Baking recipes that are so easy, you could make them in your sleep
Get baking with our low-ingredient and simple recipes!
There's been a marked increase in the amount of people baking at home recently. No wonder, it's very therapeutic.
If you are new to baking or looking for something simple to cook with younger members of your family and friends or just want a speedy sweet treat, we have collected our favourite easy or low ingredient bakes. From bread to crumbles, and cakes to cookies, there are plenty of recipes to get you started on your baking journey! You can see our round up of all our best cheesecake recipes, included baked and easy non-bake options.
All of these recipes are suitable for beginners. But if you want extra advice we have written a few guides to help you perfect your recipes;
- 6 of the most common mistakes when baking bread
- 12 of the most common cake baking mistakes fixed
- Cake decorating: 3 expert tips
It's time to get baking!
Toasted Coconut Cake
You don’t need any fancy equipment to assemble this easy cake – simply mix, bake and enjoy.
Recipe: Toasted Coconut Cake
Chunky Brown Butter Granola Cookies
Browning the butter gives these cookies a rich, nutty flavour that makes them positively addictive. We’ve used a nutty granola, too, but you could substitute for your favourite variety.
4-Ingredient Raspberry Lemonade Scones
Sparkling lemonade gives these scones their lightness andprovides a delicate sweetness.
Salted Caramel Croissant Pudding
Our minimal-ingredient (and effort) dessert uses croissants for an indulgent take on bread-and-butter pudding.
Recipe: Salted Caramel Croissant Pudding
Cheat's Tropical Fruit Charlotte
Our cheaty take on this unashamedly retro dessert has only 6 ingredients and can be topped with whatever fruit you prefer – or left completely plain. Either way, it’s a showstopperthat’s amazingly easy to pull togetherand can be made well in advance.
Recipe: Cheat's Tropical Fruit Charlotte
Three Ingredient Pineapple Upside Down Cake
No eggs, no butter, no faff! This juicy cake also ages well and tastes even better the day after it’s made.
3 Ingredient Chocolate Caramel Tart
Don’t be concerned if your Mars bars take a while to melt, their gooey caramel and nougat filling is the secret to this decedent tart.
Cheat's Cronuts
We’ve made our cheat’s cronuts with shop-bought puff pastry, for a spectacular yet easy treat.
Recipe: Cheat's Cronuts
Pain au chocolat bread and butter pudding
If you are in the mood for a decadent easy pudding – look no further! You can also swap the pain au chocolate for brioche or plain croissants.
Three-ingredient chocolate cake
This light cake is like a set mousse – you can even hear the bubbles pop as you slice it! We recommend using Green & Black’s chocolate, as it has the right percentage of cocoa solids.
Recipe: Three-ingredient Chocolate Cake
Baci di Dama
These Italian biscuits (the name translates to Lady’s Kisses) are typically made with hazelnuts or almonds. We’ve used pistachios here for a twist.
Recipe: Baci di Dama
Chocolate Orange Mug Cake
This cake is cooked in less than 2min thanks to the magic of the microwave!
Recipe: Chocolate Orange Mug Cake
Microwave Sticky Toffee Pudding
With this clever microwave recipe, you’re only ever minutes away from this family favourite.
Recipe: Microwave Sticky Toffee Pudding
Cheat’s Portuguese Custard Tarts
This recipe is our super-simple take on the classic Pastéis de Nata.
Recipe: Cheat’s Portuguese Custard Tarts
School dinner cake
School dinner cake has begun to trend online and we are all for it! Use any sprinkles you like to decorate this classic cake.
Recipe: School dinner cake
Peanut butter loaf cake
A light loaf perfect for any peanut butter addicts! We’ve added a jam drizzle, but leave out if you like for an unadulterated peanut butter hit.
Recipe: Peanut Butter Loaf Cake
Any Way You Want Cookies
A fantastic cookie dough that you can adapt to make your favourite flavour cookies – with crisp outsides and chewy middles.
Recipe: Any Way You Want Cookies
Chocolate orange pudding
This self-saucing orange pudding is a real treat! It’s the perfect way to end your Sunday lunch.
Recipe: Chocolate Orange Pudding
Three ingredient chocolate Oreo fudge
This easy 3 ingredient fudge requires no scales – most chocolate comes in 100g or 200g bars, so you can add it without needing to weigh it.
Layered cinnamon scones
Best eaten on the day they’re made (or frozen to enjoy later), these easy scones are so fluffy and light they’ll make breakfast or tea into the highlight of your day.
Recipe: Layered Cinnamon Scones
An experienced and highly skilled team of food writers, stylists and digital content producers, the Good Housekeeping Cookery Team is a close-knit squad of food obsessives. Cookery Editor Emma Franklin is our resident chilli obsessive and barbecue expert, who spends an inordinate amount of time on holidays poking round the local supermarkets seeking out new and exciting foods. Senior Cookery Writer Alice Shields is a former pastry chef and baking fanatic who loves making bread and would have peanut butter with everything if she could. Her favourite carb is pasta, and our vibrant green spaghetti is her weeknight go-to. Lover of all things savoury, Senior Cookery Writer Grace Evans can be found eating crispy corn and nocellara olives at every opportunity, and will take the cheeseboard over dessert any time (though she cannot resist a slice of tres leches cake). With a wealth of professional kitchen know-how, culinary training and years of experience between them, they are all dedicated to ensuring every Good Housekeeping recipe is the best it can be, so you can trust they’ll work (and if they don’t – we’ll have the answer for why*) every time (*90% of the time the answer is: “buy an separate oven thermometer”!).
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