Category: Sweet Recipes

Holiday, London, Sweet Recipes

Homemade Mince Pies

tray of mince pies in muffin tin


I was inspired to make my own mince pies after eating them in London. From what I’ve researched, bakeries will often prepare the mincemeat filling months, sometimes years ahead, to really develop the flavor. While I’d love to try that one day, I decided to shortcut for my first bake, and bought a jar from a gourmet shop while in London.

Update August 2026: I ended up not liking the flavor from the store-bought mincemeat. It was far too sweet and spiced. So, this year, I have gotten a head start with holiday baking and jarred my own homemade mincemeat filling, so it has time to develop over the next few months.

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New York, Sweet Recipes

Magnolia Bakery Banana Pudding

Magnolia Bakery's banana pudding recipe


While Magnolia Bakery may be known for their cupcakes, thanks to Sex and the City, I always stop by the original Bleeker St. shop in New York City for their banana pudding. I love getting a little cup to-go and enjoying it at the little park just across the street. Recently, I was craving this signature NYC dessert, so I whipped up a batch using the recipe from the new cookbook.

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Summer, Sweet Recipes

Easy Summer Snacking Cake

Plum Torte

I make the Original Plum Torte from Marion Burros, every summer. It’s so simple to whip up and incredibly satisfying to snack on, no wonder it has over 17,000 reviews. I like Italian plums but any stone fruit (see my apricot torte) or even berry, would work well. I did make a few small adjustments to the recipe, including using a smaller size pan (9″ instead of 10″) so the cake has a bit more depth and macerating the fruit first before placing in the batter so they get a head start on developing flavor.

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