I thought I’d share another fun little recipe with you today. Lately, I’ve been making it a goal to try one new, delicious treat for my family each week. It’s become a bit of a self-care ritual — a chance to slow down, bake something simple, and enjoy a creative, calming moment in the kitchen. Baking feels like a little reset, doesn’t it?
After all the math fun with bears and buttons last week, it was only natural that my mind wandered to the idea of cookies. First, I thought about making sugar sandcastle cookies, but (as often happens) the pantry had other plans. One quick glance at the peanut butter jar, and that was it — a new idea was baked in my mind!
Here’s the quick recipe I used to whip up these cute Peanut Butter Button Cookies. Perfect for busy days and very teacher-friendly!
Peanut Butter Button Cookies — Simple & Sweet
Ingredients:
- 100g soft butter
- 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 cup plain flour
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- Pinch of salt
Method:
- Cream butter, peanut butter & sugar until fluffy.
- Add egg & vanilla. Mix well.
- Add flour, baking soda & salt. Mix to a soft dough.
- Roll into small balls. Flatten gently.
- Press a rim with a bottle cap.
- Poke 2, 3, 4, or 6 holes using a straw — they look like buttons!
- Bake at 180°C for 8–10 mins until soft and golden.
Soft, chewy, and full of peanut butter goodness!
Math Play in the Kitchen & Classroom
After making these, I couldn’t help but think how perfectly baking connects to early math learning. Last week, we explored bears, buttons, counting, and arrays, and this felt like a delicious extension of that theme.Cooking and pretend baking naturally weave in so many math concepts:
- Counting & sorting ingredients and cookies
- Measuring with cups & spoons (fractions & quantities)
- Ordering steps (procedures & sequencing)
- Timing the bake (understanding duration)
- Sharing & dividing cookies (early division practice)
- Grouping & arrays when laying out cookies on trays
Extend the Fun — Bear’s Been Baking Math Kit
If you’ve been enjoying this buttons & baking theme, I’ve created a special Math Kit Play Mat Set to match! It includes:
It’s a sweet way to combine pretend play with purposeful math learning in your classroom.
Thanks for being here, friends. Whether you’re baking at home or playing with math trays at school, it’s lovely to connect these small, joyful moments to bigger learning.
Happy baking & happy math play! 🐻🍪
- Bear play mats (holding trays, wearing a big thinking chef hat)
- Baking trays & bowls for counting & arranging
- Recipe card mats for writing numbers & math stories
- Button cookie counters (with 2, 3, 4 & 6 hole patterns for subitizing & grouping)
It’s a sweet way to combine pretend play with purposeful math learning in your classroom.
Thanks for being here, friends. Whether you’re baking at home or playing with math trays at school, it’s lovely to connect these small, joyful moments to bigger learning.
Happy baking & happy math play! 🐻🍪
- Bear’s Been Baking Math Play Mats - Bring the joy of baking into your math centers with this playful resource for counting, arrays & subitizing. Get the Math Play Mats on TpT
- Salty Sweet Cupcakes — Another Fun Bake - Looking for another simple recipe with a sweet & salty twist? This one's a taste of sunny days. Read the Salty Sweet Cupcakes blog post
- More Bear Math Kit Fun - Explore more math learning with bears — this post shares ideas for adding 3 numbers through hands-on play. Read Adding 3 Numbers with Bears