21+ Best Summer Bake Sale Ideas

153 Shares

Looking for summer bake sale ideas that will bring in the big bucks and help reach your fundraising goal? You’ve come to the right place!

A summer bake sale brings its own unique challenges…

You want sweet treats BUT they also need to be able to withstand the summertime heat!

And, of course, you want your food to be the biggest hit at the bake sale.

I asked my blogger friends for their brilliant summer bake sale ideas and they came through.

Whether your child wants to set up a snack stand or you’re prepping for a summer bake sale fundraiser, we’ve got you covered.

Read on for 21 Popular Summer Bake Sale Recipes that hit the spot AND beat the heat!

What Summer Bake Sale Ideas Are Best?

When you are trying to choose what to make for a bake sale, there are a few important things to consider:

Cost: If you’re making a treat for your kid’s lemonade stand, this is a great opportunity to teach them about the cost vs. profits. You can teach your kids business basics by showing them that a treat made with less expensive ingredients can be sold at a higher price for a bigger profit.
Heat Resistance: An ooey-gooey chocolate chip cookie is hard to pass up on a normal day, however one that has melted into an unrecognizable blob on the bake sale table when it’s hot outside might be a hard sale. Read on for bake sale recipes that will hold up outside on a hot summer day.
Refreshing Taste: When the temperature is sweltering, many bake sale attendees might be looking for a light and refreshing treat. We found some amazing recipes that will satisfy a sweet tooth without being overpowering.
Uniqueness: Choosing an unusual or unique recipe for your bake sale item might make it more popular!

21 Summer Bake Sale Ideas Everyone Will Love

Let’s get to the good stuff!

Here are some tasty and clever bake sale items ideal for your next bake sale!

1. Trix Treats

These four ingredient treats are at the top of our list because they are simple to make, colorful and a huge bake sale hit!

You could easily make them with any breakfast cereal but these delicious Trix Treats will hold up to travel AND sunshine like a champ.

2. Strawberry Cake Mix Cookies

Not only are these cookies delightfully pink, this bake sale recipe only uses four ingredients!

They are sure to be unique and popular at a summer bake sale, and are simple enough that your kids can help make them.

3. Rainbow Sugar Cookies

If you want to impress everyone at the bake sale, these rainbow sugar cookies might be the recipe you are looking for.

Made from a citrus zest flavored sugar cookie dough, this recipe is a bit time and labor intensive (lots of chilling and forming of rainbow shapes!) but the finished products are a showstopper.

4. Iced Lemon Shortbread Cookies

This recipe shows the sophisticated side of baked goods.

The refreshing lemon, sweet frosting and easy-to-hold “stick” shortbread cookies would be a fantastic choice for a summer bake sale.

I love the extra touch of lemon zest on the frosting.

5. Rainbow Fruit Sugar Cookies

Nothing says summer like fresh fruit.

This recipe combines a classic sugar cookie with a cream cheese frosting and delicious fresh fruit.

It is super versatile in that you can make the cookies any shape you’d like (sun? rainbow?) and add your favorite fresh fruit.

Since this recipe features cream cheese, read the section on “Keeping Treats Cool” below if you are selling these at a bake sale.

6. Key Lime Sparkle Cookies

These cookies look like summer!

The key lime zest and lime juice give them a signature lime taste, and a secret *optional* ingredient (citric acid) can bump up the pucker if your bake sale crowd loves sour flavors.

Add a swirl of vanilla frosting and some green sprinkles and you’ve got a summer bake sale best seller.

7. Creamsicle Orange Cupcakes

Inspired by the classic summer treat, an orange creamsicle popsicle, these cupcakes look and taste divine!

This is one of the more complicated recipes in this post, as it includes an orange curd filling in the cupcakes’ centers…but if you have time and want to impress, these Creamsicle Orange Cupcakes fit the bill.

8. Strawberry Lemonade Cookies

If you love a glass of refreshing strawberry lemonade then you’ll love these strawberry lemonade cookies. Lemonade in the hot weather is a must.

The recipe is surprisingly simple and the frosting can be made with either fresh or dehydrated strawberries.

These colorful, tasty and unique cookies would be a great addition to a summer bake sale!

9. Blueberry Lemon Madeleines

These buttery melt-in-your mouth madeleines are so lovely to look at you might not want to eat them! With added blueberries and lemon zest, this recipe is elevated to summer perfection.

For best results, you’ll need a madeleine pan.

The pretty blue tint of the white chocolate dip is made from butterfly pea powder or blue spirulina powder, but they would still be lovely dipped in plain white chocolate.

10. Cake Mix Monster Cookies

Cake mix based cookies are delicious, require less ingredients and are simple to make.

These Monster cookies would be a great recipe idea for a children’s bake sale.

Kids will love the colorful M&M addition, but you can also change-up this versatile cookie by switching M&Ms out for raisins, or chocolate chips.

You could also level-up with some nuts!

11. Blueberry Filled Macarons: Fancy Summer Bake Sale Ideas

Colorful, crunchy and cosmopolitan, this recipe isn’t easy but the bake sale payout is potentially huge!

The pretty pastry shells are filled with blueberry jam AND buttercream frosting, making for the perfect GORGEOUS bite.

You’ll need a piping bag. It’s also super helpful to have a silicone mat with a cookie size template.

This might not be an easy recipe, but blueberry filled macarons will make a big splash at a summer bake sale.

12. Healthy Chocolate Baked Donuts

Did you know that Americans eat over 10 BILLION donuts each year? Not only is this chocolate donut recipe delicious, it is also refined sugar-free, dairy-free and gluten-free!

The recipe is easy to follow and with the help of a donut pan, you can make these beauties in no time at all.

The chocolate glaze and sprinkles will dress them up perfectly for your summer bake sale.

13. Rainbow Rice Krispy Treats

Kids and parents alike will adore these tasty and unique rice krispie treats!

The colorful secret is that this recipe combines two cereals, Fruity Pebbles AND Rice Krispies plus two different types of marshmallows, minis and Lucky Charms (look for these special mallows in your grocery baking aisle!).

14. Chocolate Orange Slices

This unique dessert will need some extra cooling help during a summer bake sale (see the section on “Keeping Treats Cool” below), but juicy orange slices dipped in dark chocolate and sprinkled with salt or nuts makes for a fancy treat!

The orange slices are candied by simmering them in sugar water and letting them cool.

Although the results look complicated, it is a pretty simple recipe!

15. Easy Brownie Mix Cookies

Add some flour to a brownie mix and throw in some M&M candies to make chewy and delicious chocolate cookie!

I love how simple this recipe is, as well as how versatile it can be.

You can add anything that would normally pair with chocolate cookies to this recipe including peanut butter chips, nuts or chocolate chunks!

Choose ingredients you think your summer bake sale attendees would enjoy for an easy-to-make top seller!

16. Strawberry Oatmeal Crumb Bars

Fresh strawberries combine with brown sugar and oatmeal to create a dessert bar that is as beautiful as it is tasty.

This recipe is dairy free and can also be made gluten-free by using gluten-free flour.

The crust and topping are the same dough so prep time for this bake sale delight is only 30 minutes.

17. No Bake Monster Cookie Balls

If you are running low on time for your summer bake sale prep, these no-bake monster cookie balls are a no-brainer.

The cookie balls are made by combining oatmeal, chocolate chips, peanuts, mini m&ms, honey and peanut butter.

Dipping them in dark chocolate adds an extra special touch!

18. Rainbow Pinwheel Cookies

These cookies are breathtaking! Although there is isn’t a fast recipe to make, your kids will love helping you dye and roll out the different layers to create gorgeous rainbow pinwheel cookies.

Bonus: This recipe will hold up great in the hot summer sun!

19. Best Chewy Sugar Cookie: Summer Bake Sale Ideas

You probably have everything you need in your pantry to make these pretty treats.

Unlike typical sugar cookie recipes that involve rolling the dough and cutting out shapes, this chewy sugar cookie recipe is made by shaping the dough into balls.

The icing is made from half & half, vanilla and powdered sugar and can be colored to match your holiday bake sales’ closest celebration (red, white and blue for the 4th?).

These cookies are sweet enough to be unfrosted too!

20. Confetti Sprinkles Cookies

Kids are going to love these colorful cookies that look like a sprinkle explosion!

With delicious ingredients like cream cheese and almond extract, expect a rich taste with kid appeal.

You’ll mix sprinkles into the dough AND roll the dough balls in colorful sprinkles…so make sure to buy a high quality brand that tastes great!

21. Funfetti Cookie Bars

Cookie bars are a great option for a summer bake sale because they are quick to make and easy to serve.

This recipe combines the convenience of a cookie bar with white chocolate chips and confetti sprinkles that make it festive and appealing!

You could definitely put your own spin on this by adding different mix-ins like chocolate chips, peanut butter chips or nuts.

Keeping Summer Bake Sale Treats Cool in the Hot Summer Sun

Let’s talk about how to keep all of your hard work from melting in the sun. Here are a few tips:

Pre-Freeze Treats: Many of these treats can be frozen before the bake sale and allowed to thaw while you’re outside. Do a test run by freezing one of the treats and tasting it yourself. While you are testing, time how long it takes for the treat to be edible so you know when to take them out of the freezer.
Keep them in a Cooler: Another good idea is to put the majority of the treats in a cooler, with one or two out for display.
Use a Shade Tent: A little bit of shade goes a long way when it comes to keeping your bake sale wares from melting. If you don’t own a pop-up shade tent, ask a friend if you can borrow theirs!