How old are/were your dc when they started baking independently?

[3bunnies]

dd1 is 8, nearly 9, and has been helping me up until now, but I am beginning to think that maybe she could do it alone now - maybe starting with one egg sponge fairy cakes for school lunches. I enjoy baking and I usually let them help measure ingredients, mix, put in cases etc but I am always hovering around limiting the mess and ensuring products are edible I think she would probably rise to the challenge.

Would you/do you let your 8yr old bake unaided - I would be pinned down in the other room and only released in an emergency! (might have to supervise the heat end of the procedure). And my nearly 7yr old (not at same time as would spark WWIII with flour and eggs thrown in)?

DD was nine, the end result was curious but edible and I sat in the sitting room where I could see what she was doing without being on top of her.

I make her clean up the mess (then clean it properly after she's gone)

My 4 year old 'bakes' simple packet mixes. Just the ones with mix, add egg and butter mix, and puts in cases fine. I do the oven stuff though

Ah good tip about getting her to clean up the mess. The food only needs to be edible as it would be for their lunch bags not relinquishing control of birthday cakes yet . Does your dc measure out the butter Artandco too eyes up 4yr old infront of me as new labour saving device

Yep :) we have digital scales so he only has to match the amount written with number on a scale. I call it learning maths :)

I actually often let 2 year old do it too but help more with measuring and egg supervision!

DD has just recently started making things completely on her own and she's 11. That may sound quite old but there are 2 things to know: most importantly, she is very tiny so it's only recently that she's been able to reach the worktop/cooker safely - I didn't like the idea of her standing on a chair or stool to do it if she was on her own (I am always around but not necessarily in the room).

The second thing is that I am a massive control freak and find it hard to see my kitchen getting trashed her doing things differently to the way I would. But I know it's important that she learns for herself so I bite my tongue - and like others, go back and clean up when she's supposedly done it!

Bonus is she makes some great stuff now - last weekend's hidden chocolate cakes were really good :)

DD1 has just turned 9 and has started baking on her own, inspired by junior bake off. Her creations were interesting but edible.

Sounds about the right age then. They do all help and have done since they were tiny and they all look at the scales to check weight/ crack eggs/ whisk etc so have done all the bits but I guess it is the putting it together with no adult supervision that I feel more unsure about. I will suggest it to her next time we need cakes!

Dd is almost 8 and for the last six months can whip up a 3 egg chocolate or plain sponge. She makes pretty nice biscuits to.

Digital scales but she knows what she's doing now. She doesn't use my mixer she does it all by hand.

Just started at 9. She follows the recipe and an adult helps her with the oven. Am planning on entering her in junior great British bake off next year hahaha.

I would say she was around 9 - but that I supervised things in / out of oven and was present around the kitchen IYKWIM.

She has this book which is fantastic - the recipes are really clear, and the particularly simple ones are marked out so you can identify those suitable for making alone easily.

Now she's 11 I'm happy with her using the oven, melting things together etc, as said above it is a lot about physical size as much as confidence (now she's 5 foot so only a smidgen smaller than me )

Yes hight does come into it. DD1 would happily stir things on the cooker and use the kettle a year or two before DD2 (who is only just at 12 feeling happy doing so). Also DD2 doesn't like tea or instant cous cous, so doesn't care about kettles.

Quick update to say that she made chocolate cupcakes yesterday. As we get eggs from the local farm I tend to weigh them as they vary considerably in size so I talked her through the calculations which she did on a piece of paper. I then left her to weigh and mix the ingredients and put them in cases. I supervised the oven bit - I think it might be a few goes before she gets the hang of it as it is gas. She tested them to check they were cooked but I got them out. She and dd2 are having them for lunch. She enjoyed the experience. Will definitely repeat it.