eat dessert first
I am obsessed with cake. So much so, that I wrote a whole book on it. If you’d like more of my cake recipes, check out my book, Zoë Bakes Cakes! Looking for video tutorials? Check out my Cake Basics series on YouTube! You’ll learn how to trim and slice, how to fill a layer cake, how to crumb coat and how to decorate!
A traditional Victoria sponge cake features two cake layers with jam and buttercream or whipped cream. My recipe is a traditional version with strawberries and some gorgeous edible flowers. I fell in love with Victoria sponge cake on a trip to Dublin. The cake itself was so deliciously light but […]
This is the Pumpkin-Pear-Cranberry Hot Dish that I make on Season 2, episode 12 of Zoë Bakes on Magnolia Network.
When my boys were little my dad set up elaborate egg hunts for them on Easter. A tradition he took very seriously and had started when I was a little girl. In the mid 1970s, when I was about 7, my dad decided to surprise the neighborhood kids and rented a […]
If you have my book, Zoë Bakes Cakes, you likely know from the intro that the story of my life with sweets started with an auspicious meeting with the humble Twinkie. I would never presume to create anything as iconic as the original, but these homemade Twinkies are freakin’ delicious.
Every bite of this bright and dreamy lemon-curd pound cake has all the enthusiasm of a spring morning. There are layers of tartness from the luxurious lemon curd, lemon zest, and pieces of baked lemon that nestle perfectly into the buttery rich batter. A light and easy drizzle of lemon […]
I made this honey cake for a fundraiser for World Central Kitchen in Ukraine in 2022. World Central Kitchen is a wonderful organization that does humanitarian work around the world and you can help them in their mission by donating $30 to receive a video of my class featuring this […]
Looking for video tutorials? Check out my Cake Basics series on YouTube! You’ll learn how to trim and slice, how to fill a layer cake, how to crumb coat and how to decorate! Thank you to everyone who sent me baking questions on Instagram! I received hundreds of questions, so […]
This is a cake from Zoë Bakes Cakes and in the book, I baked it with grapes; juicy, sweet, but slightly tart, table grapes. It’s curious why grapes are rarely used in baking, unless dried into raisins. They are juicy and have such a wide range of sweetness and flavor, […]
I started the Zoë Bakes blog in 2007 as a way to stay connected to pastry while I was raising my boys and working on the Breadin5 bread books. I quickly found my community of online peers and Aran Goyoaga and her blog, Cannelle et Vanille, was at the center […]
This is a cake I recently created from several recipes in Zoë Bakes Cakes, but I rearranged them into this sassy layer cake with a toasted meringue top. It’s a beauty for fall and Thanksgiving! How to Make Pumpkin Cake The pumpkin bundt cake from the book can be baked […]
This hot chocolate cake from Zoë Bakes Cakes is unbelievably delicious! Combining layers of moist Devil’s Food cake and creamy, luscious chocolate frosting, the entire cake is topped with homemade toasted marshmallows. This recipe is the perfect dessert for any occasion! With hot chocolate as its inspiration, it has layers of […]
Sometimes a baking fail is just the inspiration I need to try something new. I originally baked my Devil’s Food Cake from Zoë Bakes Cakes in cupcake liners that promised to be sturdy enough not to need a muffin pan to support them. Well, I put them to the test […]