple yet effective way to improve your snack game, I highly recommend giving it a try!

The peaches were so juicy and bursting with flavor. Harper kept running around with peaches in her hand, asking for more. Hubby and I topped some toasted sourdough with ours while we waited for dinner to come off the grill – it was the perfect appetizer.

The time has come! This is a bourbon and cherry mule – the smokey bourbon is perfectly balanced with the sweetness of the cherries and the spice of ginger beer.

I love this easy fruit salad, especially when it comes right out of the fridge. Is there anything better than extra cold watermelon when the real feel is 104?

You all know lately I’ve been into shortcuts and making things easier as we quickly approach baby #2. These are a most excellent short cut for sweet rolls! I used Pillsbury canned pizza crust and packets of hot chocolate. The most from-scratch part of this is the icing, which is only a few ingredients and a stand or hand mixer.

First, you’ll let the pizza crust sit out – in the can – on the counter for about 30 minutes and let the chill come out. This will allow the dough to be more malleable and easier to stretch out without it recoiling on you. You’ll also need 3 sticks of room temp butter and 4 oz (half a brick) of room temp cream cheese.

You prep your working surface with a bit of flour and then pop the pizza crust can open. Gently stretch out the pizza dough so it’s bit thinner. Set it aside and start working on the filling. The filling is SO simple, but you’ll want a stand or hand mixer to make sure you get a fluffy butter-based filling. Two packets of hot chocolate mix, 1/2 a cup of brown sugar, a bit of salt and two sticks of butter is all you need for the filling!

You’ll beat together the sugar, hot chocolate mix, butter and salt until it’s light and fluffy and then spread it over the prepared pizza dough with your hands. It’s easier and you won’t rip the pizza dough, so just do it with your hands! While the sweet rolls bake, you make the marshmallow frosting.

The frosting is a mixture of butter, cream cheese, marshmallow fluff and vanilla. You use a stand or hand mixer to beat it all together until it’s super light and fluffy. You can wait for the rolls to cool if you want a thicker frosting or spread the frosting on while the rolls are warm for a more warm and gooey frosting.

The tray of these hot chocolate sweet rolls went so fast this weekend! Let me know if you make them!

I grabbed most of everything for these cookie boxes from Trader Joe’s. It’s always my favorite place for charcuterie boards, and basically that’s what we’re making here!

I added some customization by melting my favorite Dolci Frutta and dipping two of the cookies in them and then topping them with crushed candy canes and sprinkles.

Here’s what’s in these cookie boxes:

• Triple Ginger Cookies and Christmas Tree cookies (Trader Joe’s – left them naked and tied the trees with ribbon)
• Nutella stuffed chocolate chip cookies, for which I used Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies (from the regular grocery store)
• Chocolate Batons from Trader Joe’s
• Hershey Kisses, Trader Joe’s Almond Butter Cups, Trader Joe’s Peppermint Covered Almonds
• Peppermint Joe Joe’s dipped in chocolate and crushed candy canes
• Trader Joe’s shortbread dipped in chocolate and sprinkles (sprinkles from Target!).

Love these boxes for an easy way to DIY something for the holiday but also maintain your sanity. God bless all of you who have the patience to DIY actual cookie boxes from scratch!

Here are some ideas on how to gift a cookbook:

• Add linens! An apron, potholders or some kitchen towels would be a nice addition.
• Gift a cookbook with a cutting board, like this, this or this (my fav that I own).
• Add a kitchen-friendly candle, like this or this.
• Add a kitchen utensil, like a whisk or set of spatulas (I also love a seasonal set of spatulas, like these Christmas-themed ones).
• Gift with a classic cast iron pan, a the hottest pan right now, or a pie dish (this set of 3 pie dishes is in my cart right now!).

The pumpkin spice is so warm and comforting, especially as the temps are getting cooler. The coffee crumb has the best crunch and reinforces that pumpkin spice in the base. And the base is moist and delicious and I’ve made them so many times in the past week – we can’t stop eating them!

These muffins feel like they have a lot going on, but if you make them once you’ll see they’re not complicated and come together so fast. You don’t need anything special to make them either – you could get away with not even owning a whisk!

So first, we make the base. Dry ingredients, wet ingredients, whisk them together. Then the topping. A bunch of simple ingredients you’ll mush (v technical) together with your hands until you can form large chunks. Then, you crumble those chunks into your desired size. And guys – that means you can make these with those huge, huge chunks of coffee crumb we all love. (We all love that, right?)

These guys bake for 30 minutes and then you can dive in, though I definitely recommend letting them cool completely. I burned my mouth on the first batch!

Especially at this point in my pregnancy (hey, 29 weeks!), I’m getting tired on my feet, and my belly is getting in the way. Like, to be honest, the idea of rolling out a pie crust right now is not my idea of fun!

But these cookie bars come together so fast! You’ll whip up a super easy short bread base – just a few ingredients and a few minutes in a stand mixer. While the shortbread bakes for 10 minutes, you chop the pecans, add in brown sugar, maple syrup, melted butter and a dash of salt. You’ll add the pecan topping to the shortbread at 10 minutes, and then bake for another 30. THAT’S IT.

Easier than pie, right?