Hosting a Bake Sale for a Great Cause

When I was a little girl, Id find any excuse to bake cookies. After I baked a batch of peanut butters or chocolate chips, usually from recipes in my Peanuts Cook Book, Id make a pitcher of lemonade and drag a card table and chair down to the street corner, where Id sell cookies and lemonade to passing neighbors. I dont remember how long I sat out there, or how much money I made from these early entrepreneurial ventures, but that really wasnt the point. I loved tending my own little business, trading coins for cookies and cups of lemonade. There is something magical about setting up a bake sale or a lemonade stand and letting kids see people take joy from (and pay for) something they created. Last year, my daughter, Celia, gathered together four of her friends to take the bake sale concept a step further. The girls spent the morning baking and making lemonade, and then we drove them to a pedestrian-heavy part of town, where they sold their goods to help end childhood hunger in the U.S. through Share our Strengths Great American Bake Sale. Instead of setting a price, the girls asked people for donations in exchange for the goodies, which seemed to get people into the mindset of making a larger donation to help hungry kids, rather than paying a couple of quarters for a brownie. At the end of the day, the girls were so proud to send a check to Share our Strength for more than $200! Summer, when there is less structure to our days and plenty of people walking and biking outside, is the ideal time for your children and their friends to plan a bake sale. Share our Strengths Great American Bake Sale makes it really easy for kids who want to host their own sales, with plenty of materials and guidelines at their online bake sale center. Your kids might prefer to give donations to another charity that they care about. Just be sure to post a sign telling customers where donations will be sent so they know that their money is going to a great cause. You may have some easy go-to cookie recipes that your children already love to make. But if you are ready for some baking inspiration, here are some easy recipes from our friends in the blogosphere that might work perfectly for their bake sale. Kitchen Sink Cookies from Sweet Potato Chronicles. Blueberry White Chocolate Cookies from Sarahs Cucina Bella Chocolate Cherry Truffles from J.M. Hirsch. Gluten-Free Layered Choco-Coco-Nut Bars from Whats Cooking. Oat Surprise Cookies from Today I Ate a Rainbow. Fudgy Brownies from GoodLifeEats. Walnut-Pecan Shortbread from Mollie Katzen. Vegan Blondies from Allergic Kid. Here are some past Kitchen Explorer posts with great cookie recipes: Gluten-Free Cookies Oatmeal Coconut Cookies Fortune Cookies Do you have any tips for planning and executing a successful bake sale, or any favorite recipes? Please share in the comments below.