My little brother, Alex, is absolutely obsessed with pumpkin pie, cheesecake, and speculoos cookies. He also loves skittles and sour patch kids, but of baked desserts, those three are by far his top favorites.

I occasionally make pumpkin pie, but I like to experiment a lot more than making the same classics over and over. So at the beginning of the fall, I bought a bunch of pumpkin cans with the task of coming up with new pumpkin recipes. I came up with this one as a sort of spin-off of my sweet potato cheesecake recipe (Alex also loves that one!). I used the same crust as that recipe, but the filling is a whipped-cream based filling. (more…)

This Basil Berry Galette is the easy way to make a berry pie, for those days when you want want a refreshing dessert that doesn’t take too long to make. This pastry is made with a pie crust and a berry pie filling, but, unlike a traditional pie, this is free-form and doesn’t have a top crust.

It’s made with a small handful of basil, which adds complexity to the flavor (I think a bit of mint or rosemary or lavender would pair well with berries too, if you wanted to try one of those instead of basil — but I love basil with berries or peaches!). (more…)

My last post featured a super simple 3-ingredient blueberry jam, and this post has a way to use it! These blueberry macarons are made with vanilla shells and a blueberry buttercream filling. The buttercream is made with butter, sugar, and blueberry jam.

You don’t have to used homemade jam for the filling, store-bought is fine (but homemade jam is amazing!). If you do decide to go with store-bought, I would recommend using your favorite brand or something that you know will be flavorful — the blueberry jam is truly the star in this recipe. To add extra flavor, place a single blueberry in the center of each macaron. Store these macarons in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days. (more…)

Help stretch your summer with this blueberry jam recipe. This is a super simple, 3-ingredient ingredient recipe that’s ready in just 30 minutes.

All you need is a saucepan and a spoon. Serve on toast, on top of pancakes, in your PB&J, swirled into yogurt or ice cream… get creative! (more…)

These S’mores Pop Tarts are flaky pastries filled with chocolate ganache and topped with a marshmallow-like meringue.

The pastry dough is a buttery pie crust. To make this extra flaky, work with cold butter and leave chunks of butter in the dough. When you roll out the dough, you will stretch the butter and the dough will have that layered effect. (more…)

If you’ve never had a Dutch Baby, it’s basically a giant popover-like pancake. It’s light and fluffy and super simple to make, as it only requires 5 ingredients. It’s baked at high heat and quickly rises, filling with air bubbles. You can serve it as you would serve any pancake, with fruits and syrup and whipped cream. If peaches are still in season as you are contemplating this dessert, then you can try out the caramelized peach recipe here too. Simply slice some peaches and lightly cook them on your stovetop with a dab of butter and maple syrup. (more…)

Clafoutis (pronounced clah-foo-tee) is a super simple, light and delicious summer treat. Really, this French dessert can be made any time of year, but it is typically made with dark berries or cherries.

If you have never had clafoutis, it’s a bit like a cross between a pancake and flan. The edges are light and airy, while the center is thick and almost creamy. The batter itself is only lightly sweetened, and the cherries add tart bursts of flavor. (more…)

The one dessert my little brother never stops requesting is cheesecake. This past birthday, he made sure to ask for Oreo cheesecake. (more…)

Cherry season is short, so I try to make the most of it.

Baking with cherries is often a process, because you have to take the time to pit each fruit. They sell cherry/olive pitters in stores, but I try to get creative with the tools I have. (more…)

I’ve long had a bit of a macaron obsession, but only in recent months have I been experimenting more with making them myself. 

For my second macaron recipe on the blog, I’m just adapting from my first flavor (Chocolate Macarons). These cookies are filled with the same chocolate ganache as before, and the shells are speckled with coffee grounds. (more…)