Roundups

Budget Baking: 10 Cheap Recipes That Won’t Break The Bank

Baking on a budget? I have you covered with my 10 favorite cheap recipes that take inexpensive ingredients and make them gourmet desserts.
Three photos are presented side-by-side. On the left is Irish Soda BRead, in the middle is a plate of French Toast, and on the right are Chocolate Shortbread Cookies. Over the image, the text reads, "10 Cheap Baking Recipes."

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Hi Bold Bakers!

WHAT YOU GET: I rounded up my 10 best cheap recipes so you can bake delicious, gourmet treats without breaking the bank!

It’s no secret that ingredient prices have risen over the past year, and, as a result, a lot of families are scaling back to make ends meet. Baking, I know, can seem like an expensive indulgence — but with my Budget Baking tips, it doesn’t have to be!

I want to be sure all of you Bold Bakers have the means to make really delicious goodies that, when homemade, cost just pennies per serving. To get you started, I compiled a list of 10 delicious recipes that are also cheap to make!

Some of these cheap recipes use just a few ingredients, while others only use pantry staples you probably have in your house already — and all of them stay away from expensive ingredients, like fruit, cream, excess butter, etc.

These recipes may be affordable, but they are not lacking in the flavor department! Get ready to bake some gourmet treats on a budget! 

3-Ingredient Flatbread

A basket is filled with homemade flatbread.

If you have yogurt, flour, and baking powder in your house right now, you can make my 3-Ingredient Flatbread! These 3 ingredients are all you need to make an inexpensive homemade flatbread that tastes so much better than store-bought. Not only does it taste better, but it’s a lot cheaper than store-bought. There’s no yeast, no eggs, and no difficult techniques in this easy recipe.

Traditional Irish Bread & Butter Pudding

Homemade Irish Bread and Butter Pudding with raisins is presented in a white baking dish.

This Irish Bread & Butter Pudding is a classic, easy dish I grew up eating in Ireland. It was the quintessential “people’s” recipe. Bread and butter pudding is a creative way to cut waste — you’ll be using leftover, day-old bread and a few other cheap ingredients you likely already have in your house. This humble dessert has a moist texture, and a delicious, buttery, cinnamon flavor fit for a queen.

Chocolate Shortbread Cookies

Homemade Chocolate Shortbread are presented on a golden cooling rack over a pink table cloth. The chocolate cookies are drizzled with chocolate ganache.

Did you know that you could make these rich, delicious Chocolate Shortbread Cookies with only 6 ingredients that are likely already in your pantry? Well, now you do, and they’re a great dessert for so many occasions! With inexpensive ingredients like flour, powdered sugar, and cocoa powder, there’s no excuse not to try these delicious bites of heaven.

Small Batch Cupcakes

A homemade Red Velvet Cupcake with Cream Cheese Frosting and red sprinkles is in the forefront of the photo. The cupcake liner is peeled down from the cupcake.

These Small Batch Cupcakes are perfect when you want a cupcake or two but don’t want to spend the money to make a whole batch. Each batch makes only 4 cupcakes, and smaller batches mean less of each ingredient, which means they’re cheaper overall!

I have lots of delicious flavors on my website, from the classics, like chocolate, vanilla, carrot cake, and red velvet (pictured above), to bold, inventive flavors, like s’mores and cookie dough. As a bonus, they can be baked in a toaster oven, so there’s no need to fire up that oven.

Simple White Irish Soda Bread

A photo of White Irish Soda Bread, taken from above. The bread is on top of a circular wire cooling rack. Half of the bread is cut into slices.

Many Irish foods are made with humble ingredients, and this White Irish Soda Bread is no exception. In fact, Irish soda bread is known as a peasant’s bread because it is so cheap to make that even peasants could afford to make a fresh, warm loaf.

This recipe, which needs just a few ingredients and whips up super quickly, tastes just like home to me, especially when it’s topped with butter and jam. Needless to say, it’s one of my favorite cheap recipes!

And if you love this one, try my Mum’s Brown Bread!

3-Ingredient Nutella Brownies

A stack of homemade Chocolate Nutella Brownies.

The title of this one speaks for itself: 3-Ingredient Nutella Brownies! All you need to make these brownies are flour, eggs, and (you guessed it) Nutella! 

These cheap homemade brownies are chewy and gooey in the middle, with a nice crackly top. The whole batch costs less than $5, but you’d never tell from the gourmet taste.

3-Ingredient Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

Three chocolate oatmeal cookies are stacked on top of each other.

I think Oatmeal Cookies are so underrated. They’re chewy, sweet, and delicious. These are especially good and are made with 3 cheap ingredients you may already have in your house: oats, chocolate chips, and bananas. That’s it!

Best-Ever Banana Bread

 

A loaf of Best-Ever Banana Bread sliced, with three slices laid out on a piece of wax paper over a plaid napkin.

Do you ever have overripe bananas that you end up throwing away because they’re too ripe to eat? Don’t throw them out because those are the best type of bananas for this recipe. My Best-Ever Banana Bread could save you money by reducing food waste! Bananas are a great fruit to buy when you’re on a budget, as they are the cheapest fruit in the grocery store. Load up because bananas are great for sweet, moist desserts! Not ready to bake? Once the bananas are ripe, peel them and freeze them in a Ziploc bag until you need them.

3-Ingredient Coconut Cookies

A stack of 3-Ingredient Coconut Cookies are piled in the forefront of the picture, with another cookie leaning against them. They are golden brown with noticeable coconut shreds.

These 3-Ingredient Coconut Cookies are affordable, dainty, and addicting. You only need shredded coconut, sugar, and a little coconut milk. They have a complex, nutty, and sweet flavor, similar to macaroons, but crispier. Not only are these cookies cheap, but they are also gluten-free and vegan, so everyone can enjoy them!

Best-Ever French Toast

Homemade French Toast is stacked on a dish, topped with fresh strawberries and blueberries, and covered in maple syrup.

Who doesn’t love a good French Toast? This is a recipe I go back to a lot — I honestly believe it’s the best version you can find on the web. My homemade French Toast is made with simple, inexpensive ingredients, like white bread, eggs, and milk, and the end result is so moist and flavorful. 

Best-Ever Pizza Dough

Homemade pizza is served on a wooden cutting board, cut into slices. The crust is golden brown with melted cheese on top.

It’s easy to ring up your local pizza joint and order delivery, but that isn’t always an option when you’re on a budget. That doesn’t mean you have to stop having Friday Pizza Night, though! Making pizza from scratch is surprisingly simple, and it couldn’t be easier with my Best-Ever Pizza Dough recipe.

This easy pizza dough is made with only 4 ingredients (5, including water) that you probably already have in your house, and it is a no-knead recipe, so it’s not time-consuming either!

Weeknight Family Favorites Chapter from the Bigger Bolder Baking Every Day Cookbook

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About Us

Meet Gemma

About Us

Meet Gemma

Hi Bold Bakers! I’m Gemma Stafford, a professional chef originally from Ireland, a cookbook author, and the creator of Bigger Bolder Baking. I want to help you bake with confidence anytime, anywhere with my trusted and tested recipes and baking tips. You may have seen one of my 500+ videos on YouTube & TikTok or as a guest judge on Nailed It! on Netflix or the Best Baker in America on Food Network. No matter your skills, my Bold Baking Team & I want to be your #1 go-to baking authority.

 

Weeknight Family Favorites Chapter from the Bigger Bolder Baking Every Day Cookbook

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