Autumn baking projects for kids

Arm yourself and the children with baskets and containers, then head into the wilderness to forage a fine blackberry feast. Be sure to avoid hedgerows next to busy roads or areas that might be within reach of dogs. For ambitious little bakers, this blackberry & orange cake brings tangy marmalade into the filling for a fun twist on the classic layer cake.

When you get home, turn your treasures into something spectacular with our child-friendly recipes. Reinvent the classic sandwich cake with this fabulously fluffy blackberry Victoria sponge. It features an easy-to-follow method designed for kids to master a basic sponge, and can be adapted with different jams and fruits.

Blackberry & hazelnut crumble flapjacks are a brilliant bake for young ones, and the smallest hands can get involved in making our blackberry & apple loaf cake.

Use up a summer glut by making our easy blackberry jam or, if you've collected a hotchpotch of fruit, Angela's flexible jam recipe is a great way of using it up. Keep the kids busy while you deal with hot pans by getting them to design labels, which is also a lovely way to make them gift-worthy. Or, transform your jam into a delicious blackberry cheesecake.

Find more brilliant blackberry recipes.

Apple recipes

In October, the great British apple (and all its varieties) is celebrated up and down the country, with a number of apple festivals, from apple bobbing to apple pressing, to events with live bands and cider. There are plenty of festivals that offer fun for all the family, so it's worth checking out what's going on near you – toffee apples are compulsory.

But the apple love doesn't have to stop there; get your child to don a mini pinny and get them baking in the kitchen. These little toffee apple cakes have been specifically tailored for kids aged between 8-14, whereas children in the 3-6 range can get stuck into making sweet baked apples. If you want some speedy, scrumptious snacks to keep their energy levels up, our chewy toffee apple cookies and satisfying apple hand pies will also go down a treat, as do our apple pie bars for a mid-morning treat.

Kids will love making their first crumble with our classic apple version made with gluten-free porridge oats. For a real project, get making our spectacular spiced toffee apple traybake, topped with sliced apples and drizzled in gooey toffee sauce. This is easily cut into squares, perfect for a kids' party or Bonfire Night celebration.

Discover more delicious seasonal recipes in our apple and apple cake collections.

Fruity cakes and bakes

Picking seasonal fruit and vegetables to cook will help your kids recognise the different seasons, especially if you browse a local market or farm shop together. This plum upside-down cake looks rather impressive but is a very achievable project for kids to get stuck into. Our courgette muffins are suitable for those aged 8-14 years and will definitely get vegetable-dodgers thinking twice.

Or, help them make their own lunchbox treats with simple recipes like sticky plum flapjack bars or apple & sultana muffins. For a super simple dessert, make this stunning plum and almond pastry using just five ingredients and show the kids how to whip up a basic frangipane mixture.

Remember, getting children involved in cooking doesn't have to be a big project, simply providing easy, regular jobs like grating cheese or washing lettuce should give them confidence and, most of all, enthusiasm for cooking.

Pumpkin recipes

Revel in all things pumpkin and spice with great warming, autumnal treats for the whole family. As the weather gets cooler and jumpers and coats come out of storage, why not spend some time with the kids making delicious bakes? We have a cracking selection of pumpkin recipes, using leftover seasonal fruit and tinned pumpkin purée, which is so tasty in traybakes and sticky puddings.

We love adding pumpkin spice mix to bakes for an instant autumnal flavour hit – try it in these pretty pumpkin spice cupcakes or whip up a batch of fluffy pumpkin muffins. Our pumpkin pie s'mores are perfect for a kids party, Bonfire Night or as a weekend movie night treat. For more hands-on but simple kitchen baking, try out our pumpkin dessert recipes, these recipes are kid and family friendly and make great introductory baking activities for your little ones.

An American export, the all-things pumpkin craze is a sure winner for autumn inspiration and makes for incredibly versatile and tasty recipes. Why not also keep to the American theme and try this pumpkin pie recipe with the kids? It's perfect with an afternoon cup of tea or coffee, to take to a potluck or as a simple autumnal dessert to enjoy after dinner.

Halloween recipes

The day is covered by the orange hues of autumn trees and by night, the air is filled with giggles from your kids ready to shout 'boo!' from behind a curtain. The time has come for sweet concoctions and devilish desserts for Halloween, where you can make simple treats with your little helpers. Above is our haunted graveyard cake, a delicious chocolate cake covered in chocolate ganache and decorated with ghouls and chocolate-covered biscuit headstones. Decoration makes for a great afternoon project, so it can take centre stage at the Halloween party later on. Older kids will love to get creative with decorating our spiced pumpkin Halloween cake, Halloween bark and Halloween doughnuts ready for trick-or-treating.

For more easy baking projects, ranging in difficulty and cooking time, follow our Halloween kids' recipes, featuring impressive ghostly easy Halloween cookies, hooting Halloween owl cupcakes, gooey Halloween brownies and nutty chocolate apples. You'll also find a host of terrifying treats in our collection of Halloween baking recipes, which includes monster Halloween cupcakes, a black cat cake and freaky finger red velvet cake. Jobs for your little ones range from mixing ingredients, breaking up nuts and cutting out dough with biscuit cutters.

Need a break from all the sweet treats? Sink your fangs into our spine-tingling savoury bakes, including Halloween spider pizzas, mini pumpkin and feta pies or gory guts tear 'n' share bread.

Bonfire Night recipes

Bonfire Night is a great occasion to get the family together for a big celebration, and an even better excuse to get baking. Let your kids' imagination run wild with our Bonfire Night cookies, while our giant cookie recipe is the perfect sharing dessert – caramelly, chocolatey, fudgy and customisable with your choice of extra toppings. Get your little helpers in the kitchen making Bonfire Night snacks – both sweet and savoury – or helping with Bonfire Night desserts, including indulgent toffee cakes, cheesecakes and brownies.

For seasonally spiced sponges to keep you warm while you watch the fireworks, try our Bonfire Night cakes, including toasted marshmallow campfire cupcakes, plus with traybakes, layered coffee cake, fruit loaves and more.

Simple cookery and baking tasks are highly beneficial to a child's cognitive learning. Knowledge of different flavours and pairing of ingredients is also useful at any age, and could be the start of a culinary hobby – which, when delicious dishes arrive on your table, will benefit everyone.

More kids' cooking inspiration

Top 5 easy bakes for kids
5 half-term recipes for kids
Activities for kids hub page
Fun baking projects for kids
Kids' baking recipe collection

What are your favourite recipes to make with children? Comment below...