Should You Buy an Easy Bake Oven?

Are Easy Bake Ovens worth the cost?

We think that Easy Bake Ovens are a great way to get going without using dangerous ovens; hence their popularity. Here is the up-side of Easy Bake Ovens:

• You can start much younger with an Easy Bake Oven.
• They are relatively inexpensive to buy.
• They are powered by a light bulb; can’t get hurt with that.
• They come with easy sets of cakes mixes and other simple mixes.
• Because they are relatively inexpensive and show quick results, kids love to “cook” with them.
• They are the kid’s very own oven.

The down side:

• The ingredient packages do not contain particularly healthy food.
• Ingredients packages get expensive after awhile.
• You really wouldn’t want your child to think that cooking is simply mixing water into powdered mixes.
• There are a limited number of things to prepare, but every year there is more variety.

Take your cue from Amazon.com, which categorizes them as “Toys and Games.” It’s a toy! If you have the philosophy “let kids be kids,” then an Easy Bake Oven is for you (or your kids, rather). If you want your kids to take the SAT test at age 12 and proceed on to college, better go for the real oven.

Don’t worry that your children will eat too much of the processed cake mixes.  It’s a short step to the real kitchen and most children make it quickly. But just like the plastic food and kitchen sets that are clearly theirs, the Easy Bake Oven offers more of a sense of ownership for kids.

The likelihood is that the Easy Bake Oven will only entertain them for about six months, depending on how many baking packages they have to use. But they can start earlier using this simple device, and that in itself may be worth the cost.

We admit to having bought our kids an Easy Bake Oven. They LOVED it and made every mix that we would buy. One of the kids saw the power of being able to cook well and became a terrific cook by age 17. You never know what will spark a child’s imagination, or which child will seize an opportunity. We, as parents, however, are there to provide the opportunities and let nature take its course.

Once kids outgrow them, be ready for the next stage.