Dessert Recipes

My friend Jen asked why I couldn’t just use store-bought pie crust and skip the whole flour-on-the-counter mess. We were standing in my kitchen, a … Read more

The church bake sale was in six hours and I’d completely forgotten. Everyone else would be bringing their grandmother’s famous pound cakes, perfectly layered trifles, … Read more

My nephew Leo asked why I couldn’t just trace his hand on the cookie dough instead of rolling it out and using cutters. I started … Read more

My neighbor, a seven-year-old named Leo, asked why I couldn’t just brown the butter in the microwave. I was about to launch into a whole … Read more

There used to be a little bakery on the corner of Elm and 3rd that made a pumpkin dirt cup that I still dream about. … Read more

I was supposed to be making a proper chocolate mousse that Halloween. You know, the fancy kind with egg whites and all that careful folding. … Read more

I was knee-deep in unpacking boxes in my new apartment—the one with the weirdly small kitchen and the radiator that clanks like a ghost—when my … Read more

“Why can’t we just crush the cookies with our hands?” my nephew asked, eyeing the food processor with suspicion. I started to explain why that … Read more

This was supposed to be a batch of my grandmother’s famous gingerbread cookies. The ones that take three days, eight spices, and a level of … Read more

The neighborhood Halloween party was in six hours and I’d completely forgotten. Everyone else would be bringing elaborate themed desserts—I’d seen the photos on the … Read more