Baking from scratch is one of the most rewarding ways to fill your kitchen with comfort, joy, and the smell of something sweet in the oven. Whether you're whipping up a batch of cookies after school or baking a cake for a weekend gathering, having a well-stocked pantry makes it easier and more enjoyable. These baking essentials are my go-to ingredients—the building blocks for all my favorite homemade treats.
Over the years, I’ve come to rely on a handful of pantry staples that I keep stocked year-round. These ingredients allow me to pull together everything from chocolate chip cookies to muffins and cakes without a last-minute grocery trip. If you're just getting started with baking from scratch, this list is a great place to begin. And if you're a seasoned baker, maybe you'll spot a new favorite or two!
You may also find this Pantry Essentials post and this Spice Cabinet Essentials post helpful!
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Spice Cabinet
Here is a basic list of spices to keep stocked in your spice cabinet for baking. From warm apple pie to pumpkin bread, these spices can be used for so many recipes.
- Cinnamon
- Ginger
- Cloves
- Allspice
- Nutmeg
- Salt
You will find a lot of recipes that use these spices. Salt is great for breads and balancing the sweetness of baked goods.
The Pantry
Many of the ingredients you use in everyday cooking also play an important role in baking. Chances are, you already have a few of these stocked in your pantry!
Yeast (Active Dry)
A must-have for homemade sandwich bread, dinner rolls, and pizza dough. Yeast helps dough rise by creating air pockets, giving bread its signature texture. Keep unopened packets in the pantry, but once opened, store yeast in the refrigerator to keep it fresh longer.
Baking Powder & Baking Soda
These are leavening agents that help your baked goods rise and achieve a light, fluffy texture. They're essential in recipes like sugar cookies, cakes, muffins, and brownies. Be sure to check the expiration date regularly, as they lose effectiveness over time.
Cocoa Powder is a must for your pantry. It can be used in frostings, cakes, cookies, brownies and so much more. Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder is a great choice.
Chocolate Chips- Besides chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chips are great to use in lots of different recipes, like these chocolate chip banana muffins. It's always great to have these on hand when you are craving a chocolatey treat. Semi-sweet are good to keep stocked.
Vanilla Extract- I put vanilla extract in almost all of my baked goods for flavor. You can also keep other extracts like Almond Extract, Mint Extract, Orange Extract, and Strawberry Extract.
Cornstarch-Cornstarch is great to keep in the kitchen for all kinds of culinary uses, like this berry cobbler recipe. In baking you typically see it used to thicken sauces, curds and custards.
Grains and Flours
All-Purpose Flour
A true kitchen workhorse and a pantry staple. All-purpose flour is incredibly versatile and used in everything from cakes and cookies to breads and so much more.
Bread Flour
Perfect for homemade breads, (like this sourdough bread recipe) thanks to its higher protein content. The extra protein helps develop more gluten, giving your loaves better structure, chew, and rise.
Cornmeal
A must-have in my pantry! I love using it to make cornbread or for dusting pizza dough to give it that classic pizzeria texture. It also works well as a crispy breading for fried fish, okra, and other Southern favorites.
Old-Fashioned Oats
Ideal for baking cookies, baked oatmeal muffins and more. They hold their shape better than instant oats, which can become too soft and mushy when baked. Try them in this classic Oatmeal Raisin Cookies recipe.
Sweeteners
- Granulated Sugar- used in almost all of your baked goods.
- Brown Sugars-light and dark are great to keep in your pantry. These add flavor to baked goods like chocolate chip cookies, chocolate chip cookie bars and more.
- Honey is a great sweetener to have on hand. Honey can be used in numerous ways. In pancakes, english muffins, granola and more.
- Maple Syrup- is also a great sweetener that can be used to sweeten all kinds of things from a stack of buttermilk pancakes to your morning coffee to many other baked goods.
- Corn Syrups- I like to keep light and dark corn syrups on hand. Corn Syrups are used in pecan pie, cookies, candies and more.
- Molasses is a must in my pantry for fall inspired desserts like molasses cookies. Molasses is also great for making brown sugar. Simply add 1 tablespoon of molasses to 1 cup of granulated sugar for a light brown sugar.
Milks
It’s always a good idea to keep a few shelf-stable milk products in your pantry. They come in handy when you run out of fresh milk or need to whip up something.
- Powdered Milk
A great backup when you’re out of regular milk. Just mix it with water and use it in recipes that call for milk. You’ll also find powdered milk in some bread and cookie recipes for added richness. - Evaporated Milk
This canned milk is often used in baking cakes, classics like pumpkin pie, and even fudge. It has a slightly thicker texture and adds creaminess without extra sweetness. - Sweetened Condensed Milk
Thick, sweet, and perfect for making easy caramel, no-bake desserts, and rich cakes. It’s a pantry favorite for many summer desserts like this Key Lime Pie and many holiday treats.
Oils
- Vegetable Oil or Canola Oil are great to keep on hand for many different baked goods.
- Coconut Oil is a great oil to use in place of vegetable/canola oil in recipes. Coconut Oil is a nutritious and healthy option.
Refrigerator Baking Essentials
A few key ingredients for baking are kept in the refrigerator. As well as a few items that I find are great to keep in the refrigerator for baking.
- Milk is used in so many baked goods, like this Homemade Banana Pudding Recipe. Whole milk is best, but you can use 2% if that is what you keep in your fridge. I wouldn't use milk with less fat than 2% though.
- Buttermilk Powder-I have recently become a huge fan of buttermilk powder. I rarely buy buttermilk because it goes bad before I use it all. Keeping buttermilk powder in the refrigerator is a great way to still have buttermilk in your recipes when needed.
- Heavy Cream- Is used for making icings, frostings and more.
- Butter- Unsalted butter is a must for baking. It is used in everything from cookies to cakes. I like to keep a few pounds of butter stocked in my fridge at all times.
- Eggs- These are vital to baking; eggs help bind things and are the key ingredient in meringues.
- Yeast is best kept in the refrigerator to help extend its shelf life.
I hope this list is helpful. These are the items that I use frequently in my kitchen for baking. It is nice being able to bake when I want to and not have to run to the store to grab ingredients. Scratch cooking is so much fun and keeping your kitchen stocked makes cooking run smoothly.
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