Baking for the holidays : 50+ treats for a festive season /

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

From celebrated blogger Sarah Kieffer, a charming holiday baking cookbook brimming with delicious, indulgent recipes, cozy winter photography, and lots of holiday cheer.



Here's a festive holiday baking book to celebrate this very special time of year. Sarah Kieffer, author of 100 Cookies , beloved baker behind The Vanilla Bean Blog , and creator of the "bang-the-pan" method offers more than 50 delicious recipes for seasonal brunches, cookie swaps, and all those Christmas, Hanukah, and New Year's Eve parties.



Delight family and friends with edible gifts and whip up some delicious baked goods to treat yourself through the long winter months after the holidays have ended. With cozy holiday imagery, a lovely, clean aesthetic, and easy yet innovative recipes, this is a go-to cookbook for baking enthusiasts, anyone who loves the holiday season, and, of course, fans of Sarah Kieffer and her hugely popular cookie book 100 Cookies .



DELICIOUS RECIPES: Go beyond sugar cookies and bundt cakes and learn to make such mouthwatering winter treats as Triple Chocolate Peppermint Bark, Meyer Lemon-White Chocolate Scones, Pear-Almond Danish Bread, Hot Chocolate Cake, Pumpkin Pie with Candied Pepita Streusel, and more.



GREAT GIFT OPPORTUNITY: With happy, festive photography and anyone-can-do-it recipes, this is a perfect holiday gift alongside a cute apron or baking product. It's sure to please anyone in your life who loves to while away the winter months in their warm and cozy kitchen.



BELOVED, ACCOMPLISHED BLOGGER AND AUTHOR: Sarah Kieffer is the beloved blogger behind The Vanilla Bean Baking Blog , past winner of Saveur Reader's Choice Best Baking & Desserts Blog. Her pan-banging cookie technique "broke the internet," going viral on the New York Times website. She has written several cookbooks and has been featured by Food52, The Today Show , Mashable , The Kitchn , America's Test Kitchen , Huffington Post , and more.



Perfect for: Home bakers of all ages and levels Anyone who enjoys holiday baking Fans of Sarah Kieffer's blog, Instagram, and cookbooks Holiday gift givers Readers of Dorie's Cookies , Dessert Person , Snacking Cakes , or Pastry Love

Table of contents provided by Syndetics

• 1 Morning Breads and Pastries
• Classic Cinnamon Rolls (p. 25)
• Nutella Star Bread (p. 37)
• Morning Buns (p. 40)
• Cranberries and Cream Danish (p. 47)
• Pear-Almond Danish Braid (p. 50)
• Coffee-Cardamom Monkey Bread (p. 54)
• Powdered Sugar Donuts (p. 59)
• Streusel Coffee Cake (p. 63)
• Panettone Scones (p. 67)
• Cheater's Croissant Dough (p. 70)
• Easy Danish Dough (p. 74)
• Sweet Dough (p. 76)
• 2 Holiday Desserts
• White Cake with Cranberries and White Chocolate Buttercream (p. 80)
• Carrot Cake with Burnt Honey Buttercream (p. 84)
• Triple Chocolate Mousse Cake (p. 89)
• Hazelnut Cheesecake (p. 93)
• Apple, Caramel, and Hard Cider Pie (p. 96)
• Crème Brûlée Pumpkin Pie (p. 99)
• Chocolate Mint Ice Cream Pie (p. 103)
• Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with Irish Cream (p. 106)
• Frozen Bonbons (p. 109)
• Shortbread Crust (p. 111)
• Pie Dough (p. 112)
• 3 Gift Giving
• Caramel Candies (p. 116)
• Peanut Butter Cups (p. 121)
• Triple Chocolate Peppermint Bark (p. 123)
• Red Veivet Crinkle Cookies (p. 127)
• Turtle Bars (p. 129)
• Chocolate Gift Cakes (p. 132)
• Modern Fruit Cakes (p. 135)
• Florentines (p. 138)
• Vanilla Bean Sables (p. 143)
• Cut-Out Cookies (p. 145)
• 4 Beyond Christmas
• Everything Bundt Cake (p. 151)
• Lemon Pull-Apart Bread (p. 154)
• Blood Orange Turnovers (p. 160)
• Passion Fruit-Poppy Seed Muffins (p. 163)
• Meyer Lemon-White Chocolate Scones (p. 165)
• Blueberry Streusel Buns (p. 169)
• Coconut-Cardamom Cupcakes (p. 171)
• Cruffins (p. 174)
• Hot Chocolate Cake (p. 178)
• Confetti Cake (p. 183)
• Rough Puff Pastry (p. 186)
• 5 Extras
• Caramel Shards (p. 191)
• Marshmallows (p. 192)
• Caramel (p. 195)
• No-Churn Ice Cream (p. 196)
• Pastry Cream (p. 199)
• Candied Citrus Peels (p. 201)
• Cranberry Jam (p. 202)
• Streusel (p. 203)
• Whipped Cream (p. 204)
• Crème Fraîche (p. 205)
• Candied Nuts (p. 207)
• Lemon Curd (p. 208)
• Marshmallow Fluff (p. 210)
• Closing Out the Year (p. 212)
• Music to Bake To (p. 215)
• Conversions (p. 216)
• Bibliography (p. 217)
• Resources (p. 218)
• Acknowledgments (p. 219)
• Index (p. 220)

Reviews provided by Syndetics

Library Journal Review

Following the success of 100 Cookies, the latest from blogger Kieffer brings more than 50 recipes for the winter holidays, particularly themed around Christmas and Hanukkah. This title again showcases Kieffer's accessible approach to baking and offers recipes with a range of complexity that will suit bakers at different skill levels (including beginners). Sweet tooths will swoon over creations such as Carrot Cake with Burnt Honey Buttercream, Hot Chocolate Cake with Marshmallow Fluff Filling, and pumpkin pie topped with crème brûlée. Beyond the show-stopping desserts, there are breakfast pastries (scones, coffee cakes, muffins) with holiday flavors, and more challenging yeasted recipes that use Kieffer's innovative Cheater's Croissant Dough, which simplifies laminated pastry. Kieffer also writes a chapter on homemade gifts (candies, chocolates, cookies) to share with family and friends. VERDICT This approachable guide to baking for the holidays offers plenty of inspiration for bakers of all levels; it's a delightful seasonal complement to Kieffer's hit 100 Cookies.--Kelsy Peterson, Brighton Grammar Sch., Melbourne, Australia

Publishers Weekly Review

In this cheerful collection, Kieffer (100 Cookies), founder of The Vanilla Bean Blog, shares dozens of sweet recipes perfect for the holiday season. In addition to Christmas classics like triple chocolate peppermint bark and fruit cake, she offers a number of desserts--coffee-cardamom monkey bread, crème brûlée pumpkin pie, cruffins (a hybrid of croissants and muffins)--that are ideal for cozying up with in the colder months. Throughout, there are plenty of fun twists: after sharing the recipe for classic cinnamon rolls, Kieffer pivots to instructions on how to make a cinnamon braid, while a recipe for vanilla bean sables includes citrus and rosemary chocolate chip variations. She thoughtfully includes several post-holiday-rush recipes--including blueberry streusel buns, passion fruit-poppy seed muffins, and lemon pull-apart bread--that use a pop of fresh or frozen fruit to help readers get through the "long, winter days." In addition to the recipes, Kieffer shares lighthearted anecdotes ("I have plenty of memories of my sister and I fighting over cookie cutters," she reminisces before introducing her cut-out cookies) and even suggestions for music to bake to. Avid holiday bakers should put this on their wish list. Agent: Jane Dystel, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (Sept.)

Booklist Review

The debate continues: Is baking an art or a science? Kieffer (100 Cookies, 2020) melds the two skillfully, from her upfront best practices (use parchment paper, for example) to the recipes themselves. Across five categories (morning breads and pastries, holiday desserts, gift-giving, beyond Christmas, and extras), the baked goods include updated traditional goodies, like cinnamon rolls, as well as refreshingly modern items such as caramel candies, lemon pull-apart bread, and crème brûlée pumpkin pie. What differentiates Kieffer's collection are her emphasis on variations (extra fillings, spice additions), directions for making ahead, explanations of how to make items "holiday," and the great step-by-step color photographs demonstrating techniques like braiding breads and rolling up pastries. Mouthwatering photographs accompany every dish, with hard-to-resist Nutella star bread, modern fruit cake, and cruffins (croissants and muffins, combined). Not just for the holidays. Appendixes include music to bake to, conversions, bibliography, and resources.

Author notes provided by Syndetics

Sarah Kieffer is the blogger behind The Vanilla Bean Blog , a contributor to major food publications, and author of 100 Cookies . Her recipe for "bang-the-pan" cookies went viral after she introduced it on the New York Times website (it's delicious and ingenious!). In addition to writing her own books, she also shoots photography for other cookbooks, including Bread in 5 (with the authors of Artisan Bread in 5 Minutes a Day ). She lives in Minnesota.