Five easy baking recipes absolutely anyone can make

Chunky chocolate cookies and birthday cake blondies use minimal equipment and easy-to-find ingredients.

View in browser|nytimes.com Continue reading the main story March 19, 2024 Five easy baking recipes absolutely anyone can make By Mia Leimkuhler Something about spring gets me excited about baking. Maybe it's the promise of blue-skied picnics and park-bench coffees under flowering trees. Maybe it's the arrival of the season's colorful produce: strawberries, apricots, rhubarb, pineapple, mango. Or maybe it's the urgency of knowing that, in a few fleeting months, it will be too hot to even think about turning on the oven. What perfect timing, then, that the baking wizard Genevieve Ko has put together a package of five superbly easy baking recipes, along with tips and tricks to help anyone produce delightful treats. You'll need only the most basic equipment (no fancy blenders or kitchen scales required) and ingredients you probably already have in your pantry. If you don't consider yourself a baker, do consider these five recipes below a friendly how-to guide. And if you buy butter in bulk to make wedding cakes for your friends, look at these recipes as blank slates. Stir in different spices, mix up your mix-ins, try different toppings. And when we say anyone can make these recipes, we mean it: The five recipes in this newsletter are free for anyone to try. Forward this email to your friends and family, and enjoy! One-Bowl Chocolate Cake Joseph De Leo for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini. This simple cake has surprisingly complex flavor thanks to oolong tea (or coffee) in the batter. If you don't have either, water is just fine. View this recipe. Fruit Crumble Joseph De Leo for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini. The nubby topping on this easy crumble is gluten-free, and don't bother peeling any apples or pears you use. The peels turn pleasantly chewy, adding a nice contrast to the melting fruit. View this recipe. Chunky Chocolate Cookies Joseph De Leo for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini. These are crisp-edged, soft-centered and chock-full of salty pretzels. Play around with your mix-ins here: peanut butter chips, chopped candy bars, potato chips? View this recipe. Vegan Banana Bread Joseph De Leo for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini. There's no dairy in this cakelike banana bread, just flour, sugar, oil, vanilla and leavening (plus those bananas going brown on your countertop). View this recipe. Birthday Cake Blondies Joseph De Leo for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Monica Pierini. The sprinkles here do double duty: Some are baked into the blondies, turning into crackly little bits of caramelized sugar, while the rest are showered on top to signal to everyone that it's party time. View this recipe. Sign up for the Five Weeknight Dishes newsletter Fresh dinner ideas for busy people who want something great to eat, with NYT Cooking recipes sent to you weekly. Get it in your inbox Sign up for The Veggie newsletter Tanya Sichynsky shares the most delicious vegetarian recipes for weeknight cooking, packed lunches and dinner parties. Get it in your inbox Continue reading the main story ADVERTISEMENT Continue reading the main story Need help? Review our newsletter help page or contact us for assistance. You received this email because you signed up for Cooking from The New York Times. To stop receiving Cooking, unsubscribe. To opt out of other promotional emails from The Times, including those regarding The Athletic, manage your email settings. To opt out of updates and offers sent from The Athletic, submit a request. Subscribe to NYT CookingGet the NYT Cooking app Connect with us on: Change Your EmailPrivacy PolicyContact UsCalifornia Notices The New York Times Company. 620 Eighth Avenue New York, NY 10018