As you may have noticed from social media, everyone is baking more these days. But if you don’t have a lot of experience baking, or if you are working with a super complicated recipe, things can get overwhelming quick. That’s where I come in! I put together several easy baking recipes that you can totally make, even if you’ve never baked anything in your life, or if cake mix and chocolate chip cookies are the limit of your expertise. I also am working on a baking 101 PDF y’all can download, and will post it as soon as I can!

You don’t need a lot of special/expensive equipment for any of these, but you will want to use some kind of electric mixer (hand-held is fine) for making frosting.

Banana coconut muffins

(Recipe from Gourmet magazine. Makes about 10 muffins)
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder (please note that this is not the same as baking soda)
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 ripe medium bananas (3/4 cup when mashed)*
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted (you can use 1/2 cup of melted coconut oil if you prefer/if you don’t have any butter)
2/3 cup sugar (normal granulated white sugar — not brown sugar or powdered sugar!)
1 large egg
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup sweetened flaked coconut, divided into 1/2 cup and 1/4 cup (this comes in a bag in the baking section)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line 12 muffin cups with paper muffin/cupcake wrappers. Mash the bananas with a fork.

Use a whisk to combine the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl. Next, use the whisk to combine the bananas, butter, sugar, egg, vanilla, and 1/2 cup coconut together in a large bowl until everything is well mixed. Gently stir the flour mixture into the banana mixture just until everything is combined (there will still be lumps, but that’s fine).

Fill muffin cups about 3/4 of the way full with the batter. Sprinkle the tops of the muffins with the remaining coconut.

Bake about 25 minutes, until the muffins are puffed and golden. Cool in pans for about two minutes, then move to a cooling rack (You can use a big plate if you don’t have cooling racks).

*If you are like me and tend to buy bananas and then forget them until they’re all brown and spotty, peel them and freeze them. You can use frozen bananas in smoothies or thaw them to use for this recipe, banana bread, or the hummingbird cake below!

Beer biscuits

(Recipe adapted from the Lady and Sons Country Cookbook. Makes 12 biscuits)
4 cups baking mix (I usually use “Heart Smart” Bisquick)
1/4 cup sugar
One 12-ounce can or bottle of beer (any kind you like will work!)
2 tablespoons melted butter

Preheat oven to 400 degrees and grease a muffin tin with 12 cups. Stir all the ingredients together well (dry chunks of Bisquick tend to form while mixing, so watch out for that). Pour the batter into the muffin cups and bake for 15 to 20 minutes.

Scones

(Makes 12-16 small scones)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder (this is not the same as baking soda!)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/3 cup cold unsalted butter
1/2 cup dried cherries or craisins (optional)
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons heavy cream

Cut the butter into small pieces and keep in fridge or freezer while preparing other ingredients. Preheat oven to 375. Prep a clean surface by sprinkling a little bit of flour on it (you can use a countertop, cutting board, or even a piece of parchment paper).

Stir the flour, sugar, baking powder and salt together in a large bowl. Use your fingers to mix the butter into the flour (just sort of squish the butter into smaller pieces with the flour) until the mixture looks like dry crumbs with some pea-sized pieces. Stir in the cherries and toasted pecans.

Use a fork to quickly stir in 1 cup heavy cream until the flour is just moistened (if there is still a lot of dry flour left, add another tablespoon or so of cream). Gather the dough together into a ball with your hands and turn it out onto the floured surface. Knead it 5 or 6 times (watch this video if you’re not sure how to knead.)

Divide the dough in half (don’t worry if it’s not exact — just eyeball it). Form one half into a circle and pat it down to about a 1-inch thick round, then cut it like a pizza into 6 or 8 wedges. Repeat with the other half.

Place the scones one inch (or more) apart on an ungreased baking sheet. Brush the tops lightly with remaining tablespoon or two of cream. Bake until scones look cooked through and are starting to turn golden brown around the edges — about 12 minutes.

Brownies

(Adapted from Smitten Kitchen)
10 tablespoons unsalted butter (a stick + two more tablespoons)
1  1/4 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs, cold
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
2/3 cup chopped walnuts or pecans (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line the bottom and sides of an 8×8-inch square baking pan with parchment paper or foil, leaving an overhang on two opposite sides.

Put the butter and cocoa in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for 1 minute, then in 30 second intervals, until the butter is totally melted. Add the sugar and salt and stir until well combined. Let the mixture sit for a few minutes, until it cools down to just warm (not hot).

Use a wooden spoon to stir in the vanilla, then add the eggs one at a time — stirring really well after each addition. .When the batter looks shiny (and all the ingredients are well incorporated), add the flour. Stir until you can’t see any more flour, then stir really quickly for 40 turns with the wooden spoon. Stir in the nuts (if you’re using them). Pour the batter into the lined pan and spread it out so it looks even.

Bake for 25 minutes, then stick a toothpick in the middle of the brownies. If it’s totally covered in batter and/or the batter is all jiggly when you take the pan out of the oven, stick it back in for 5-10 minutes, then test again. You’ll know it’s done when the toothpick is just a little bit wet. Let the brownies cool and then remove them from the pan by pulling up the ends of the parchment/foil. Cut into small pieces and enjoy!

Hummingbird cake

(Makes a 3-layer 9-inch round cake, or about 3 dozen cupcakes)
Cake
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda (not the same as baking powder)
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 cups granulated sugar
1  1/2 cups oil (vegetable oil, canola oil, or melted coconut oil work)
3 eggs, slightly beaten with a fork
1 8-ounce can of crushed pineapple, undrained*
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts
1  1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4-5 mashed ripe bananas (about 2 cups – mash them with a fork)

Preheat oven to 350. Grease three 9-inch cake pans (I would recommend using butter or Baker’s Joy spray), or put paper cupcake wrappers in three dozen muffin cups.

Whisk the flour, salt, baking soda, and cinnamon together in a large mixing bowl. Stir in the sugar. Add the oil and eggs, and stir just until the dry ingredients are moistened. Stir in the pineapple with juice, pecans, vanilla, and bananas.

Pour the batter evenly into cake pans (or fill muffin cups about 3/4 full). Bake at 350 for 25 to 30 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean (the cake will be brown). Cool the cake in pans for 10 minutes, then remove and place on cooling racks to cool completely before frosting.

Cream cheese frosting
2 8-ounce packages cream cheese, placed out on the counter at room temperature for at least 30 minutes
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, at or near room temperature
2 pounds (8 cups) powdered sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts (optional)

Using an electric mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese together until well mixed. Add the vanilla, then beat the sugar in about a cup at a time, until you get to about 6 cups. Taste the frosting, and if it’s sweet enough and it seems thick enough (not runny), beat it for another minute or two, to make it nice and fluffy. If not, add another cup of powdered sugar and taste again (then beat for an additional minute or two). If it gets too thick, add a tablespoon of milk and beat that in well.

Once the frosting is ready, use it to assemble and frost the cake (detailed frosting instructions here). Sprinkle or arrange the nuts on top. If not serving immediately, refrigerate until about 20 minutes before you’re ready to serve it.