Not necessarily "easy" but kids love cut out cookies like sugar cookies, gingerbread or chocolate cut outs. They love the shapes and love playing with sprinkles.

Or a drop cookie dough and she could press in chocolate chips.

These are easy. If you don't have ginger, sub in some other spice like allspice or nutmeg (I did and they were fine). Also, I lined the cookie sheet with parchment paper.

Brown Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 sticks (6 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1 large egg, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking soda
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

-Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

-Place the butter and sugar in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a paddle and beat until smooth and creamy. Add the egg and beat well. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Place the flour, baking soda, salt, and spices in a separate bowl and mix well. Add to the butter mixture and beat until everything is well incorporated. Scrape down the sides of the bowl and beat again.

-Drop large teaspoonfuls of dough onto an unbuttered cookie sheet about 2 inches apart and bake until the edges are just brown, 8 to 12 minutes. For crispy cookies, let cool on the sheet. Let the cookie sheet cool completely between batches and repeat with the remaining dough.

This is the absolute easiest and best cookie for little kids to make and decorate. Have been making them since I was a kid -- original recipe came from an old Betty Crocker cookbook, I think (if not BC, then Better Homes and Gardens Cookbook).

Stir-n-Drop Sugar Cookies

Beat w/ fork until well blended:
2 eggs

Stir in:
2/3 cup salad oil
2 tsp vanilla
1 tsp grated lemon rind

Blend in until mixture thickens:
3/4 cup sugar

Stir together and mix in:
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400F.
Drop by teaspoonful about 2" apart on ungreased baking sheet. Flatten w/ greased bottom of glass dipped in sugar. Bake until a delicate brown, 8-10 min. Remove immediately from baking sheet. Makes about 3 dozen 3" cookies.

NOTE: When I made these w/ my nieces as christmas cookies, I would divide the dough into two or three bowls and add food coloring to each, then mix in well. Then, rather than flattening the cookies with a sugar-dipped glass, I'd just flatten/level them a bit and give the kids all different toppings to pile on the cookies.... colored sugars, dots and sprinkles, durgees, and whatever you have. It all works great and they're really pretty considering how little effort they take!

These are a good-tasting cookie -- not too sweet. Everyone always likes them!

My daughter has loved making sugar cookies with icing since she was 2 Years old. She loves trying to roll and cut out the shapes and loves to put icing on them and sprinkles, but I learned sprinkles wasn't a good idea if they are the round ones. They go everywhere.

We have an icing set that is similar to squirt bottles which makes it easier for her to handle.

Maybe have pore baked some of the cookies to put icing on and do that while some of the cut outs are in the oven if limited on time.

Why not make them in advance and just do lots of decorating together?

Why not make them in advance and just do lots of decorating together?

Ditto

You've probably already had your play date (hope it went well!) ,but my nieces always loved making Peanut Butter Blossoms. They help unwrap the kisses and they love pushing them onto the dough. The kisses are big enough that even little hands can do it.

Darn, I missed this too.

I've learned when baking with the grandkids that the frosting and sprinkles are actually the important part, so I usually cut sugar cookies and then let the kids help decorate.

Gingerbread men are especially fun, and we've made more than one gingerbread "hovel". House is too complimentary for our constructions of gingerbread and several pounds of frosting and candy. They usually stand long enough to get a picture and then we eat 'em!

Annie

Too long ago almost to remember, Mother had the cub scout troop over and the weather was icky, so she decided to have them bake magic cookies...they had the best time. A very easy recipe and one the boys could get their hands into to make the balls. Everyone had a grand time....and of course the cookies always taste better if you made them yourself!

Here is a link that might be useful: Magic pudding cookies

This post was edited by AnnieDeighnaugh on Fri, Dec 13, 13 at 8:32

Thank you for all the good suggestions and recipes. I will be using them as I was informed that yesterday was only the first of our cookie baking days. Apparently, my GD has "a lot of people" who would like to have homemade cookies. So we'll be trying out different versions. We went with plain vanilla sugar cookies iced with powdered sugar glaze with colored sugar sprinkles. Oh, how she enjoyed the sprinkling part! It was about the most fun I've had this Christmas season.