The Easiest Mother’s Day Recipes for Kids To Make

By Lisa Cericola and Southern Living Editors
April 22, 2020
Credit: Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Heather Chadduck Hillegas; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

This Mother’s Day, skip all the online shopping and let the kids make extra special gifts right in the kitchen. No matter their skill level, we’ve gathered recipes that are easy to whip up (with adult assistance) and will make them—and Mom—beam with pride. Just make sure she isn’t left with a sink full of dirty dishes!

To keep things easy and achievable, we’ve assigned a skill level to every recipe. Follow this key to set kids up for successfully treating Mom to a special Mother’s Day morning.

For the Kitchen-Curious
If your child’s time in the kitchen is mostly spent banging on pots and pans and poking around in cabinets, spark an interest in cooking with a simple dump-and-stir recipe that they can “help” make. This is a great opportunity to let young kids handle safe cooking utensils like spoons and spatulas, taste and smell ingredients, and watch how those ingredients change when you combine them.

For Helpful Assistants
If you already have dedicated helpers who love stirring, measuring, and taste testing, let them take the lead a bit more with these simple recipes. While you’ll still need to supervise and handle certain tasks (like chopping, and operating small appliances, the oven, or stovetop), these dishes have steps they’ll probably be able to do on their own. And they allow for some creative freedom too.

For Budding Chefs
If your child takes over the kitchen on a regular basis, making something for Mother’s Day is probably no sweat. These recipes are great for older kids who have experience cooking, can read recipes, and can be trusted to cook with minimal supervision.

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Easy Homemade Pancakes

Credit: Tjahjono Soekardjk

Recipe: Easy Homemade Pancakes

Skill Level: For the Kitchen-Curious

Let’s skip the box this time and give Mom the homemade treatment. This recipe is a blank canvas, so make them extra special by adding in bananas, blueberries, or even a few chocolate chips.

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Lemon Muffins

Credit: IAIN BAGWELL

Recipe: Lemon Muffins

Skill Level: For the Kitchen-Curious

You can’t go wrong with fresh Lemon Muffins. They come together in one bowl and only require a handful of ingredient that you probably already have on hand.

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Baked Oatmeal

Credit: Jennifer Causey

Recipe: Baked Oatmeal

Skill Level: For the Kitchen Curious

It’s basically an oatmeal cookie in casserole form. Yes, it’s as good as it sounds.

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Easiest Peanut Butter Cookies

Recipe: Easiest Peanut Butter Cookies

Skill Level: For the Kitchen Curious

This is the ideal first cookie recipe for kids. It only calls on four ingredients to make a batch of 30 soft and chewy treats.

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Strawberry-Banana-Peanut Butter Smoothies

Credit: Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Strawberry-Banana-Peanut Butter Smoothies

Skill Level: For the Kitchen Curious

If Mom is a fan of a light breakfast, we can think of no better recipe than our Strawberry-Banana-Peanut Butter Smoothies. Just don’t skimp on the PB.

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Brown Sugar-Banana Muffins

Recipe: Brown Sugar-Banana Muffins

Skill Level: For Helpful Assistants

Ripe bananas will bring the sweetest flavor, but try to avoid letting them over-ripen as it could change the consistency of the batter.  

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Oven-Baked Buttermilk French Toast

Credit: Victor Protasio; Prop Styling: Heather Chadduck Hillegas; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Oven-Baked Buttermilk French Toast

Skill Level: For Helpful Assistants

Don’t forget to account for an hour of sit time to allow the flavors to meld. It’s the perfect opportunity to let Mom sleep in.

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Fresh Fruit Salad

Credit: Jen Causey

Recipe: Fresh Fruit Salad

Skill Level: For Helpful Assistants

We kicked up the flavor of an already-delicious rainbow of fruits by topping with a juice and honey mixture.

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Fresh Strawberry Milkshake

Credit: Antonis Achilleos

Recipe: Fresh Strawberry Milkshake

Skill Level: For Helpful Assistants

A milkshake for breakfast? Mom won’t mind one bit.

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Southern-Style Lemonade

Credit: Photo: Jennifer Davick

Recipe: Southern-Style Lemonade

Skill Level: For Helpful Assistants

We found the secret to perfectly smooth lemonade: simple syrup. Use this recipe as a base and customize to make it as sweet or as tangy as Mom prefers.

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Bacon Pancakes

Credit: Antonis Achilleos

Recipe: Bacon Pancakes

Skill Level: For Budding Chefs

We’re going to let you in on a tasty secret and it’s topping cooked bacon with pancake mix. We call them Bacon Pancakes, and Mom is going to be a major fan.

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Easy Omelette

Credit: Micah A. Leal

Recipe: Easy Omelette

Skill Level: For Budding Chefs

You won’t believe how easy it is to master an omelette. This recipe breaks down the process in easy-to-handle steps that will give junior chefs a major boost of confidence in the kitchen.

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Sausage-Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole

Credit: Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Christine Keely; Food Styling: Tina Bell Stamos

Recipe: Sausage-Hash Brown Casserole

Skill Level: For Budding Chefs

If Mom’s palette skews more savory than sweet, consider this the perfect Mother’s Day breakfast recipe.

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Strawberry Biscuits

Credit: Photo: Greg Dupree

Recipe: Strawberry Biscuits

Skill Level: For Budding Chefs

The easiest way to ensure moist biscuits is a little heavy cream. Mix in some strawberries and you have the strawberries-and-cream riff Mom has always dreamed of.

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Wacky Cake

Credit: Antonis Achilleos; Prop Styling: Audrey Davis; Food Styling: Emily Nabors Hall

Recipe: Wacky Cake

Skill Level: For Budding Chefs

You’ve never met an easier cake. This batter is mixed up directly in the pan, making it the one-dish-wonder the dessert course always needed.

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Strawberry Icebox Cake

Credit: Caitlin Bensel; Food Styling: Melissa Gray; Prop Styling: Missie Neville Crawford

Recipe: Strawberry Icebox Cake

Skill Level: For Budding Chefs

You didn’t know a no-bake cake was possible? Let us introduce you to the mile-high cake that will wow Mom at hello.

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By Lisa Cericola and Southern Living Editors