TWO Exclusive Recipes on my Birthday!
Milk Chocolate Pumpkin Icebox Cake + a gluten-free and egg-free dessert!
It’s my BIRTHDAY so I made this Milk Chocolate Pumpkin Icebox Cake with Brown Sugar Balsamic Meringue (that’s a real mouthful) to mark the occasion! I am so grateful you are here to celebrate with me! Today I am offering 25% off for anyone who wants to join the “Extras” newsletter party. You’ll get all the exclusive recipes (including this cake), interviews, first dibs on travel tours I’m going on (I’m about to announce another tour soon) and lots of special content as an “Extras” subscriber. During my birthday only (today, 11/16) you’ll get the 25% discount. I hope you’ll join in on the fun we have here.
If you’re already an “Extras” member, THANK YOU! You can also use the discount to give the newsletter as a gift to anyone in your life who loves to bake!
25% off annual subscriptions only. The discount is for the first year.
What To Bake This Weekend
Do you have pie on the mind? This Caramel Apple Pumpkin pie combines two favorite Thanksgiving pie flavors into one.
Spice cake is perfect for fall, and even fits nicely on a Thanksgiving table. My version with brown buttercream and cranberry filling is heavenly.
It’s always time for banana desserts! My list of 13 includes favorites like banana bread and banana cream pie.
If you’ve recently made one of my recipes, please leave a rating/review to let me know how it went! I love hearing how you’ve made my recipes work for you.
Bake with Me at Cooks | Bellecour
I hope you’ll join me for a special baking class at Cooks | Bellecour in celebration of Zoë Bakes Cookies. You'll learn the secrets to baking a variety of cookies. Spots are limited, see the details button for more information and tickets!
Menu: Chocolate Brownie Mint Sandwich Cookie; Pistachio-Apricot Biscotini; Gingerbread Cut Out Cookies.
Cranberry Brown Butter Blondies
This week I went on Twin Cities Live for their Thanksgiving special and I made a new variation of my Brown Butter Rhubarb Blondies from Zoë Bakes Cookies! Watch the segment to see me bake these and I hilariously shared everything I know about Thanksgiving Day Football with the host, Ben Leber, a former NFL linebacker. That went about as well as you’d expect from a professional baker! Hahaha You’ll find the recipe at the link below as well. I think you’re going to LOVE this version for your holiday table!
Amazon’s Best Books of 2024!
I am overwhelmed with gratitude for all the accolades Zoë Bakes Cookies has received since it was published a couple of months ago. Thanks to all of you who pre-ordered my book or left a review—it’s because of you that I made the New York Times Bestsellers list and Amazon’s Best Cookbooks, Food and Wine Books of 2024. THANK YOU!
Don’t forget to leave a review for the book on Amazon if you haven’t yet! It doesn’t matter if you purchased from Amazon or an independent bookseller. I appreciate it!
Exclusive Recipes
I love pumpkin in desserts and Thanksgiving is the holiday when I get to showcase it. This year I wanted to create something that would be a real showstopper and wouldn’t require oven space, which can be a real juggling act while the turkey, stuffing, rolls, and apple pie are baking. My first idea was the create a pumpkin mousse-like dessert that could be done ahead and was also gluten-free and egg-free, two things I get requests for most often.
The 5-ingredient Milk Chocolate Pumpkin Whipped Ganache is quite perfect all on its own but serving it with maple-roasted bits of pumpkin, a dollop of whipped cream, and the crunch of pepitas makes it an easy dessert that I would have been proud to serve in any of the fine-dining restaurants I’ve worked in.
Because it’s my birthday I wanted to come up with a cake that would take that same flavor profile but elevate the dessert into something with drama. And, most importantly, an excuse to use my blowtorch. ;) I had just made homemade Graham Crackers, so I layered them with the Milk Chocolate Pumpkin Whipped Ganache and then topped the whole thing with a Brown Sugar Balsamic Meringue. The brown sugar and balsamic temper the sweetness of the meringue and make it a brilliant partner to the icebox cake below. Blast it with a touch of the torch to toast the meringue and you have something truly special.
