Have you ever wondered why vodka sauce tastes good even though you can’t taste the vodka? Why do we use alcohol to make vanilla extract? Should you even care about this if you just want to make a cake? Keep reading to find out… Sugar syrups for candy making are boiled to specific temperatures and …

This is the only Vanilla Butter Cake recipe you’ll ever want or need. Mixing technique can make a big difference when making cake batter. Find out the best way to get a light and tender cake. When I was developing the base recipe for my wedding cake business I wanted a tender and melt-in-your mouth …

Chicken Pot Pie has got to be one of the all-time great comfort foods. Warm chicken stew under a flaky pie crust sprinkled with sea salt, yummm. I know this is a baking blog, but I do cook savory food at home as well, and Chicken Pot Pie is a pie, after all. A great …

Homemade chicken stock is quick and easy to make. If you’ve never made your own chicken stock (bone broth) before you’ll be surprised not only by how easy it is, but how much of a difference it makes in your cooking. While store bought chicken broth is ok, it can be quite salty and doesn’t …

I originally got the idea for these cookies from the little palm-shaped French cookies called Palmiers. In my job at the British tea shop years ago I used to make dozens of Eccles Cakes, a traditional British pastry made with puff pastry circles. I’d end up with lots of trimmings from the pastry and rather than waste it I …

Old-fashioned Rhubarb Pie just might be my favorite fruit pie of all. I love the tart-sweet flavor and beautiful pink color of pure rhubarb pie filling. In my “Perfect Pie Crust” post I end the article with a paragraph about the importance of patience in baking. You’ll see here how I didn’t take my own …

Beautiful Blood Orange Marmalade is surprisingly easy to make. It’s as tasty as it is pretty. When I had a surplus of blood oranges recently I decided to make some marmalade. Fruit preserves might seems scary if you’ve never made them, but they really are very simple. Mix your fruit with sugar and boil until …

Hot Cross Buns are traditionally served on Good Friday. I love the warm and fragrant combination of spices and dried fruit in this recipe. Finish the  pretty buns with the cross cut into the top.  I worked in a British Tea Shop for about 7 years. Of course I made dozens of scones and all …

Fill your Easter basket with these Coconut Macaroon Easter Eggs. The surprise passion fruit “yolk” makes these coconut Easter eggs are unlike any other macaroon cookie. After 10 years of talking to people every day about their favorite cake flavors, I can tell you that no one seems to be neutral about coconut, they either …

Passion Fruit Curd is just one variation of this adaptable recipe. Fruit curds can be made with citrus fruit, mango, passion fruit, pineapple, and others. Curds are easy to make and so versatile in the kitchen. My custom cake business, Cake Art Studio, had a fairly large menu of cake flavors. One of the most …