December 03, 2021

Holiday baking tips

By Abby Brockway ’24

During the pandemic, Abby Brockway ’24, an elementary/special education major with a history minor, turned her love of baking into a personalized cookie business. Brockway, originally from Shrewsbury, N.J., shared some tips for holiday baking in honor of National Cookie Day on December 4.

The holiday season is officially upon us, Friars! No matter what holiday you’re celebrating this year, I can strongly predict that a dessert will be featured among in your holiday feasts and gatherings. Whether you’re a seasoned confectioner or a newbie, take a look at these five tips to perfect your holiday treats.

Expand your range of cookies.

There are two kinds of cookies: the drop and the rolled. Drop cookies, like the basic chocolate chip cookie, are of a wetter dough, are scooped from the batter, then directly dropped on a lined pan. If you are looking for a perfectly circular drop cookie, place a circle cookie cutter around your cookies that just came out of the oven and are still warm. Move the cutter in large circles, with the cookie still in the center, on the pan to round out the rough edges. Rolled cookies, like the standard sugar cookie or gingerbread people, are of a dry and more play-dough-like dough and are rolled out on a floured surface then cut out using cookie cutters. One tip for making your roll-outs as tender as possible: Cream your butter and sugar for AT LEAST 8 minutes on high speed. You want the sugar dissolved in the butter, so the cookie melts in your mouth.
Psst — secret ingredient for the choolate-chip cookies: add 2 teaspoons melted chocolate!

Best Chocolate-chip cookie recipe Best roll-out sugar cookie recipe

Overnight bread

If you took up bread baking over quarantine, you know the satisfying feeling of seeing your rough dough ball blossom into a golden, crispy, and artisanal loaf. My favorite way to make bread is to make no-knead overnight loaves. By letting your ingredients ferment overnight, your bread develops a sourdough-like flavor; gluten strands strengthen, creating a chewy crumb; and thousands of air bubbles expand, giving your loaf its iconic size. Letting your bread ferment overnight also means fewer steps for you, as you don’t have to knead the dough for several minutes — your biceps will thank you later!

Best Overnight Artisan Bread

Substitutions are endless

Gluten-free, dairy-free and other dietary restrictions do not mean limited desserts! Several products imitating traditional baking ingredients exist and thrive on the market today. Gluten-free flours from King Arthur and Bob’s Red Mill brands can be exactly substituted for regular flour in most recipes and yield little to no differences in taste. Flavorless oils, shortening, and vegan butter brands like Smart Balance can also be exactly substituted for butter for dairy-free or vegan diets. Never get dessert-discouraged because of a dietary limitation. There are millions of recipes on the Internet that accommodate virtually every diet and still deliver fun, tasty, and adventurous flavor combinations.

Guide to Common baking ingredient substitutions

When it comes to decorating, less is more

Cookie decorating tends to be my favorite part of holiday baking. One common frustration bakers have when it comes to decorating is when ideas don’t exactly mirror the finished product. Baking, fortunately, has the elements of looks and of taste. If your creation doesn’t look exactly how you imagined, I can assure you that it’ll taste great — your family and friends will agree!

Typical cookie and gingerbread icing:

Best royal icing recipe

Dessert for breakfast?!

My favorite holiday baking tradition is making cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning. I make the rolls the night before, assemble them on a sheet pan, and then keep them in the fridge overnight. The yeasted dough has time to ferment further and rise slowly overnight in the cold refrigerator. On Christmas morning, I put them in the oven and bring the warm buns, glazed with cream cheese frosting, over to my grandparents’ house to enjoy with all my extended family. The trend of making decadent desserts for breakfast is not necessarily a new one, but I highly suggest indulging on special holidays — or even regular weekday mornings — as much as possible. Along with cinnamon rolls, my top dessert for breakfast bakes are jam pastries (think of a fancy Poptart or Toaster Strudel), fruit scones, croissants, muffins, and streuselkuchen (better known as crumb or coffee cake).

Christmas morning buns recipe

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A batch made in heaven, by Abby Brockway ’24 ⚫️⚪️? ##NationalCookieDay ##ProvidenceCollege ##FYP
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