Baking on a Budget: Low Ingredient Baking

You’re running short on ingredients but still want to bake? No problem! We’ve got you covered with these easy low-ingredient recipes!

Let’s face it: everyone’s looking for a quick fix these days. If you’re short on time (and money) you’ll want fast and cheap. The best way to accomplish this is to start with recipes that don’t require a ton of ingredients. In this post I’m going to give you some of my favorite suggestions!

Whenever I ask my friends what sort of recipes they like the answer is pretty universal (especially if they have kids and busy lives): Stuff that’s cheap and fast. While fancy recipes are cool (and some people love them) most typical folks just want things they can make in a hurry.

This is where low ingredient baking comes in handy.

Going back to my question above: “What’s in your pantry?” If you’ve got staples (flour, shortening, oil, yeast, salt, sugar, and so on) you can usually figure out a way to whip up a 3-ingredient dessert. And if you’re fortunately enough to have fruit or pie filling on hand (something I highly recommend) you are in business!

The key here is to have staples that you can add to. I covered this topic in my Use What You Have post.

Here are some of my low-ingredient favorites!

1. Monkey Bread

Biscuits, brown sugar, butter. . .it doesn’t take much more than this to whip up a luscious caramelly dessert! If you love a good cinnamon roll, one that’s gooey and sticky but light and fluffy at the same time. . .you’re definitely in the right place. This Monkey Bread recipe is rich with brown sugar and cinnamon and will leave you swooning! Best of all, it starts with canned biscuits. Talk about simple!

2. Easy Baking Powder Biscuits

These are inexpensive and absolutely delicious! You’ve probably got everything you need on hand. They’re light, they’re fluffy, they’re crisp on the edges and filled with a luscious, tender crumb. These easy baking powder biscuits are everything you would expect…and so much more!

3. Easy Fry Bread

You’re not going to believe how easy and quick these are. And so versatile, too! This recipe can be used to create many favorites–like beignets, donuts, fried bread, or even churros. Talk about the perfect sweet treat! And guess what? These tiny crisp pieces of bread can be used as a base for savory dishes, as well!

4. Old-Fashioned Cobbler with Pie Crust

A frozen pie crust and pie filling come together for this inexpensive low ingredient dessert. If you’re looking for a luscious cobbler with that crisp homemade crust you grew up eating, you’ve come to the right place. This easy recipe calls for canned pie filling but a crust so flaky and delicious you’ll swear you’re sitting around grandma’s table eating it.

5. Canned Biscuit Pocket Pies

It doesn’t get any simpler than this! Canned biscuits and the filling of your choice. Yes, please! Whether you love sweet or savory pies, this is one that will work for your next get-together. And best of all, this recipe starts with one simple ingredient that you probably have in your refrigerator right now: canned biscuits.

6. Easy Cinnamon Rolls from Canned Biscuits

Who says you have to slave all day in the kitchen to have sumptuous cinnamon rolls? These are low ingredient and low cost! They also save lots of time (and time is money)! Talk about an easy breakfast treat! These cinnamon rolls taste just like the homemade ones you might slave hours over. But they come together in (literally) minutes. Best of all, no one will know you didn’t make them from scratch! (No yeast dough necessary, y’all!)

7. Easy Peach Cobbler (with pie crust)

You’re going to love this one, folks. And it’s so simple, too! If you’re in the mood for an easy, quick peach cobbler, one loaded with warmth and spice, you’ve come to the right place! This recipe comes together easily, but it doesn’t feel like a “cheat” dessert. It tastes like you slaved over the stove for hours. This is truly one of the best peach cobblers I’ve had in a while!

8. Double Dark Chocolate Espresso Muffins

Easy-breezy and loaded with flavor. You love chocolate. You love coffee. You love muffins. These amazing, gooey Double Dark Chocolate Espresso Muffins merge all three of those things into one delicious bite! You’ll swoon, I promise!

9. Mexican Wedding Cookies

This cookie recipe is relatively low on ingredients but so good they practically melt in your mouth. These cookies go by different names. Some call them Mexican Wedding Cookies, some call them Snowballs. Some call them Pecan Sandies, others call them Pecan Balls. Some folks call these soft bites of wonderment Italian Wedding Cookies, Mexican Wedding Cakes, or Russian Tea Cookies, others call them southern pecan butterballs. No matter what you call them, they’re delicious and super easy to make.

10. Easy 3-Ingredient Fudge

Simple. Fast. Inexpensive. Low ingredient fudge. Perfection! This is the perfect easy fudge recipe, only calling for three ingredients: chocolate chips, sweetened condensed milk, and Oreos!

You get the idea. If a recipe calls for a ton of ingredients you probably don’t have time for it. But 3-5 ingredients? That’s perfect for the 21st century (busy!) baker!

More low-ingredients bakes from Out of the Box Baking:

Soft Christmas Peppermints (Old-Fashioned Butter Mints)
Cinnamon Toast Crunch Puppy Chow: Perfect for the holidays!
Easy Peanut Butter Snowballs: Easy-breezy!
Easy Peanut Brittle: Easy and delicious!
Nutter Butter Snowman Cookies: So cute and fun!

That’s it for this post, friends! Thanks for stopping by!

About the Author

Janice Thompson is an author, baker, and all-around mischief maker! She has overcome a host of baking catastrophes, including a toppled wedding cake, to learn more about the baking process. Janice has published over 150 books for the Christian market but particularly enjoys writing recipes and baking devotions. To learn more about Janice or to drop her a note, visit her About the Author page.