Marble Cupcakes with Swirled Chocolate-Vanilla Frosting

Chocolate or vanilla? These Marble Cupcakes with Swirled Chocolate-Vanilla Frosting are perfect for those days when you just can’t decide! My favorite part: they’re just as fast and easy to make as a single batter & frosting cupcake recipe. 

Let’s get one thing straight, folks: Decision-making as an adult is hard. Sure, growing up everyone would warn you about the dangers of sex and drugs and dropping out of school–and these are valid concerns (though as someone who spent 23 years in formal education, I still find it amusing that nobody ever warned me about the dangers of staying in … Read more

Easy Mini Oreo Cheesecakes

There’s something infinitely reassuring about being able to make a great dessert armed with nothing except a single bowl, a whisk, and a slightly voracious emotional appetite. Last month, I made these Easy Mini Oreo Cheesecakes three times, fueled in part by some BIG changes that have been happening. And then I realized that I’ve been AWOL for nearly three months, so scroll on down for more on those big life updates (and this unacceptably late recipe)!

About three months ago, I started a brand new job at another major film studio! It’s still in digital marketing (though now for … Read more

Boozy Chocolate Bourbon Cake

This boozy chocolate bourbon cake features my favorite easy vegan chocolate cake recipe and a bourbon glaze that is sure to blow your guests’ minds. The perfect way to sneak a little bit of “pep” into an office potluck or afternoon dessert break!

Does anybody else’s friends suspect them of alcoholic tendencies just because they keep a pile of bourbon, rum liqueur, and vodka stashed in their pantry at all times?

For someone who rarely drinks alcohol, I have a weird obsession with booze-soaked desserts. Growing up, we always had a bottle of Kahlua sitting on the cupboard shelf–but … Read more

Summer Berry Buckle

Are you a fan of tart or super-sweet desserts? I tend to love anything that contains caramel, crumb topping, vanilla, custard–and when I step into an ice cream shop, I will NEVER order anything tart. Not if you chucked Mjolnir straight at my heart; not if you held Thanos’ Infinity Gauntlet over my head for it. (Yes, I just watched Endgame and am still obsessed…Anyone else??) That being said…

Coffee cakes, muffins, and berry buckles are my biggest exception. When it comes to getting a sweet AND tart start to the day, I can always be found munching on … Read more

One-Bowl Sour Cream Coffee Cake (with Brown Sugar Crumb Topping)

You know you’ve hit the recipe jackpot when your usually self-moderating co-worker eats not three–not four–but FIVE slices of the dessert you bring to work in one sitting, and several senior executives stop by your desk to proffer glowing reviews what they declare to be their new favorite sweet treat. Friends: Meet this One-Bowl Sour Cream Coffee Cake (with Brown Sugar Crumb Topping) that you absolutely need in your life right now. Friends, cake. Cake, friends!

If you’re like me, you LOVE a healthy dose of crumb topping on any sweet you meet…which is why, when I started writing … Read more

Custard-Filled Victoria Sponge Cake

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Guess who’s London-bound?!

I’ve been sitting on this news for a few weeks now for several reasons, most of which have to do with the limited time I now have to bake, photograph, and blog. As it turns out, working in entertainment is most definitely NOT a 9-5 job and we’ve been 1000% slammed at work—though, thankfully, in a great way! Between that, computer science night classes at UCLA Extension, the kick-off of triathlon training season, and my stubborn determination to maintain some semblance of a social life on my off hours, it’s been hard to find a spare minute … Read more

Bakery-Style Pumpkin Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting

These bakery-style pumpkin cupcakes remind me of all the fresh pastries I saw on display in Parisienne bakeries when I visited France this past summer. This recipe features a moist crumb and warm spices that serve as the perfect foil for a tangy cream cheese frosting. (You can catch up on my latest Europe travel stories & recipes here and here.)  

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While the pumpkin cupcakes that I’m sharing today are by no means Parisienne, making them transported me back instantly to the days that I spent in the heart of France at the end of July. Freshly-baked pastries filled … Read more

The BEST Chocolate Oreo Cake

My friends and former co-workers have all declared this Chocolate Oreo Cake one of THE best cakes of all time. Made with a fail-proof, rich chocolate cake recipe and featuring an unbelievably delicious cream cheese Oreo frosting, this gorgeous dessert will become an instant hit for any occasion! 

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I am SO excited to share this Chocolate Oreo Cake recipe with all of you that I can’t even pester y’all with travel planning updates today. (Gasp–respite from my travel fever blabber, you say? I KNOW!)

This one-of-a-kind recipe features all of the hard hitters that you never knew you … Read more

Miniature Bourbon Cakes

These miniature bourbon cakes are a boozy dessert lover’s paradise! With a fluffy yellow cake base, these mini morsels are soaked in a bourbon sugar glaze that’s bursting with flavor. Perfect for enjoying alongside a cup of tea (or hey, more booze!). 

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What could be more British than a bit of boozy cake at teatime?

Okay, to be fair–I don’t really know if bourbon + afternoon tea is really a thing across the pond. It sounded like such a romantic, proper excuse for encouraging daytime alcohol consumption that I’m pairing today’s recipe with a nice English breakfast tea regardless. But … Read more

Chocolate Layer Cake with Peanut Butter Frosting

This chocolate layer cake with peanut butter frosting is THE perfect birthday cake. Made with my favorite moist, rich chocolate cake and a fluffy peanut butter frosting, this cake is the perfect way to celebrate the chocolate-PB lover in your life!

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“Oh my god, it’s like I’m eating a PEANUT BUTTER DREAM!!!”

These were the words that exploded from one of my best friends’ mouths the moment she took a bite of this chocolate cake last week. Ten of us were crammed into my small apartment, forks at the ready and bodies half-sprawled all across my bed, couch, and carpet. … Read more