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A quick batch of Sugar Cookies Dipped in Chocolate & loaded with sprinkles is a perfect baking activity to enjoy with your little ones to celebrate Spring and Easter. If you think you have no time to bake with your kids I have the tips that will have you baking in no time.

Our family has a traditional sugar cookie from scratch recipe that we love and you can find that recipe – check it out here.

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I know that you and I don’t always have time to pull out all the ingredients to make a batch of holiday sugar cookies from scratch. But every holiday deserves a sugar cookie dipped in chocolate and smothered in sprinkles and that’s when I grab my Betty Crocker Sugar Cookie Mix.  You can find Sugar Cookie Mix in the local grocery store or you can get a huge box of the mix Here.

Simply mix 3 ingredients and the dough is ready for little ones to help you cut out the cute shapes. When it comes to baking with children it is more about the fun than it is about being technically true to a recipe from scratch. Looking at the ingredients for this mix you’ll see that it is close to what you would put in any scratch recipe and saves you time and encourages you to make cookies when you think your busy week just doesn’t allow it.

Our family traditionally makes sugar cookies and decorates them with buttercream frosting. You can find the buttercream frosting recipe here.  But again this takes tons of time and a huge mess to make the entire project from scratch. We love this process at Christmas time however there is a much quicker way to have a batch of Easter Sugar Cookies for your celebration.

How To Make A Quick Cut Out Sugar Cookie

Just purchase a box or just the packets of packaged Sugar Cookie Mix, online, at the local grocery store, at your local big box store.

Water, Butter & a little extra Flour is all that you need to add to the mix.  The mix instructions say you can roll out the dough right away for cut out cookies, but I like to put the dough in the refrigerator for about 10 minutes to make it less sticky to roll out.

After the dough is mixed, make sure you have a clean counter or I like to use a pastry mat that is for rolling out the dough. Flour your work surface and your rolling pin.  Roll out the dough to about 1/4 of an inch thick.

Dip your cookie cutters in flour and cut out all the cute shapes.  Even if your kids are too young to mix and roll the dough, the youngest child that can stand on a chair to the counter can pick out the cookie-cutter shapes and press them into the dough.  (depending on the age, you can show them out to use your dough space wisely so as not to have to roll it out too many times). But the smiles on their face as they see the shapes lifted off of the counter is worth all the rerolling.

Instead of frosting, just dip them in melted chocolate chips and let your little ones pour on the sprinkles. No one is going to turn down these little eggs & bunny cookies just because they are not professionally decorated. I use chocolate chips melted in a bowl and use an offset spatula to cover the cookies with chocolate.

Set the chocolate covered cookies on a cooling rack that has waxed paper under it to catch any dripping chocolate. Let the kids use a spoon or clean fingers to add sprinkles to the chocolate.

Small grain sprinkles do not work well. Long oblong or round sprinkles that we called ” jimmies ” work the best as they hold their shape and do not melt into the chocolate.

Why Baking Quick Sugar Cookes Is Important

Baking with little ones is one of the most fun ways to teach your children to learn life skills, how to cook, patients, and the reason for each holiday. We have 3 pins of cookie cutters in our home. We have shapes for every holiday and then some just for fun. I take every opportunity I have with my kids to have fun and help them learn about our family history and values.

Family History & Family Values:

Many of our cookie cutters are family treasures. I have special ones that are very old that my dad handcrafted out of tin cans for my mother when they were first married and did not have much money. I have plastic ones that are shapes and images of baking promotions from TV shows from the 50″s. I have Christmas shaped cookie cutters that tell the story of Christmas and are fun shapes of Santa.

For Easter, I have Crosses, Lambs, Bunnies, Chick and Flowers, where I can teach the story and meaning of Easter and its symbols.

For Valentine, I have probably 20 different hearts, and flags for the 4th of July. Again for Thanksgiving, I have all the traditional shapes that teach the meaning and importance of giving thanks to the great country we have and the meaning of family.

Skills Learned While Baking Sugar Cookies:

It is not all fun and game in baking as you know. It is important to teach what items are hot and how not to be burned.  I have a vivid memory of my lesson as I reached out my hand for cookies just off the cookie sheet and burned my thumb (seconds after I was told not to touch yet).

We teach our kids how to keep all items used for baking clean including our hands so that our food is safe to eat.

We teach taking turns cutting out the shapes and patients for them to bake and cool before we eat. As well as teaching that some of our cookies must be saved for the family who is coming over for a party or to give to an elderly neighbor.

As our kids get older and they do most of the cutting of the shapes and transfer them to the cookie sheet we teach them how to be detailed.  The perfect shape cookie only comes from patients and does not rush or the dog will have the dough as it lands on the floor.

Baking homemade sugar cookies are also an expression of creativity, letting our children cut shapes, decorate and express their creativity in a way that there are no mistakes. (as every mistake is delicious)

Most importantly, we teach and learn that working together, laughing, and creating are the ultimate fun in sharing family life together.

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I think you don’t have time to enjoy baking and teaching the skills of cooking with your children, with today’s modern conveniences and a few tips and tricks there is always time to take our other weekend to enjoy baking laughing, and teaching your children simple basic cooking skills. There is always time for baking with your children making sugar cookies for every holiday with simple ingredients and shortcuts from Betty Crocker.