Over the years, I’ve found that these key items make baking much easier — and more enjoyable too! — so I highly recommend stocking your kitchen and pantry with them!
- Digital kitchen scale. This is my all-time favorite kitchen item! It really helps with accuracy (which means your recipes turn out with the perfect taste and texture every time you make them!), as well as with converting from US to metric measurements.
- Standard measuring cups, measuring spoons, and a glass measuring cup. It’s SO important to make sure you add the correct amounts of ingredients! For measuring spoons, I always make sure I have a set that goes all the way down to ⅛ teaspoon. (And sometimes you can find a good deal on the cups and spoons together in a set!)
- Mixing bowls. I started by using mostly plastic ones, but I’ve switched to using this glass set almost exclusively. (It’s definitely good to own at least one glass or metal bowl for making yeast doughs because it’s easier to stick them in the oven for proofing, compared to plastic bowls!)
- Hand mixer. Despite mixing up most of my cake batter and cookie dough with just a fork, there are times when my hand mixer comes in really handy, like when making cheesecake and frosting. Bonus: it only takes up a tiny bit of shelf space!
- Stand mixer. I rarely use mine, but if you have the counter space, a larger stand mixer can be nice to have!
- Baking sheets. I own a few different sizes, and since each comes in handy depending on how much cookie dough I make, I love the 3-packs with multiple different pans. Light-colored air insulated cookie sheets generally bake the most evenly without burning the bottoms of cookies, so I use these the most. I also love the larger rimmed baking sheets for making granola.
- Cake pans. At least two 9”-rounds pans, both an 8”-square pan and 9”-square pan, a 9×13” pan, a 9×5” loaf pan, and a springform pan for cheesecake. If you have room for it, I also recommend a bundt cake pan. Anything more than that is icing on the cake!
- Muffin pans. Aim for at least one standard-sized pan, and if you have the cabinet space, one or two mini muffins pans and a jumbo-sized pan would make excellent additions. (I also love my silicone muffin pans!)
- Pie plate. They’re so handy for both summer fruit season and the holiday season. I highly recommend standard pie plates, like this, rather than deep-dish ones!
- Kitchen knives. A good set of entry-level knives makes all of your slicing and dicing a lot easier. I recommend a pairing knife, serrated knife, and chef’s knife at the very least.
- Cutting boards. I own at least 4 of the smaller-sized ones. I originally had a larger one as well, but with our teensy tiny kitchen and even smaller sink, I couldn’t find a space for it—or even wash it!
- Blender and/or food processor. I use my high-speed blender for most things and rarely pull out my food processor, but… Every once in a while, it just makes more sense to use my food processor. (Like when I baked these!) One or the other is typically fine, and if you have the space, both is even better!
- Slow cooker. I debated putting this under “General Equipment,” but for how much space it takes up, I couldn’t quite justify it. However, since you can both cook dinners and bake sweet treats in it, a slow cooker is great to have!
- Donut pans or maker. If you love donuts but not the grease, these two items enable you to bake your own at home for a fraction of the fat and calories. My favorites are these mini donut pans. Well worth the space and investment!
- Waffle maker. My mom used to make waffles once a week for breakfast as a special treat, and we loved them! I’m also obsessed with these waffle baking pans. It means all of my waffles are ready at the same time – no more eating breakfast in shifts! So if breakfast is your favorite meal of the day, I highly recommend one of these… Or both!!
- Frosting bag and tips. Most of the time, I spread my frosting on cakes and cupcakes with a knife, but when I’m feeling fancy, nothing beats a gorgeous swirl. You can use gallon zip-topped bags instead of the reusable frosting bag, but at least buy the tips!
- Flours. Whole wheat flour, white whole wheat flour, whole wheat pastry flour, all-purpose flour, and a variety of gluten-free (millet, tapioca, and brown rice are my personal favorites). Bob’s Red Mill has some of the best quality flours from what I’ve sampled.
- Sugars. Coconut, granulated, light brown, dark brown, and powdered (icing/confectioners). I grew up on C&H, but I’m not too picky!
- Liquid sweeteners. Honey, agave, pure maple syrup, and molasses. I always stock these unrefined sweeteners and try to incorporate them in place of granulated sugar whenever possible.
- No-calorie sweeteners. Liquid Stevia, Powdered Stevia, Erythritol, and Splenda are the ones I always stock. Yes, Splenda isn’t necessarily “clean eating” friendly, but since my diabetic relatives always stock that in their own pantry, I try to make my recipes accessible for them.
- Leaveners. Baking powder and baking soda. Yes, you need both! The ex-chemist in me would give a long-winded explanation about what each does, but… You probably don’t want to hear that.
- Salt. Both regular and coarse sea salt. The latter makes the best addition to pretzels, salted caramel treats, and more!
- Fats. Unsalted butter, coconut oil, and canola oil. You may have a preference between these; that’s just what I stock. Each produces a slightly different flavor and texture, and they all come in handy for different reasons.
- Large eggs. I buy them 3 dozen at a time. (I eat them for breakfast too, so they disappear much too quickly!)
- Extracts. Vanilla, almond, peppermint, butter, maple, and coconut. The latter three may fall in the “Nice to Have” category, but since they’re shelf-stable and keep for ages, it’s worth having them on hand.
- Milk. Nonfat milk and unsweetened vanilla almond milk are the two I most frequently use, but most of the time, milk is interchangeable in my recipes.
- Cocoa powder. Regular unsweetened and Dutched (special dark). I stick with the former most of the time because it produces a really rich and chocolaty flavor. (Dutched or special dark also turn your baked goods a much deeper brown, almost black, so just remember that!)
- Oats. Old-fashioned, instant (quick/minute), and gluten-free. At the very least, stock either old-fashioned or gluten-free (depending on your dietary needs). You can easily make instant oats out of either of those!
- Baking morsels. Dark chocolate (chopped), dark chocolate chips, semi-sweet chocolate chips, miniature chocolate chips, white chocolate chips, butterscotch chips, peanut butter chips, toffee bits, peppermint pieces… The list goes on and on. At the very least, stock a good-quality dark chocolate bar (to chop into pieces) and semi-sweet chocolate chips. For most of my recipes, I include minis as well, so they’re nice to have too.
