Are you a beginner baker, looking for beginner baking essentials to have in your kitchen? Or perhaps you need a gift idea for a budding baking bestie? Well, look no further than this blog post where I take you through The Top 25 Beginner Baking Essentials to buy as a Baking Novice this fall and upcoming Christmas season! Ranking from most important to not so crucial but REALLY CUTE or something that will MAKE YOUR LIFE A LOT EASIER in the baking kitchen.
So enough dawdling. Let’s get right into it!
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1. Measuring Spoons, Cups and a Scale
One of the most essential utensils that you NEED in your kitchen is a way to measure out ingredients (unless you are a throw everything into a bowl and see what happens kind of person). It is basically up to you what type of measuring utensil you should buy. Personally, I live in the UK where a lot of recipes and cookbooks have all ingredients measured in grams, millilitres etc so it is useful to have an electronic scale around to quickly weigh out everything in the same bowl. Here’s one I have and highly recommend:
However, I do know that a lot of you guys are from the US, who mostly use Cup measures. This is a slightly less accurate way of measuring but let me tell you it is a lot easier than measuring out an ingredient exactly down to the gram, especially if you are in a rush. Also it can be hard to find cute and aesthetically pleasing cup measurers but I think I did a good job at finding some for your guys:
One thing that I do recommend for everyone, no matter where you live or are going to live is Measuring spoons. Basically every recipe uses them for raising agents like baking powder or baking soda, salt and spices etc. Arguably, ingredients measured with measuring spoons make some of the most crucial touches to a recipe that can make or break your final product! Here are a few recommendations, also keeping in mind cuteness:
2. Mixing Bowls, mixing bowls and more mixing bowls
Another beginner baking essentials to have when baking are something to mix all that mixture in. For true beginners I would recommend having one large mixing bowl, one medium and one small. Depending on your age (and your clumsiness) I would recommend glass bowls but plastic works perfectly fine. Here are a few below:
3. Spatulas
Definitely another essential, spatulas are great for scraping that last bit of batter at the bottom of your bowl, gently folding in dry ingredients and overall mixing of cookie and brownie doughs. You can also get different sizes of spatulas. Depending on how often you wish to bake, or how many people you are baking with, I would recommend having about 2 large spatulas and 2 smaller, mini spatulas. Some of my faves:
4. Whisks and other Essential Utensils
These are quite obvious but I wanted to include EVERYTHING a beginner baker or even college student would need to start their baking journey. Here are my recommendations:
5. Cake pans, Cookie Sheets, Square pans,
A very essential utensil for baking is something to bake your bakes in! If your starting from the real basics you’ll need cake pans- preferably a 6” and 8” (I also used a 4” pan in my Mini Funfetti Cake recipe but this is not that essential), cookie sheets (at least two if you bake a lot), square pans for brownies and blondies, loaf pans for breads or cakes and much much more. Take a look at some of my recommendations:
6. Muffins pans
An essential for cupcakes, muffins, cookie cups, mini quiches etc. I used the Hairy Biker’s muffin pan when making my Red Velvet Chocolate Chip Muffins recipe. Take a look:
7. Silicone Moulds (optional)
Silicone moulds are incredibly versatile. From madeleines (How to make Lemon Madeleines recipe here) to mini chocolate bars to hearts to hello kitty, you’ll find a silicone mould for just about everything. Here are a few examples:
8. Oven mitts
So you’ve spent hours upon hours measuring, mixing, dividing and baking your delicious desserts and now it’s time to get them out of the oven… but wait, what do I get them out of the oven with? Of course the obvious answer is a nearby tea towel but if you’re really a baker at heart, you’ve got to have at least one pair of oven mitts. And let’s be real, you can get some real cute ones online, here are a few:
9. Pie dish
Beginner baking essentials for both sweet and savoury treats, a pie dish to bake your fav treacle tart or your nan’s signature chicken pie. (Need a great pie recipe for fall? Try this Blondie Pie recipe) Here are a few recommendations:
10. Sieve
Whether it’s to dust powdered sugar or sift all your dry ingredients, every baking household needs a sieve. My recommendation is to get one that is dishwasher safe, so it lasts for a long time:
11. Food Processor/Blender
A food processor is definitely an essential (unless you like using a good ole pestle and mortar🫢). Perfect for blending pestos, making your own powdered sugar or your own oat flour, the uses are basically endless! Here are some of my favs:
12. Rolling Pin
Another great staple in the pantry of a baking beginner is the classic rolling pin. I have two, one is wooden and one is a marble, more sophisticated version but I’ve given you a range of choices below:
13. Measuring Jug
Now you may be thinking, why do I need a measuring jug if I already have kitchen scales and measuring cups? Well, if you use a measuring jug to measure out your wet ingredients you can mix and measure them all in one jug. You don’t need it but it’s less washing up so… it’s up to you and your budget😬. Here are a few 🙂
14. Silicone Pastry brush
These are used for many purposes but the main reason is to brush your breads with egg wash or to add cake soak to keeps cakes moist. You definitely should only buy a silicone pastry brush though (compared to a bristled hair pastry brush)- you don’t want to find a brush hair on your freshly baked bread.🥴
15. Serrated Knife
I’m sure you have many knives at home but make sure that you have a serrated knife when baking. Perfect for cutting into cakes, pizzas, breads and more, you can also use serrated knives when levelling layered cakes.
16. Offset Spatula
Great for decorating professional layer cakes and spreading chocolate or other spreads with more control. Any one will do so here are a few cheap recommendations:
17. Piping Tips and Piping Bags
This is not really essential for those of you who aren’t planning on making cakes or cupcakes but if you are, piping tips especially can be a great help when trying to create professional and beautiful decorations on your bakes.
Piping bags can be substituted with ziplock bags but if you’re going to be baking a lot I would recommend to buy some even if they are on the cheaper side.
Here are a few beginner piping tips to buy as well as a complete set with all the tips you could ever need for those baking pros out there 😉.
18. Gel Food Colouring
I don’t know about the rest of the world, but if you live in the UK, the food colouring that we’re used to, and have used many a time in cooking lessons at school, is liquid food colouring. Liquid food colouring is not pigmented at all and can create a really weird taste if you use too much.
That is why I am recommending you to go buy gel food colour. My favourite brand is rainbow gel which is vegetarian friendly! But you may opt for a more popular option from Wilton. Anyway here are a few:
19. Turntable
Turntables are great for decorating cakes when you want to achieve a smooth finish with your buttercream icing. If you want to see a turntable in action, check out my Chocolate Cookie Dough Cake recipe.
However, turntables also make a great baking display stand, just like some of these baking beginner essentials:
20. Cake Scraper
If you want to know the secret to achieving the smoothest and most professional looking layer cakes, you’re gonna need a cake scraper. And yes, I know what you’re thinking, it’s a piece of rectangular plastic. But trust me, all great bakers use one!
21. Stand Mixer/Hand Mixer
Ok, so let’s talk kitchen gadgets. All my recipes and a lot of other recipes on the internet don’t require a stand mixer, it is so easy to mix any recipe by hand and can save you a lot of money. Unless you’re making something like meringues, the only thing that a stand or hand mixer will do for you is to save a little elbow grease and maybe a bit of time.
If you’re looking for something cheaper, a hand mixer is the way to go. They’re cheaper, easier to clean and pretty fun to use.
I do have a kitchen aid stand mixer but I only use it when recipe testing- when I need to make a recipe really fast or when I’m making multiple bakes at once. Of course if you’re thinking of purchasing a stand mixer, you don’t need to buy a kitchen aid, there are much cheaper versions on the market. Here are a range of options:
22. Cooling Rack
Again, not an essential. You can easily take your bakes out of the oven and place them on a plate or a baking tray but if your baking regularly, this may be something to look into, especially because they are so cheap.
23. Silpats
What is a Silpat you ask? Well it’s short for silicone baking mat. This can be useful when baking things like macarons, cookies etc, to help them not stick to a baking tray. A silpat is basically reusable greaseproof paper which you can chuck in the dishwasher, simple yet effective.
24. Baking Thermometer
This is useful when making slightly more difficult desserts such as caramel sauce, types of candy, doughnuts etc. Not a necessity but a great way to level up your baking skills:
25. Cute Baking Accessories
Lastly, I wanted to include some really cute baking accessories to complete your baking beginner essentials. These include decorative bundt pans, mugs, plates, perfect for taking cute insta and pinterest pics to share with your friends and family.
And that’s it! The Top 25 Baking Beginner Essentials that YOU need to kickstart your baking journey! If you liked this post or have any other questions, leave me a comment below and I will get back to you as soon a possible.
If you would like to see more from me, why not follow us on social media @anisacakeandbakes on Instagram, TikTok, Pinterest and Youtube.
And while you’re here, check out some mouthwatering recipes like this Triple Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe or perhaps your in the mood for this Chocolate Cookie Dough Cake recipe.
Thanks for Reading!
– anisacakesandbakes