You might think making a traditional buche de noel is difficult - but it's really not! I break down all the individual steps in making it here. Enjoy!
Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!
Baby buche de noel cookies. Too cute!
Tips for shipping baked goods for the holidays!
This is cute: Santa hat icy hats!
A good christmas cookie: snowy snickerdoodles!
The best cookies ever: chocolate chip pistachio cookies.
Not sweet, still delicious: how to make risotto (I wrote the article!).
How to toast spices! Make everything taste better.
The story of the Christmas Cake.
Cool infographic about the history of baking!
Solutions for common cake baking pitfalls.
Cookies that will make Santa give you coal.
Chocolate-gingerbread cookies! Yum.
Sweet gift idea for newbie bakers: the book The Clueless Baker: Learning to Bake from Scratch
CakeSpy Teaches a Baking Class for Kids
At this time of year, you have plenty of options if your heart is in need of some warming, including Hallmark or Lifetime holiday-themed movies, multitudes of volunteering opportunities, or perhaps simply sharing some cookies with the ones you love.
But if your heart needs a little more warmth, worry not. Let me tell you all about how I taught a cookie baking class for kids last weekend.
It was a hands-on class, and these kids were very dedicated to baking.
The class was at the Santa Fe Culinary Academy (which also deserves credit for the cooking class photos featured in the post), right up the street from the historic Santa Fe Plaza. The title of the class was "Kid's Class: Holiday Cookies". Well, if you guessed that we spent the class baking up some of Santa's favorites, you are correct. The kids mainly ranged from 6 to 10 in age, but there was one little brother who was three who also (quite ably!) participated.
After introducing myself and asking if they knew where gingerbread men sleep (on cookie sheets!), we got to work.
We made snowballs...
and candy cane cookies...
and of course, cut out and decorated gingerbread men.
Then we went into no-bake territory and made some cornflake wreaths. Have you ever made those? The process is similar to making rice krispies treats, but you use cornflakes, tint the marshmallow mixture, and shape them into wreaths.
At the end of our 2 hours-and-change class, we had a wonderful variety of cookies, and each student had a little gift bag including a card, a bookmark, and a button.
During breaks or dough resting periods, I taught them how to draw a variety of my characters, including Cuppie the cupcake, as well as my unicorn and robots. They had crayons and craft paper on the tables--here are a few shots of their brilliant work.
I told them that I brought one of my little mascot Cuppie figurines and placed it on the edge of the baking space, because in case anything went wrong, then I could blame Cuppie. They *loved* the idea of that: BLAME CUPPIE!
In fact, one student was so inspired that she sent me this a few days later. Note the fine attention to cupcake detail, and the "blame cuppie" incorporation.
Another student gave me this:
flip side of the envelope:
and inside, this note:
Doesn't it just melt your heart?? As for me...my reaction is that I must have done my job well! I was so impressed by these creative little baker-elves, and felt a renewed sense of wonder and magic at the art of baking after spending time with them.
What is your favorite cookie that we made?
CakeSpy for Craftsy: How to Make Stained Glass Cookies
The best tutorial ever! Learn how to make these pretty and festive cookies here.
Mon petit Cherry: The Most Amazingly Delicious Cherry Buttercream
I have a deep-seeded belief that among cake lovers, there are two types.
There's the type of cake lover who deeply loves and appreciates the cake. These people have a high appreciation for a tender crumb, and know that a fine cake doesn't need frosting.
Personally, I have no idea what is wrong with that sort of cake lover. I'm part of the other type: Team Frosting! Members of team frosting think that cake is great, but its primary function is delivery vehicle for all that delicious, creamy frosting.
That having been said, I would like to introduce you to the new buttercream that has me wondering if I can invent a sort of IV drip so as to just keep a constant stream of this coming into my body.
It's cherry buttercream, but don't worry, it's not made with health food. It's made with cherry morsels.
I know! Cherry morsels! They carry them at the Albertson's near where I'm living right now. I think they're the bee's knees. And they tint the buttercream pink with no additional food coloring needed!
I got a bee in my bonnet to create a cherry buttercream for a very exciting recipe I'll be sharing soon on Craftsy, and I'm proud to give you a sneak peek (just the buttercream, you'll have to wait for the entire package!). It's a good piping buttercream, too.
Here is my recipe for cherry buttercream. I could eat it by the spoonful, and think that if you don't happen to have a fine cake on hand, you might find that you can do the same.
Cherry Buttercream
Makes a big bowl (enough for a batch of cupcakes or to frost a two layer cake)
- 12 ounces (1 bag) cherry morsels
- 1 stick unsalted butter
- 1 brick (8 ounces) cream cheese, softened to cool room temperature- not low fat
- pinch of salt (optional)
- 4 cups (give or take) confectioners' sugar, sifted
Procedure
- In a double boiler (or carefully over low heat) melt the morsels with the stick of butter. It goes quicker if you cut the butter in pieces, FYI. This mixture will look ugly and weird, but it will all come together in the next step.
- Remove from heat once melted, and let it mellow out on a cool surface while you cream the heck out of your cream cheese in a stand mixer, beating until nice and fluffy and smooth--5 to 7 minutes.
- Add the morsel and butter mixture. Heck, add a pinch of salt if you want. Stir until combined.
- Now, with the mixer on low, add in the confectioners' sugar, one cup at a time, until your desired spreading or piping consistency has been achieved.
Are you team cake or team frosting?
Bundles of Joy: Holiday Recipes from Craftsy
Seriously, people. If you want a fine collection of things to put in your mouth, look no further. Check it out to find pecan pie, pumpkin spice lattes, and more!
Best Gift Ever: Chocolate Spoons With a Dollop of Cookie Dough
Happy Holidaze, sweeties! Here's a wonderful guest post from Heather Saffer, also known as the author of The Dollop Book of Frosting: Sweet and Savory Icings, Spreads, Meringues, and Ganaches for Dessert and Beyond
Hello CakeSpies! Can I call you that? I hope so because it sounds really super cool! I’m Heather, author of the newly released cookbook, The Dollop Book of Frosting, and winner of Food Network’s Cupcake Wars! And I’mhonored to be guesting on CakeSpy today!
I’ve been following Jessie for quite some time now and I’m honestly enamored with her creative genius. Add the fact that she’s a fellow published author with a newly released gorgeous dessert book? Well, I literally danced a (very poor) samba when she agreed to participate in my 2013 Holiday Blog Tour!
The theme of this blog tour is “Frosting Gift Guide” so all month long up until Christmas I’m showing you entertaining ways to gift the creamiest, most delightful frostings for that frosting lover in your life.
From frosting filled candies, to frosting covered popcorn, my goal is to help you break away from the grocery store frosting jar you once relied so heavily upon!
With that said, today I’m sharing with you one of my all-time favorite frosting recipes from The Dollop Book of Frosting: Cookie Dough Frosting.
Not just a frosting, this recipe is spreadable and bakeable! Whip it, pipe it, scoop it, roll it, bake it—there are SO many things you can do with this Cookie Dough Frosting.
For this holiday gift I’m showing you today how to make chocolate spoons as the FDV’s (Frosting Delivery Vehicles) for your Cookie Dough Frosting. Packaged in pretty tins and paired with a jar of your favorite hot cocoa mix, I guarantee your friends will squeal with sweet delight at this perfect present!
Hey Jessie—I’m curious, what’s the history of Cookie Dough Frosting??!
Cookie Dough Frosting Served on Chocolate Spoons
Yield: 24 Cookie Dough Frosting dolloped spoons
For the frosting:
- 1 cup unsalted butter, softened
- ¼ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup light brown sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract (I get the best result from J.R. Watkins’ pure vanilla extract)
- 1 1/8 cups flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- ½ cup semisweet chocolate chips
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment, cream butter until soft by mixing on low speed, about 2 minutes until smooth. Add both sugars, salt, vanilla, flour, baking soda, and chocolate chips and mix until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.
To make the Chocolate Spoons:
- 2 bags of chocolate candy melts
- Chocolate spoon silicone mold
In a microwave safe bowl melt the chocolate at 30 second intervals, stirring in between, until smooth. Scoop chocolate to fill spoon molds. Place in freezer for 5-10 minutes to set. Dollop a teaspoon of Cookie Dough Frosting on each spoon and place in festive tins.
Recipe adapted from The Dollop Book of Frosting by Heather “Cupcakes” Saffer.
To follow along on the remainder of the Holiday Blog Tour, head over here! And for more ideas check out my Gift Guide for Frosting Lovers!
Happy Frosting, everyone!
Most Important Tutorial Ever: How to Make Nanaimo Bars
Have you been dying to try Nanaimo bars but scared that you're not skilled enough? STOP IT. Here's a step by step tutorial with pictures which will teach you how to make them right.
CakeSpy for Craftsy: Holiday Entertaining
Need some nifty holiday dinner party ideas? I went above and beyond sweets for this post on Craftsy, and include entertaining ideas, and recipes sweet and savory.
Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!
In Beijing, a quest to become the cupcake queen.
Is Kosher the next food trend?
Salted chocolate chip and sour cherry cookies. I want one!
Frosted flake cookies. Fascinating.
Why cake pops should be hated (for the record, I don't hate cake pops)
Snapshots from the Bake-Off on Serious Eats.
Depressed Bake Shop returns! Donut worry, be happy.
Funfetti cake ball truffles. Bet they'd be good with the holiday hued funfetti stuff, too.
Important: how to draw bacon.
How to make dulce de leche using sweetened condensed milk: a few easy ways.
How to make "cookies in a jar"--a great holiday gift!
The true meaning of Christmas (cookies, that is).
How to make a perfect milkshake at home.
Not all sweet, but still totally sweet: check out this holiday roundup I created for Craftsy.
Ten Sweets I Crave in Seattle
It's a funny thing about moving away from a place. Sometimes, you're surprised by the things you miss once you leave.
Listen. I lived in, and loved sweets in Seattle for eight years. Eight years! During my time living in the Emerald City, I pretty much knew every bakery and wandered the streets trying to find new ones--constantly.
As such, it would have been impossible to declare favorites when I lived in Seattle, because I was so constantly trying new things. But since moving away, I actively miss some desserts...these ones rise surface as the things I wish I could have again, and which I actively seek out when I am back in town.
So this is in no way a "best of" list, or a comprehensive one. It's just a loving ode to some of the sweets I find myself thinking about most. Enjoy!
Biscuits from Wandering Goose Cafe
The Wandering Goose Cafe opened after I moved away, but it is now it is one of my favorite places not only in Seattle, but on earth. And my favorite thing there? The biscuits. I am not sure how to explain the glory of these biscuits to you, other than to say that they're craggy, somewhat scone-like, and just about as full of butter as a foodstuff can possibly be. You can get the biscuits split with butter and jam, or gussied up in any number of ways. The best of the bunch, in my opinion, is the "Big Trouble", which is composed of a toasted biscuit topped with peanut butter, banana slices, and honey. Heaven on a plate. On my last trip to Seattle, I had it for breakfast 4 out of the 5 days I visited.
Biscuits from Macrina
Yep, I am a biscuit lover. And Seattle is home to so many biscuits I miss. I love Macrina's. Somewhat fluffier in texture and less craggy in appearance than the Wandering goose version, they're different but equally delicious. They have a sweet version, with a thumbprint of jam in the middle (strawberry or marionberry) or a savory ham and cheese one. Deciding which one is better is decidedly difficult. I miss these biscuits when I'm away.
Chocolate drop cookies, Three Girls Bakery, Pike Place Market
This is sort of like a Berger Cookie, if you've ever tasted one. The chocolate drop is a crumbly cookie topped with a huge dollop of rich fudgy topping. It's not necessarily a fancy cookie, but it does it for me. The cookie melts, with just the right amount of salt, and the fudge keeps you coming back for more bites. I love this cookie.
Top Pot Doughnuts
I love Top Pot Doughnuts. The cafes are always stylish, and the doughnuts are always good. Listen. I rarely bother with yeast doughnuts, so I can't tell you much about the ones at Top Pot. But I can tell you that the cake doughnuts are pleasingly hefty and with a perfectly crispy exterior which leads to a soft, feathery interior. They're fancy-ish, but still accessible to those who prefer an old school, no-frills doughnut. They just make me happy.
Cupakes are a tie, so this is in two parts:
Pink frosted cupcakes from Cupcake Royale
Cupcake Royale does something magical to create their cake, which is spongey but also dense at the same time, so it has a certain delicate nature but a satisfying weight and a flavor which satisfies. I've never tried a cake with quite this texture before. It's even better, of course, when you top it with a crack-filled buttercream and call it "Dance Party with Holly Hobbie", which is the cupcake's proper name. It is a food that always makes me smile, and I miss it like a friend.
Hummingbird cupcakes from Trophy Cupcakes
At Trophy Cupcakes, purveyor of pinkies-out cupcakes in the Emerald City, the variety I always hope to find is the Hummingbird. The banana cake should not be confused with banana bread--it's more delicate, with a finer crumb, though it's still very banana in flavor. Plus, I've never seen banana bread so awesome as to have a huge dollop of cream cheese icing on top like these little cakes.
Hummingbird cake from Kingfish Cafe 
Kingfish Cafe is famous for its Red Velvet cake, but once I tried the Hummingbird there, I was hooked. It's huge--about the size of your head, and covered in whipped cream and caramel and strawberries to the point where you wonder where the cake is. Dig through the toppings, because while they don't hurt, the real treasure is to be found in the cake, scented with banana and delicately sandwiched between generous layers of cream cheese frosting. I'd be lying if I told you I couldn't finish a slice by myself, as huge as it is. Whenever a friend asks where I'd like to go for dinner in Seattle, I suggest this establishment--mostly so I can order dessert. I hope they never stop making these cakes, though it's been a while since I visited (boo).
Panna cotta gelato from Bottega Italiano
I don't know if Bottega Italiano actually offers other flavors, because rarely have I even looked. The panna cotta is where it's at when you visit this tiny gelateria on the First Avenue side of the Pike Place Market. It's so creamy, so dreamy, so perfect, that I never crave much else. A secondary flavor is mere formality.
Nanaimo bars
True, Nanaimo bars are actually from Canada. But Seattle is close enough that you'll see them somewhat frequently (at least, more often than most other American cities, I'd warrant a guess). I love Nanaimo bars so hard. I think that they are a perfect food. If you want to learn more about them, or learn how to make them, you can search this site or check out my tutorial on Craftsy.
Pink frosted cookies
Truthfully, this is an odd choice to put on the list because when it comes down to it, I don't enjoy eating the commercial variety of the pink frosted cookies all that much. I love bakery versions, which are all sort of riffs on the commercial ones. But what I really miss (I'm getting to it, promise) is seeing these cookies everywhere. They're ubiquitous in Seattle, and you can find them in grocery stores and gas station mini marts and unexpected places. They're very special, and have a sweet place in my heart.
Coconut cream pie from Tom Douglas
I like to tell people that even if coconut cream pie isn't their #1 choice, Tom Douglas' version (available at the Dahlia Bakery and several of his restaurants) might be the one to make them a believer. It's coconut through and through, with the creamy stuff in the crust, cream, topping, and flaked as garnish. And it's the good stuff, fat flakes which are clearly well-sourced because they're just so, so tasty. Try it--this pie is legendary in Seattle, and for good reason.
Bonus: Old School custard
Oh, I love custard! Old School Custard will top it in all sorts of ways, but my favorite is the vanilla version, with rainbow sprinkles. Really, this custard is perfect: unbelievably creamy, like you're licking the top of a pail of milk where cream has risen to the surface. Well, if that pail also had sugar inside of it and optional sprinkles as garnish, I suppose. Anyhow. I miss Old School Custard!
What sweets do you miss when you're away from your hometown, or someplace you lived?
CakeSpy for Craftsy: Flour for Cake Baking
Want to learn more about the types of flour used for baking cakes? Look no further than this wonderful article I wrote for Craftsy.
Pucker Up: Lemon Walnut Bars Recipe
After Thanksgiving, people crave light treats that will make them feel refreshed, in contrast to the fullness they may have felt over the holiday.
These Lemon Walnut Bars are perfect, because owing to the lemon they taste refreshing, and the addition of oats gives them the slightest tone of healthfulness.
But don't worry--they're not actually healthy. With creamy sweetened condensed milk and plenty of butter, rest assured, these are definitely dessert.
I had a brief love affair with the lemon crumb bars sold at Tully's Coffee Shops in Seattle a few years ago--they certainly weren't fancy, they were made by a commercial bakery in the area and wouldn't be what I would consider "artisan". But there was something about the tart-sweet lemon filling paired with a streusel-like topping that had me hooked.
So when I saw a recipe for Lemon Walnut Bars in the new cookbook Butter Baked Goods: Nostalgic Recipes From a Little Neighborhood Bakery (also the source of this fab marshmallow recipe), I knew I had to try it.
Seriously, this recipe is a classic. It's like the bars I so loved at Tully's, but tastier since they were baked fresh. The filling is tart with lemon but so smooth and creamy with the sweetened condensed milk, which makes it almost like a key lime pie filling, but with lemon. The sweet-salty streusel has all of these notest that work well with the lemon: brown sugar, coconut, walnuts, and oats--which make it also slightly crunchy, and a perfect texture complement to the creaminess. I promise, if you love lemon bars and you love crumb cake, you will adore these squares. You won't be able to stop eating them.
Lemon Walnut Bars
adapted from Butter Baked Goods: Nostalgic Recipes From a Little Neighborhood Bakery
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup butter
- 1 cup large flake rolled oats
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 3/4 cup brown sugar (dark)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/2 cup ground walnuts
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1 can sweetened condensed milk
- 1/2 cup lemon juice (2 lemons)
Procedure
- Preheat oven to 350.
- In a small saucepan over low heat, melt the butter.
- In a large bowl, combine oats, flour, sugar, coconut, walnuts, and baking powder. Pour in the melted butter and mix until the butter is evenly distributed. Press half of the oat mixture into the prepared pan, and press it in firmly. If you wanna, line the bottom with a strip of parchment to make for easy removal later.
- In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the consensed milk and lemon uice until thick and combined. Pour the mixture over the base. Use the back of a spoon or spatula to make sure it's an even layer. Sprinkle the remaining crumb mixture over the filling.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 22 to 25 minutes or until golden on top.
- Remove from oven and cool completely into the pan. Run a knife along the edges of the pan. Cut into bars.
CakeSpy for Craftsy: Cooking and Baking Dudes
Don't you just love a man who can cook and bake? Here's a profile on some delectable dudes who decorate cake, and here's one on men who can cook pizza, bread, pasta, and other tasty stuff. Enjoy!
CakeSpy for Craftsy: Common Cake Baking Pitfalls
What went wrong with your cake? Here's a primer on several common pitfalls and their causes.
Baker's Dozen: A Batch of Sweet Links!
Delicious, though not sweet: different types of gnocchi (an article I wrote!).
Useful: how to cut and de-seed a pomegranate.
Pumpkin pie with shortbread cookie crust. Great use for that leftover can of pumpkin!
Leftover Thanksgiving Pie Milkshake. Should you find yourself with leftover pie, that is.
How to make perfect pound cake.
My friend Jeff wrote a great round-up of the Pillsbury Bake-Off. Read it!
Don't forget to read my roundup of the Bake-Off, too.
If you still haven't had enough pumpkin pie, make pumpkin pie cookies!
Great use of leftover cranberry sauce: cranberry sauce bar cookies.
Other great use of cranberry sauce: cranberry sauce filled jelly doughnuts.
Yet another great use: cranberry sauce cinnamon rolls.
YES! Cranberry orange pop-tarts. Homemade.
CakeSpy for Craftsy: Homemade Cranberry Sauce
Homemade cranberry sauce is so easy to make, it actually pains me that you're still considering buying it in the can. Here's a simple recipe!
CakeSpy for Craftsy: Pie Crust Cookies
Pie crust: it's not just for pie. It's great for cookies, too! Here's a simple and tasty recipe.
Thanksgiving Cake Designs
Tired of pie? Check out some inspiring Thanksgiving cake designs!
DIY Croissant Doughnuts Made from Crescent Rolls
Listen, once I heard that you could make DIY croissant doughnuts (I'm not mentioning them by name, but we all know what I'm talking about here), I simply had to try it at home.
And I am beyond delighted to report that it is easy, and the results are so highly delicious that you just might gain a hundred pounds before Christmas if you make them as frequently as you'll want to after giving it a try.
The only tough part is monitoring the temperature of the oil for frying. I am lucky because in a stroke of fate, a company that makes something called Chef Alarm had contacted me just a week before I decided to get frying at home and asked if I wanted to try out their product. Um, yes. So while they sent me the device for free, they didn't pay me to say good stuff about it. But happily, I liked it. This helpful gadget includes timers, a temperature probe, and temperature monitoring so it will notify you if things are going outside of the comfort zone. But the absolute best part is that it comes in pink. YES! I think it's a nifty tool and would probs make a good present for the baker in your life this holiday season.
The reason why you have to monitor the temperature for frying? A few reasons, but from my point of view, a huge reason is that you can't tell how hot the oil is at any given time. It looks the same whether it's 280 or 390 degrees. If it's too hot, your doughnuts can fry too fast on the outside and be doughy on the inside. If the oil is too cool, it will take too long to fry them and they'll be leaden. Nobody wants either!
But anyways, I know you're frying--er, dying--to read more about the doughnuts, so let's get down to business.
How to make Croissant Doughnuts using Crescent Rolls
You need:
- One roll of crescent rolls
- oil, for frying
- about a cup and a half of buttercream, pudding, ice cream, custard, or whatever filling you want.
- confectioners' sugar glaze (1 1/4 cups confectioners' sugar mixed with 2 tablespoons or so of cream) if desired
Step 1: The first thing you do is open up the can of crescent rolls. Enjoy that "pop" as they release themselves in their carbohydratey glory into the world.
Step 2: Now, roll them into one big rectangle. Then, fold it on top of itself so you have a big square. Press gently to remove the "seams". The better you work the seams, the prettier your doughnuts will look later.
Step 3: Now, grab a doughnut cutter (just go buy one if you don't have them - they're like $2!). Cut out as many doughnut shapes as you can. Re-roll the scraps and cut more, but be aware that the re-rolled ones, to be frank, will be the ugly ones.
Step 4: Fill a frying pan with some vegetable oil. You want at least a few inches of oil in the pan. Heat it until it reaches about 350 degrees. You will want a thermometer of some sort for this, trust me.
Step 5: Place the doughnut cutouts a few at a time into the hot oil. Fry on each side until golden and puffy. It won't take long. Remove gently, using a slotted spoon, and transfer to paper towels to blot excess oil.
Step 6: Cut the doughnuts in half like you would a bagel, and fill with buttercream, pudding, custard, or whatever your heart desires. Glaze if you wanna, or just stuff your face immediately.
Do you enjoy frying at home?