Bake-Along Books is our family-run publishing company that creates interactive storybooks you can bake along with. Each book combines a whimsical tale with a real step-by-step recipe, so readers can follow the story and learn to bake as they turn the pages.

It all started with Once Upon a Chocolate Chip Cookie—but there are many more sweet stories to come. Whether it’s cookies, cakes, or holiday favorites, every Bake-Along Book is designed to create moments of connection, confidence, and joy in the kitchen.

Because baking with your kids should feel like a story worth telling.

Once Upon a Cookie is our first interactive bake-along storybook series, created by Missy & Bryan Lanning. It brings storytelling and baking together in a magical way—kids follow along with a fun, whimsical tale while learning how to make real cookies, one step at a time.

It’s part of our bigger mission at Bake-Along Books, where every story ends with something warm, delicious, and made with love.

That’s the plan! Once Upon a Chocolate Chip Cookie is just the beginning of the Once Upon a Cookie series. Each book will feature a new recipe and story with the whole family along for the ride.

Yes! This is the recipe — the one Missy’s been perfecting for over a decade. You’ll find it baked right into the page.

Missy’s grandma lovingly called her “Cookie” and taught her that beautiful things can come from happy little accidents. Over the years, that simple chocolate chip cookie turned into something more: a family tradition, a way to connect, and a recipe passed down with love. We wanted to create a book that lets other families experience that same joy — baking together, making a mess, and building memories that last way longer than the cookies.

Because we want to make this with you. Kickstarter gives us a way to bring this dream to life as a community. It also helps us fund the very first print run — a beautiful, 10x10 hardcover collector’s edition with a custom dust jacket. Your support helps us print, package, and ship these books straight from our family to yours.

We launch pre-orders on July 8 on Kickstarter. The campaign will run for 30 days, and if it’s fully funded, we’ll go straight into production and aim to ship this fall — just in time for cozy baking season.

Yes — but it’s designed for families. Little ones can enjoy the story, big kids can help in the kitchen, and grown-ups get to soak up the sweetness of it all. It’s a read-aloud, bake-together, make-memories kind of book — and honestly, a really good excuse to gather in the kitchen and slow down.

It’s not just a story — it’s a bake-along experience. Each page walks you through the recipe step-by-step, with fun illustrations and a sweet storyline starring our family. By the final page, you’ll have warm cookies and a memory to go with them.

Back the Kickstarter! You’ll choose your reward tier, and if we reach our goal, you’ll be one of the first to get the book — plus exclusive extras like aprons, cookie necklaces, signed copies, and even your name printed inside the book.

Missy wrote it, and it’s based on her original chocolate chip cookie recipe. But this book is the result of a huge team effort. Missy designed it alongside her husband Bryan, and we worked with an incredible group of illustrators, editors, typesetters, formatters, animators, graphic designers, and more. This is a real labor of love.