• DKennedy on December 23, 2024

  I am very excited to own this book. I am not much of a baker, this is exactly how I approach dessert.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Salted lemon cream pie

  • tarae1204 on January 03, 2023

    Very easy recipe. At 30 minutes of baking, the custard seemed under set so I let it bake 34 minutes. There were small clumps in the pie after it cooled, so I think 32 minutes might be the ideal bake time as the pie will continue to cook as it cools. The whipped cream/sour cream topping is good but doesn’t quite stand up to the richness of the pie. The custard is intensely, almost aggressively lemony thanks to the addition of salt.

  • CliftonSally on September 02, 2023

    I had a complete disaster with this recipe on my first attempt, but I remade it and it turned out much more successfully. At 35 mins (the max cooking time specified in the recipe) the pie still looked entirely unset, so on the first attempt, I continued to cook it and ruined it. On the second attempt, I took it out at 35 mins, despite it looking uncooked - and it set as it cooled (and set firm in the fridge). For me, the recipe description of cooking until the centre 'barely jiggles' was not particularly successful! My husband thought it was delicious so worth sticking with it - particularly if you are naturally a better baking than me! Definitely one for those who love their lemon puddings lipsmackingly tart.

  • Lepa on October 28, 2023

    I ordered two lemons and two bags of lemons were delivered so I made this pie. It was pretty good but a bit too sweet for me. I recommend it but probably won't make it again?

• Creamy cauliflower galette

  • luluinphilly on April 04, 2023

    This was a hit! I used the cabbage instead of cauliflower and did one inch slices per instructions, along with gruyere cheese. NB: I always struggle with these types pie dough recipe , and find the dough to be under-hydrated even after a two hour fridge nap. This recipe admonishes the use of too much water, and so I have started using a spray bottle filled with water to hydrate dry patches in pie dough without oversaturating the whole crust.

  • leighwhit25 on April 05, 2023

    This was incredibly good and so pretty.

  • Pimlicocook on April 15, 2023

    Delicious: cauliflower and cheese (I used cheddar), leeks and cream... what's not to like? I used the book's Wholemeal Pie Crust with spelt and it came out perfectly crispy and flaky. I under-seasoned the filling and needed an extra sprinkle of sea salt, so will remember that for next time. Served with green salad with a lemony dressing. I'd say galette serves 4 people. Looking forward to leftovers!

  • BachranBears on May 05, 2023

    I made this with my go-to crust recipe (from Midwest Made) and it was so delicious. Used Parmesan because that's what we had. Can't wait to try it again with cabbage. Made sure to season the vegetables with s&p several times as I layered them in.

  • pattyatbryce on July 19, 2024

    Very tasty. Made it with The Only Pie Crust from the same book (and also in Nothing Fancy). Served with a simple tomato salad for a wonderful dinner. Will definitely make it again.

  • shelbstirr on November 14, 2025

    Very good. Decadent. Make sure to seal the galette edges well.

• Old-fashioned strawberry cake

  • elena1049 on March 19, 2023

    LOVE this cake - it's identical to the "old-fashioned strawberry cake" in NYT (except this says 290g = 2 cups of flour but NTY has 255g = 2 cups)

  • bwhip on April 07, 2023

    Very good strawberry cake recipe. Very similar to the Smitten Kitchen Strawberry Summer Cake recipe - this one has a higher proportion of cake to berries.

  • Pimlicocook on April 30, 2023

    I thought this was fine, but not amazing. I baked it a day ahead and kept it tightly wrapped in plastic, as recipe suggests, but it didn’t stop the strawberries from relaxing (and I don’t think I underbaked it). The batter is good, not very sweet (which I like). I would make it again but only to be eaten on the day.

  • Babeng.Bubba on May 21, 2023

    This was just ok for me. Maybe I reduced sugar too much and didn’t use enough as topping.

  • Jviney on June 08, 2023

    This was fine, but seemed very “cake-y” and heavy to me when what I’m looking for is a light cake with more strawberries. I think next time I’ll stick to Epicurious’ Raspberry Buttermilk Cake and sub for strawberries….I still haven’t found a better cake than that one. Updated: I think it was better on the second day.

  • Hansgee on June 23, 2023

    I made this for a party, first recipe I’ve made from the book. I read the reviews while it was baking and got nervous! I took it out after baking the full amount of time, and it still needed an extra ten or so minutes. I also had to move it to the top rack to make the top brown more, and my oven is new and a good oven! I feel like times are sometimes off with Alison’s oven recipes, so leaving it in for extra time scared me less, but I never got the top as browned as I would have liked. I did add extra strawberries, though. Everyone LOVED the cake. There were two desserts there, with one serving taken out of the other one and this one being gone by the end of the BBQ. It’s a nice cake: dense and vanilla-y. Not too sweet. I was disappointed that I had to pull out my stand mixer, though.

  • Astrid5555 on August 15, 2023

    This is a good cake for those not so perfect strawberries lingering in the fridge.

  • shelbstirr on January 18, 2025

    This is really really good. I’ve made it multiple times and brought it to gatherings and I get asked for the recipe. Not too sweet, love that it’s a cake without frosting.

  • sophia_s0asci on February 03, 2026

    You can almost double the berries! The cake is sturdy enough for that.

  • edougherty on February 14, 2026

    Really good. Would be better with in season strawberries or maybe a little lemon peel to boost the berries if not in season. Used a full 16 Oz container of berries and it worked well just longer bake time. 360 for altitude for about an hour and 10. Served with tangy whipped cream which was perfect!

  • rachael_18bc7s on April 10, 2026

    Repeat cake for us. Cut crosswise into little squares to serve a crowd

• Salty lemon shortbread

  • Lepa on April 29, 2023

    The corrected recipe can be found here: https://anewsletter.alisoneroman.com/p/salted-lemon-shortbread

  • skvalentine on July 29, 2023

    Be sure to use the corrected recipe! These were really tasty, and a fun way to use up my preserved lemons.

  • sdcookbookclub on March 02, 2024

    kindle version has the corrected recipe. the EYB digital recipe is the incorrect one

  • stepharama1 on October 24, 2025

    I was alerted by the other commentators and used the corrected recipe. I love these cookies! They have a sophisticated, nuanced taste due to the addition of the preserved lemon and have just the right amount of sweetness (keeping in mind that I prefer less sweet cookies).

  • MollyPellecchia on December 18, 2025

    These are very good! Love the lemon. Measurements in metric are always welcome & that you can pull this together in the bowl of the mixer is a clean-up win! Baked for 30 min in a 9x13 metal pan. The sides were a little overdone so may try a glass dish next time. And there will be a next time!

  • rachel_ywqstg on March 18, 2026

    Used the corrected recipe, and it was scrumptious! Lemony, buttery, and not too sweet. Easy and quick to make with just the bowl of the stand mixer, especially with metric measurements. Recieved so many compliments and the entire batch disappeared quickly!

• Simple fruit tart

  • kellilee on February 05, 2024

    This Simple Fruit Tart came together without too much trouble. Beware: the standard Vanilla Pastry Cream recipe makes way more than needed for a 9-inch tart so we ended up with 4 bonus individual servings which I topped with the extra "fresh red fruits". That is actually exciting because it is delicious! My only issue (and I'm assuming this was me and not the recipe) was the crust which was tough instead of flaky. Alison directs you to use your fingers and I used a silicon spatula instead. Maybe I overworked the dough - I have a tendency to do that. Or maybe a "shortbread-like press-in crust" is supposed to take a little work to cut with a fork. Not sure.

  • julia_un405k on April 05, 2026

    I’m obsessed with this vanilla cream. I’ve been making just the cream and eating with blueberries when they’re in season yummmm

• Caramelized vanilla custard tart

  • BachranBears on March 09, 2024

    Fantastic. Used a different crust than hers, but everything else the same. Makes a generous amount of filling which took a bit longer than called for to brown as deeply as the picture. Absolutely delicious.

  • Astrid5555 on February 03, 2025

    I made the dough and then decided I did not want to use so many yolks only, and made a vanilla pastry cream that uses both yolks (2) and whole eggs (1). I also baked it at 180C for 20 minutes before turning up the temeperature to 230C to caramelize the surface, worked beautifully and was absolutely delicious.

  • anya_sf on June 13, 2025

    Absolutely delicious; the filling was beautifully smooth and creamy, with just the right sweetness. I knew my 9" tart shell wouldn't hold 5 cups filling, so I made 3/4 of the custard. Blind baking instructions did not work well for me, however. The pastry leaked some butter (fortunately I had put the tart pan on a lined baking sheet) and took about 15 min longer to bake, the last 5 min without the parchment and weights so the bottom would get any color at all. Unfortunately, that meant that the sides of the pastry got too dark in places once baked again at 450 F, but at least most of it was good and nicely flaky.

  • lena_r0jk5n on April 16, 2026

    Made a half recipe and it turned out great

• Perfect tangy chocolate tart

  • luluf on June 07, 2023

    Yes the chocolate filling was perfect but the pastry could be better. It’s very easy to make from start to finish but I don’t get the best results with press-in pastry. I think I will make chocolate pastry from Anna Olson and then use this chocolate filling which we all agreed is the best we have tasted. It would be lovely by itself in a dessert glass with a bit of cream. To be fair, I used Dutch processed cocoa in the pastry and couldn’t see when it was cooked as it remained very dark and I overcooked it a bit so I might try again with lighter coloured cocoa. Probably only about 15 minutes work all up besides the wait times so very good if having dinner guests

  • lofolky on June 18, 2023

    This was a great chocolate tart and very easy to make. I agree the pastry wasn’t particularly memorable but it worked well with the filling which was the star. I used Cacao from Diaspora for the pastry. For the filling I used the 60% Ghirardelli baking chocolate bars and plain old Hershey’s chocolate bars for the milk chocolate.

  • Lyssquee on February 25, 2025

    Absolutely delicious as written. Insanely easy to make. So good and rich, but the sour cream really brightens it up. I didn't have milk chocolate so I did the full amount of dark and added chocolate Ovaltine to the cream when heating, which made it sooo good. Did a half recipe in a 5 inch spring form.

  • Jviney on October 27, 2025

    Based on the other reviews, this must have been user error…but the filling in the finished product was grainy and off putting to me, and very rich. Flavor was good, and it was easy, but I’m not sure I’d repeat.

  • isabelle_jyrhjw on February 02, 2026

    Very rich and not too sweet. Would add more flaky salt on the top.

• Caramelized maple tart

  • anya_sf on December 01, 2025

    I had issues with every step of this recipe, which seemed so simple. Maybe I mixed the crust while the butter was still too warm, but the sides started slumping as I was pressing the crust into the pan. I chilled the crust for a bit until it held its shape and was able to proceed. Luckily, I put the tart pan on a parchment-lined sheet pan as the crust leaked a lot of butter. The maple syrup seemed to cook OK, but definitely watch it as it almost boiled over. It was hard to tell when it was done - I went by time, smell, and "larger, slower bubbles". I added the optional cinnamon and liked it. Not sure if my oven temp was off (thermometer said it was correct), but the tart bubbled up as it baked and may have baked too long - I was busy and did not check early. I was sure the filling would be curdled. But after chilling overnight and topping with whipped cream, we all loved it. The maple flavor was great. Filling was fairly dense but balanced by the whipped cream. Crust was tender.

• Blueberry cornmeal shortbread tart

  • bwhip on March 29, 2023

    This was the first recipe we tried from the book, and it was wonderful! So easy to toss together, and the flavors and textures were perfect. I can see why Alison Roman says “If you told me I could never bake a pie or a galette ever again but I could have this tart that would be fine by me, because this tart does everything a pie or galette should do, almost better.” I used a combination of blueberries and blackberries, and enjoyed it warm with some vanilla gelato. Perfection.

  • luluinphilly on April 04, 2023

    I first made this last summer from Alison's newletter. It is one of my favorite uses of summer fruit and so easy. Lime or lemon juice is good too, but the the ACV is easy and unique.

  • ldyndiuk on May 07, 2023

    I just made this using crappy supermarket blueberries and it is delicious! It’s a very simple recipe, easy to follow, and all the ingredients other than the blueberries were standard items that I already had on hand. The most difficult part was getting the press-in crust to be of an even thickness, which hardly matters. I would definitely make this again.

  • cookinggeekmom on June 25, 2023

    This was delicious and so very easy (no blind baking! no rolling pin!) It also kept well in the fridge for a couple of days; the filling got a bit more jammy, but the crust held up. I found the cornmeal a bit gritty. Ideally I'd look for a finer cornmeal if I wanted to make this again, but since it's not an ingredient I use all that often, I was reluctant to buy another package just for this.

  • Babycarrot on August 02, 2023

    I love a dessert I can make on a weeknight that doesn’t take forever and doesn’t leave me with a ton of clean up. I used frozen black raspberries and fresh blueberries and lemon juice instead of ACV. I’m a rookie tart baker so this was a great intro - no blind baking and press in crust. The crust came together nicely. I did find this a touch salty - she calls for 4g salt and I wonder if that was too much? There was some spillage so don’t forget the sheet pan underneath (again rookie here!) taste wise though this was pleasantly tart, just sweet enough, and the crust buttery and delicious (will use less salt next time!)

  • Astrid5555 on August 15, 2023

    Who does not like a simple press-in tart crust! This is a showstopper with some crunch from the cornmeal, excellent!

  • anya_sf on August 22, 2023

    So easy to make and really good! I loved the crunch from the cornmeal. The blueberries could have used a little more acid (although my husband thought they were perfect) - nice with some plain frozen yogurt or 50/50 tangy whipped cream on top.

  • Xyz123 on July 09, 2024

    The crust is what makes this so good. I milled the cornmeal but not the flour. Will mill the flour next time. So incredibly easy with fantastic results.

  • pattyatbryce on July 15, 2024

    Came together really easily and big reward for effort. I used the lemon juice and we had enough acid. Watch the salt - I used Kosher (Morton's) and it came out a bit salty even for my taste. A definite make again dessert.

  • estherchang on June 29, 2025

    Super easy yet high reward. I browned the butter so it complements the nuttiness from the cornmeal.

  • djnielsen64 on July 05, 2025

    Excellent! Def going into the rotation filed under simple and delicious.

  • midwifemel on September 26, 2025

    I make this on regular rotation while blueberries are in their seasonal prime. I have also added in raspberries and that has been delicious. It is outstanding - there is never a crumb left. I do sub a blueberry vinegar for the ACV, add some lemon zest and put in a tbsp of powdered dehydrated blueberry.

  • gootenbeez on October 22, 2025

    Delicious and everyone loved it. I used frozen blueberries so it took longer to cook. Will definitely add to my back pocket recipes.

  • jmohart on April 09, 2026

    What kind of cornmeal is everyone using? Love the simplicity, the ease of assembling, and the flavor, but gosh darn the cornmeal was gritty! Hoping tomorrow after it rests the cornmeal bits get softer.

• Tiny strawberry galettes

  • pattyatbryce on March 17, 2026

    Easy to make as one galette with a 1 disc of The Only Pie Crust and halving internal ingredients. I've made with strawberries and another time with raspberries. Both needed a touch more sugar for my taste and I feel like something is missing. Maybe an herb or maybe a more interesting acid than lemon. But overall, a good starting point.

• Peaches and cream galette

  • anya_sf on July 01, 2024

    Delicious, just sweet enough. I can't say I noticed any difference from the condensed milk though. The crust was beautifully flaky. My oven might be off, but the galette took an extra 10 minutes to bake and I turned the oven up at the end for better browning. Like most galettes, this was best on the day of baking - crust softened on day 2.

• Sugar plum galette with halva

  • anya_sf on September 27, 2023

    The huge mound of sugar plums seemed too much initially, but baked down to a good amount. I used almond paste, having never seen the paste type of halva. My galette took an extra 10 minutes to brown and the juices leaked a lot, so I'm glad I used a nonstick sheet pan lined with parchment. Crust was flaky and tender, flavor was delicious, sweetness just right with or without ice cream.

• Deep-dish apple galette

  • Apollonia on June 20, 2023

    This was a mixed bag. On the good side, the galette was absolutely beautiful --- really striking with the height--- and I loved the crust/fruit proportion. I may never go back to a double crust pie. But the filling was so, so liquid. I would be tempted to blame the fruit/myself rather than the recipe, but this was posted on the NYT cooking site as well, and the problem with liquid seems to be super common. 3/4 cup is just too much honey for this amount of fruit and thickener.

  • skvalentine on September 17, 2023

    Loved this! Used some spelt flour in the crust but otherwise stuck to the recipe. I baked it a day ahead and the filling was a little runny but it wasn't a problem. Served this to family for Rosh Hashanah. Would make again!

  • fprincess on January 08, 2025

    Instead of making a traditional pie with 2 disks of dough, the recipe calls for a giant disk (18 inches!) that is placed in a 9 inch springform with the edges folded over the filling. Other than the fact that it's a lot of dough to roll which is somewhat of a workout, this is very simple recipe. The apple filling uses honey and sugar for sweetness, apple cider vinegar for acidity, and a healthy dose of ground cinnamon which is essential for a good apple pie (1.5 teaspoons in the printed recipe). I replaced about 20% of the apples (I used gala) with poached quince. I liked the impressive presentation, and it tasted great! Filling a little runny, but that didn't bother me. https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157248-cooking-from-dining-in-nothing-fancy-and-sweet-enough-by-alison-roman/page/4/#findComment-2441440

• Tangy buttermilk pie

  • ethedens on April 19, 2023

    This recipe was frustrating for a couple reasons: the standard 9 inch tart pan I used seemed a little small so there was some spillage on the way to the oven, and I found it took double the suggested cooking time to set. I'm also not crazy about the texture of the filling (it can be weirdly chalky but the sour cream helps disguise this). It is, however, super easy and quite tasty! Not a go-to recipe but I would make it again.

  • pattyatbryce on June 10, 2023

    Something is wrong with this recipe. Like ethedens, it took a lot of extra time to set. The crust was soggy after a day. It was just so-so.

  • edougherty on February 09, 2026

    Good, made it in a glass pie plate, will make 1.5x the pie crust in future to ensure total coverage. I feel like this would work better with the tangy whipped topping piled on top (mixed with a bit of powdered sugar) but my spouse liked it as written. Baked at 335F for high altitude and done at 25 min. Would be great for a summer luncheon.

• Caramelized onion and anchovy tart (a perfect snack)

  • fprincess on March 26, 2024

    It's a bit of work but it's delicious. The dough (made with rye flour) is a bit hard to work with, slightly crumbly, and renders a lot of fat when cooked. The onions took 2 hours. All this can be done in advance. https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157248-cooking-from-dining-in-by-alison-roman/?do=findComment&comment=2419786

• A very tall quiche with zucchini and greens

  • anya_sf on July 28, 2023

    I never thought the filling would fit inside the crust, but it did - the zucchini exuded so much liquid! My quiche took 15 extra minutes to bake, but my oven temperature might have been off. The filling was super creamy yet absolutely stuffed with vegetables. For some reason, I thought it tasted a little bitter the first day; I liked it better reheated the next day. The crust had to be rolled super thin to fit the pan, so the flakiness wasn't apparent and the edges ended up looking "rustic", but it was quite tender.

  • Pimlicocook on August 16, 2023

    This came out perfectly. Loads and loads of water came out of the courgettes/onion mix and I just kept squeezing more and more (using a muslin cloth). I was around 30g short of cream but the filling fit in the case just right, so might use that amount again. Looking forward to leftovers, and will definitely make again. (Used the infallible whole wheat pie crust in the book.)

  • Lsblackburn1 on August 17, 2023

    Delicious, but mine also needed an extra 15 minutes and even then was a bit runny in the middle. Also, I loved the look of it in the springform pan, but my crust slumped down and then the filling leaked a bit.

  • fprincess on June 03, 2024

    Great recipe. I liked the detailed instructions and it turned out perfect. I used "the only pie crust" and made it in my new food processor and it was 1) really fast to make and 2) super flaky. I also used the food processor to grate the zucchini and onion which saved a lot of time (and knuckles). Lastly, I used a nut bag to drain the salted zucchini.

  • skvalentine on April 16, 2026

    Really liked this, although i forgot to add greens, and I added too much salt. Used the whole wheat pie crust and it was very pretty on the table.

• Tomato tart

  • Astrid5555 on August 15, 2023

    Use only the best tomatoes which will shine in this perfect summer tart!

  • Lsblackburn1 on August 15, 2023

    I had some doubts, but this turned out to be delicious. I think my tart pan was bigger so the crust barely covered the base and my layer of tomatoes seemed thin. When it came out of the oven, I was afraid it looked dry, but I put fresh basil on the top and took it to a gathering. Shouldn’t have worried; everyone loved it!

  • grodnyansky on September 06, 2023

    Really fantastic, but best eaten same day. Gets very wet the soggy the next day.

  • Apollonia on May 26, 2024

    Super nice tart- very easy (especially with the melted butter crust). I did 1.5 the crust recipe based on the reviews and a friend who had made it previously, which I think is the right call. I used fairly meh tomatoes, and they still came out great, so better ones would probably be outstanding. Mine was quite good as leftovers as well.

  • averythingcooks on August 31, 2024

    This was lovely...not surprising as I am a fan of this kind of jammy roasted tomato tart finished with a good drizzle of balsamic crema (to replace the suggested vinegars) but for me the real takeaway here is the cornmeal, browned butter & parmesan infused crust...delicious! I used a 9" tart pan and based on the comments, I worked slowly to cover up the sides & the bottom completely (doubtful at 1st but stuck with it) and I do think 1.5 x the crust would have been too much. I will make this crust again for sure.

  • paulabee on September 02, 2024

    this was an excellent use of peak season tomatoes. I made the tart dough as written and the amount worked just fine for me. I would probably try slice my garlic a bit thinner next time, but that's on me--no recipe modifications so suggest!

  • anya_sf on September 05, 2024

    The amount of crust was just right for a shallow 9" tart pan. However, I couldn't fit 2 lbs tomatoes -maybe 1.5 lbs. The crust was really delicious. While I liked the filling, it wasn't my favorite, but I did forget the vinegar and parmesan cheese at the end, which I'm sure would have made a difference.

  • shelbstirr on October 22, 2025

    This was so good! I ate more than I intended to haha. The tomatoes I used were on the overripe side and I probably used a smidge more than 2lbs, and it came out a tad watery. Next time I would drain the tomatoes a bit if they were similarly overripe. To be fair, the recipe calls for small tomatoes probably to eliminate the need for draining. Cook the full 60 minutes, and I think allowing it to cool for 60 minutes would allow it to set up better too. I loved tucking in some cherry tomatoes as suggested, and as everyone else has stated the crust is so good. I’m considering making it again tomorrow while I still have tomatoes… Update: made it again and stuck to smaller tomatoes and 2lb measurement and much less watery this time. Brought it to a dinner and a friend said it tasted like “fancy pizza”

  • krista_72bovc on May 29, 2026

    A show stopper!

• Many mushrooms pot pie

  • ktmoss on March 26, 2026

    Excellent flavor, but would try adding a little white wine or lemon juice. Rather than making one large pie, I lined ramekins with dough and made personal sized pot pies. If not just adding the top crust, I would consider making the filling ahead, allowing time to chill before adding to the crust and baking to make sure the butter in crust doesn’t start to melt before going into the oven.

• Cold carrot cake

  • BachranBears on May 15, 2023

    My husband doesn't bake, but made this for me for Mother's Day. The best carrot cake we've ever had, and perfect with her simple cream cheese frosting. Lightly sweet and a lovely crumb.

  • tsp on June 16, 2024

    The texture is great and I loved the frosting but it was too sweet for my taste. I would use much less sugar next time.

  • Jviney on September 02, 2024

    Rave reviews at an extended family dinner. Loved it cold. I would next time chop the dates by hand rather than letting them ball up in the food processor, which made it difficult to distribute into the batter. The cream cheese frosting was delicious.

  • DKennedy on January 18, 2026

    Everyone loved this but I am on the fence. Huckleberry's is much better and so is Marie's. The cc frosting is not as good as my go to. Having said this, it comes together easily, is relatively healthy and could easily be adapted to GF. Next time consider adding pineapple in place of sugar and subbing my go to frosting. Add lemon to frosting in place of nuts.

  • dakota_dqnii0 on April 28, 2026

    Tasty!

  • jessica897132 on May 05, 2026

    This was incredible if you love a dense moist carrot cake

• Bonnie's pineapple upside-down cake

  • anya_sf on August 06, 2023

    I made 1/2 recipe, using 2 whole eggs, in an 8" round x 2" high pan to maximize the topping, cramming as much fruit as I could rather than make it pretty. The batter filled the pan, so I definitely recommend a 10" pan if making the full recipe. Baking time was the same. This topping was simpler and less rich than typical, but lacked some of the caramelization. The rum-flavored cake was moist, tender (I used cake flour), and delicious.

  • anya_sf on August 06, 2023

    Note: in the cake batter, the weight of brown sugar (85 g) doesn't quite match the volume (1/2 c - would expect that to be 105 g), but they are close enough that I don't think it matters which you use.

  • fprincess on April 16, 2024

    I used 1/2 pineapple and a 10" springform pan, avocado oil for the vegetable oil. I had just enough pineapple and skipped the cherries because I am not a fan of maraschino cherries, even the good ones. For the rum I used pineapple rum. (I had a little bit of rum leakage during cooking because of the springform. If you use a regular cake pan, this shouldn't be an issue.) She says to bake for 40-45 minutes. At 40 it wasn't ready, at 45 min the toothpick test said it was ready but when I cut the cake, the center wasn't entirely cooked. Next time I would bake it for 50-55 minutes. Warm, this cake is absolutely delicious! And the larger cake pan is the way to go in order to maximize the pineapple to cake ratio. https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157248-cooking-from-dining-in-nothing-fancy-and-sweet-enough-by-alison-roman/?do=findComment&comment=2421812

  • ginger2212 on May 21, 2025

    This was wonderful! I LOVED the flavor of the cake and the rum was punchy without being overpowering as alcohol in desserts can be. I used canned pineapple rings but next time I will use fresh pineapple. My husband complained that it was too sweet which I disagree with but I think it's because I used canned pineapple upon reflection. The center didn't totally set either which I agree with previous posters is likely the results of a 9'' pan. Would 100% make again!!

• Salted pistachio shortbread

  • elena1049 on March 29, 2023

    Delicious but pretty crumbly even though the dough came together well - may have cut/transferred too soon. Perfect to make out of pantry staples. Will just use the crumbled bits as a delicious topping to vanilla ice cream.

  • Babeng.Bubba on June 11, 2023

    Mixed pistachio and walnuts. Used 9” square pan, dough did not reach edges so it was a free form shortbread. Very easy and tasty.

  • Aubr3yy on January 08, 2026

    This shortbread quickly became my new obsession because it's easy to make and tastes fantastic! It's buttery and flaky and combined with the pistachios and the salt, it's a good combo. I ended up doubling the recipe for the holidays in a springform pan but I had to leave it in the oven for an extra five mintues. I wish I had pictures but it was eaten really quickly and I didn't get a chance to take any!

• Hard-roasted pears

  • Nancy402 on April 03, 2023

    Excellent. Used Bosc pears, Gewürztraminer, brown sugar rather than molasses, cinnamon stick and star anise. Lovely over vanilla ice cream. Had some very delicious syrup in the dish when the pears were done.

  • jenburkholder on January 28, 2024

    Delicious - I had very underripe D’Anjou pears and a lovely bright Sauvignon Blanc, then sprinkled in a few star anise. Roasted a bit longer (large pears) and savored plain.

• Raspberry ricotta cake

  • Nancy402 on April 09, 2023

    Simple and very delicious one bowl cake. Pretty enough on the plate for company. Very moist and not too sweet- as advertised. Used frozen raspberries, which impacted baking time more than I expected.

  • BachranBears on May 05, 2023

    Made this for a weekend away with friends and it traveled perfectly. Definitely better the first two days, since the raspberries will make it soggy over time.

  • luluinphilly on May 27, 2023

    This was delicious and pretty too. I used 12oz of frozen raspberries and microwaved them for 30 secs to take off the chill after reading ncollyer comment. The bake time was the same. I liked it better than the strawberry cake ! Note- I used demera sugar on top instead of plain sugar for a bit more crunch and it worked perfectly.

  • Astrid5555 on August 15, 2023

    Made this cake back in May with the last of my frozen blackberries and it is amazing. My favorite Alison Roman cake from Sweet Enough!

  • anya_sf on May 15, 2024

    I accidentally mixed the butter with the other wet ingredients, but that didn't seem to matter. Using frozen raspberries, with probably too many on top vs. mixed in, my cake took 30 minutes longer to bake through. I feared the edges would be dry and overbaked, but the cake was lovely and moist. Everyone loved it.

  • Hansyhobs on July 09, 2023

    A very easy recipe to follow. As I use a fan oven, I cooked this at 160 instead of 180 but it took longer than the suggested time (I used fresh British raspberries as they're in season atm). Great flavour and texture

  • skvalentine on June 23, 2024

    Very simple and good flavors, but overall just OK for me. I keep trying but I just don't think I'm a Cake Person.

  • Hansgee on June 17, 2024

    Perfect fruit-forward summer snacking cake! I love ricotta and it adds so much moistness (sorry) to the cake. I sent my partner to Aldi and raspberries were so cheap there that I had him pick up 18 oz. I used maybe 15-16 in the cake and had to bake for a few minutes longer, but thanks to the ricotta, it wasn’t dry at all. With the rising, my perfectly spread top berries moved more to the center, so I’d put more on the edges next time to avoid that. Going to make one to take into work sometime soon, as I know my coworkers will love it. I added a little extra vanilla because why not?

  • Myzadim3andGLA on April 06, 2026

    Overall an easy recipe producing a very tasty cake. Cooking time was longer than indicated in the recipe. Not sure if this was due to the use of frozen raspberries or pre-packaged ricotta which is always a lot wetter than fresh ricotta. Served with custard and cream and enjoyed by all.

  • Aubr3yy on December 21, 2025

    The cake was delicious and super easy to put together! My cook time was a bit different than what the recipe stated, I had to add 15 more minutes but that could be because I used the 16 ounces of raspberries.

• Whole wheat pie crust

  • Pimlicocook on April 15, 2023

    Made with spelt and used for Creamy Cauliflower Galette. Came out perfectly: crispy and flaky.

  • skvalentine on April 16, 2026

    Great pie crust recipe. I usually do Martha Stewart's recipe in the food processor, but i enjoyed this "by hand" process. Used for the Very Tall Quiche, and I'm excited that I have the other disc in the freezer :)

• Crunchy chocolate shortbread

  • bwhip on April 22, 2023

    Loved these! Author says these are the chocolate version of the legendary chocolate chip shortbread cookies in her “Dining In” cookbook, and that’s exactly true. Great flavor and texture. Hard to stop eating them!

  • fprincess on February 24, 2024

    I followed the recipe as written, just skipped the sprinkle of flaky salt on top because that's not my thing. I used (light brown) coconut palm sugar which added a subtle caramelized flavor. The chocolate was macondo 60% from Luker, and the nuts hazelnuts. These cookies are absolutely terrific: great texture (buttery, slightly sandy), interesting flavor (with the touch of salt, the chocolate chunks, the nuts, the crunchy outside demerara sugar layer). I am usually not a cookie person, especially not American cookies which I almost always find unbearably sweet. But I really enjoyed these, and found myself craving them with a shot of espresso. My family gave them their seal of approval as well. ?? https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157248-cooking-from-dining-in-by-alison-roman/?do=findComment&comment=2416929

  • hanachocho on February 23, 2025

    Weighed my ingredients but dough was crumbling apart even after kneading together. Second batch added some half and half during mixing to get it to stick together.

• A better banana bread

  • ginger2212 on April 23, 2023

    SO good! It really is a better banana bread. There are an insane number of recipes for banana bread but this one has a simple ingredient list. Yes - you need to use a stand or handheld mixer but honestly you just let it do its thing and add the ingredients. Not too sweet and lovely crispy sugary crust. YUM!

  • Astrid5555 on August 15, 2023

    Is it the best banana bread I have ever made? Probably not. But it‘s definitely one of the better ones, which means it is worth repeating.

  • tarae1204 on October 31, 2023

    This is now one of my favorite banana breads. I subbed 3 small/med eggs for the 2 large and completely forgot to add the dairy (mascarpone/sour cream/yogurt) and it still turned out perfectly. Delicious. Excellent balance of banana, brown sugar and butter flavors. Baked in 1 hr 15 min.

  • bwhip on June 14, 2023

    Excellent banana bread recipe! I loved the crispy top, especially when it was warm out of the oven. I added 3/4 cup of chocolate chips, because, why not? I didn't have mascarpone, so used sour cream instead, as the recipe indicates would also work. It did take an hour and 20 minutes to bake, surprisingly!

  • skvalentine on August 10, 2025

    Substituted full fat Greek yogurt and it came out great. My pan wasn't big enough (used a 1# USA loaf pan) and it overflowed onto the bottom of the oven. Note to self to find a bigger pan for next time! Skipped the banana on top because I didn't have an extra one. Family likes it, not too sweet but still a treat.

  • anya_sf on October 23, 2024

    Very good, moist banana bread, even with half white whole wheat flour. I skipped the banana on top (didn't have a "good" one) and forgot to sprinkle with sugar, but the bread was plenty sweet. This doesn't supplant our favorite recipe from Flour, but I'd make it again when I have extra mascarpone (why I made it in the first place).

  • jenburkholder on September 29, 2025

    Very good flavor and texture but (like a few others here) my pan overflowed. Used half white spelt flour since I didn’t feel like refilling the AP bucket.

  • Pandan on October 17, 2024

    Very good! Will add this to my favourite banana bread recipes. The texture is nice and moist, not crumbly at all (made mine with mascarpone). It was easy to cut this into little pieces for my two year old toddler (whose verdict was “lecker Kuchen” = tasty cake in German), not crumbly or dry at all. Reminded me a bit of Asian banana cake with coconut milk due to the high fat content and creamy texture. Didn’t care that much about the banana on the top taste wise, might omit next time.

  • nancy_ykljtr on February 23, 2026

    Delicious! Didn’t have any mascarpone so subbed sour cream and utilized a hand mixer instead of a stand with no issues.

  • amandabs on March 23, 2026

    Made mini muffins - 20 minutes

• Almond cake with figs

  • Lsblackburn1 on April 24, 2023

    I made this with rhubarb and it was delicious. I’d recommend checking it before 65 minutes - I didn’t and it got a bit burned on the edges. Easy to eat cake! Moist and not too sweet.

  • Astrid5555 on September 22, 2023

    Used a 9 inch fluted tart tin as recommended in the recipe. Despite looking a lot like an overflow situation might happen during baking it worked out fine in the end, but only because I did not mix additional figs into the batter but only topped the batter with figs. Delicous and quick to make.

  • tarae1204 on October 30, 2023

    I made the cake using metric measurements and a combination of green and black figs. I incorporated half the halved figs into the batter as per the recipe. The batter is thick, and once transferred to the tart pan, I redistributed some of the figs *in* the batter, then arranged the remaining figs above the batter. The cake can definitely hold a pound of figs, and using two different types improved both looks and flavor. Yes the cake does threaten to spill over during baking, and does not. But, if I make it again, I might quickly trim the edges 20 min into baking as the "muffin top" over the pan rim makes it difficult to remove the cake from the pan. Delicious cake, but....where is the almond flavor? It's subtle and mainly textural. I don't think Alison Roman likes almond extract or paste, but I do, and I will experiment with adding these in the future. I think this tart would also be delicious with cranberries and a little orange zest, and MORE almond flavor.

  • mjblanchard on November 04, 2025

    Quality of the figs matters a lot. Suggest adding fresh cranberries, orange zest, and a small amount of almond paste to amp up the flavor — truly delicious.

  • anya_sf on August 18, 2024

    Based on others' comments, I used an 8" cake pan for 1/2 recipe and added lemon zest and almond extract. Baking time was still 60 minutes in a light colored pan (my oven may be running cool). The cake was not too sweet and was very moist due to the large amount of fruit. Very nice.

• Perfect salted shortbread

  • Astrid5555 on May 11, 2023

    Do bake longer than stated in the recipe, mine were completely underdone, had to put them back into the oven, never got crispy. Lovely taste though.

• Semolina cake with lemon and fennel

  • Astrid5555 on May 11, 2023

    I was a little hesitant to make this cake because of the fennel seeds in the recipe, however they impart a lovely subtle undertone of fennel which is so delicious. HIghly recommend to make this cake.

  • Apollonia on September 23, 2023

    This was a perfect afternoon cake. The semolina gave it a really fantastic texture. I used anise seeds rather than fennel, because that's what I had, and the taste was superb.

  • Lepa on January 15, 2024

    We loved this cake. I am a fan of seed cakes but using fennel instead of caraway here made it even better!

  • paulabee on October 13, 2023

    I love fennel so it's no surprise I liked this one--it was perfect. I followed the recipe exactly as written with no issues

  • anya_sf on May 25, 2025

    Delicious, moist cake. Loved the flavor.

• Cheesy, salty, savory scones

  • Pimlicocook on May 12, 2023

    Oh… yum! These are unlike any scones I’ve had. Light and intensely savoury, I made a quarter of the recipe (2 scones) and devoured both alongside tomato soup for an extremely satisfying supper. Definitely making these again!

  • averythingcooks on March 23, 2024

    Very nice! Mixing the butter in with fingers didn't take as long as I thought it would and they certainly are rich,moist & tender. I had set the timer for 25 minutes and when I checked at 20 they were very brown (top & bottom) so out they came. I googled "medium leek yield" and so used 1 cup sliced leeks.

• Sweet enough scones

  • Babeng.Bubba on May 21, 2023

    Ugly af but very good. Used more strawberries than recipe called for. No regrets. Added thyme.

  • bwhip on September 20, 2023

    Made these last weekend, and used peaches. Delicious! So many peaches - and I wasn't complaining! I used a similar technique with the butter that I picked up from a different scone recipe - freezing the stick of butter, than using the large holes on a box grater on the frozen stick. I also added the zest of one lemon. We'll have these again, using various fruits.

• (Cottage) cheese cake with apricots

  • ginger2212 on May 29, 2023

    I made with rhubarb and it was delicious!! Not too sweet ;-) perfect for with tea. Of the two cake recipes I've made, I realize Alison likes a more *finished* crispy crust - which my husband does not. I'm going to have to play around with that.

  • Astrid5555 on August 15, 2023

    The cottage cheese is an interesting addition to the cake, not too sweet. Lovely quick summer cake!

  • Aubr3yy on May 12, 2026

    This cake is seriously so good! I've been looking for an excuse to use fresh apricots and this was the perfect recipe. It was quick and easy! The only things that I changed was the cook time and I used brown sugar instead of honey. I needed an extra 25 minutes for my cake to be ready. I also browned the butter for the cake and it made my house smell so good. I think next time, I'm going to try rhubarb!

  • jacqueline_d7uiai on January 17, 2026

    Used some mandarinquats I had on hand last time I made this, really enjoyed a citrus-y combo for this cake

  • anya_sf on July 25, 2023

    Nice cake, not too sweet - we enjoyed it with sweetened whipped cream for dessert and plain for breakfast. Super moist, as Alison says, like a cross between cake and cheesecake. The edges do get quite dark; I imagine baking for a longer time at lower temperature would help avoid that.

  • ktmoss on April 12, 2026

    Made with rhubarb, orange blossom honey, and ricotta. It was perfect!

• Chocolate-sour cream pound cake

  • fprincess on April 09, 2024

    I was in the mood of something very chocolate-y the other day. I made the chocolate-sour cream pound cake and it delivered. I had tried other chocolate pound cake recipes in the past, and that one was a notch above with its intense chocolate flavor. I included the optional chocolate chunks and it was quite a large cake, pretty much filling my loaf pan to the top! I would absolutely make this again. https://forums.egullet.org/topic/157248-cooking-from-dining-in-by-alison-roman/?do=findComment&comment=2421123

  • Apollonia on May 27, 2024

    Like Jviney, my cake was hugely cratered, and despite being very done and dry on the top and sides (and seemingly done with a poke test or two), a bit underbaked (or possibly too densely chipped?) in the center. No one cared, though, as the cake still tasted great. I do think next time I'd put in a larger 9*5 rather than 9*4 pan to help with the baking; as others have noted, this fills right to the top.

  • Jviney on April 11, 2024

    Rave reviews from cookbook club and my kids. It did have a delicious, rich dark chocolate satisfaction to it. Mine seemed to bake oddly; the top was cracked at 65 minutes and it sounded baked, but then cratered spectacularly in the middle. That part was fudgy when we ate it and the edges seemed extra dry. Nonetheless, no one cared.

  • MollyPellecchia on May 21, 2026

    Baked in a slightly larger (9x5) pan, an hour & 8 min. but not sure it helped much. My top edges curled over & the cake looked quite fragile when cut. In fact, difficult to slice without falling apart. But, it tasted amazing.

• Raspberries and sour cream

  • DKennedy on December 23, 2024

    This recipe so reminds me of mom who used to serve sour cream lightly sweetened alongside sliced bananas or whole strawberries. A simple pleasure. I will think of you mom when I make this recipe.

  • jenmacgregor18 on June 03, 2024

    This is great when you just want something a little sweet, but don't want to make much effort. I really enjoyed this. And the raspberries didn't need much sugar at all.

  • ethedens on November 29, 2023

    Meh.

  • katmagdunn on January 15, 2024

    I loved this and now make it all the time, even though it's the simplest thing ever -- especially when not serving a dessert feels wrong but people don't want something big. that said, I have a terrible record with baking so a non-recipe that's impossible to screw up is very much my level

  • jacqueline_d7uiai on January 17, 2026

    A great little treat that more often than not, I already have what I need on hand to make it. If I'm feeling a little fancy, I'll add a little fresh lemon juice and zest to the raspberries

• A bowl of salted chocolate pudding

  • crowlands on April 11, 2026

    This pudding is rich and creamy. The darker the chocolate you use the better! I paired it with the 50/50 whipped topping - so good.

  • pattyatbryce on August 04, 2024

    Husband said "wow, this is chocolate" in a good way. Very rich and needs the tangy whipped topping. I don't often make pudding, but wouldn't hesitate to make again.

  • Pimlicocook on January 13, 2024

    This is delicious but far richer than I expected it to be, and small amounts per person go a long way. I served it with creme fraiche for a lower-effort tangy topping.

• 50/50 (Tangy whipped cream)

  • crowlands on April 11, 2026

    I made this to complement the salted chocolate pudding as recommended - fantastic!

  • pattyatbryce on August 04, 2024

    Made with sour cream. Very tasty and necessary if you make the salty chocolate pudding from this book. Enjoyed!

  • anya_sf on August 05, 2023

    Made with Greek yogurt, I loved the tangy flavor, but it never whipped up to a pillowy consistency, even using an electric mixer. The sour cream version might whip better.

  • edougherty on February 14, 2026

    Made with sour cream, so incredibly good

• Salted cookies and cream parfait

  • jenmacgregor18 on August 17, 2024

    This is great. I assembled the night before and it held up well for the next afternoon. I wished they would bring back Nabisco chocolate wafers, but Oreos do work well.

  • rachael_18bc7s on April 14, 2026

    This shouldn’t have been as delicious as it was. I’m thinking about it days later. I’m looking for any excuse to make it again. A “family size” (14 oz I think?) of Oreo thins was the perfect amount for the amt of whipped cream. I was scared about serving it, but was easily able to invert it with the plastic lined bowl.

  • njpoirier on July 06, 2024

    This was one of two desserts my friend made for our Fourth of July party. Very simple, light, tasty and the perfect treat to top off a summer meal. He added a bit more salt than the recipe called for (we like our desserts extra salty) and subbed Oreos for the wafers because those were already in the pantry. Another great recipe from Alison!

• Seedy breakfast cake

  • jenmacgregor18 on August 27, 2024

    This was okay, but don’t think I’d make it again. It mostly was just sweet, with a hint of banana and fennel. We prefer straight up banana bread or more fennel- something with a more pronounced flavor.

  • anya_sf on August 02, 2023

    I used half white whole wheat flour and added 1 banana, the flax seeds, about 5 Tbsp pumpkin seeds, no fennel seeds. The cups and mls of yogurt don't match; I went with mls. The resulting cake was plenty moist and very tasty, mostly tasting of the seeds with a hint of banana. Sugar on top was pretty, but could be skipped (or sprinkled very lightly) as the cake itself was plenty sweet.

  • jmohart on May 13, 2026

    I added two ripe bananas and I think I ended up making banana bread with sesame and poppy seeds. Would make again without the banana

  • skvalentine on April 20, 2026

    Agree with other comments-- this is fine but not amazing. I don't think I would use the fennel again, although it was interesting. I did like the addition of poppyseeds!

• Citrusy cheesecake

  • Lepa on May 31, 2026

    I made this with fresh meyer lemons from our yard and it was soo delicious and easy. I used a 9 inch spring form pan and the cook time was about 33-35 minutes.

• Cinnamon sandies

  • averythingcooks on November 10, 2024

    3 things: I'm sure I didn't grind the nuts enough with the flour etc (worried about the line between finely ground but not a powder when I couldn't really see them) as I saw some bigger chunks when slicing them, I accidently added the full amount of the cinnamon to the dough (only realizing when making the cinnamon sugar to coat the log) AND I have no idea what being "inside a box of Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal" smells like .....and despite all that, these are really lovely cookies :)

  • Chibblywibbly on March 15, 2026

    A very nice cookie and not too difficult or time consuming to make. Wish I had rolled the dough so the rounds would be smaller and sliced a little thinner for a crisper (and not so much crumbly cookie). Only change for next time would be rolling in raw sugar as opposed to regular granular.

• Festive yellow sheet cake

  • njpoirier on August 05, 2024

    Excellent cake recipe that’s easy to follow and execute. I used cake flour since I had it on hand and made it in a half sheet pan with great results. The flavor of the cake had that nostalgic box cake flavor that I was craving but more vanilla-y and elevated. The texture was perfectly light and fluffy. I made the suggested tangy chocolate frosting to go with it and that also came out very good. This will be my go-to recipe for yellow cake.

  • BearTrapHouse on February 24, 2026

    Cooked for our two year olds birthday. It was a little dry but I made it the day before and maybe didn’t seal it well enough. Would make again.

• All-purpose chocolate sheet cake

  • dakota_dqnii0 on March 18, 2026

    Tastes like a better boxed cake and is always a hit. Non fussy.

  • rachel_ywqstg on April 11, 2026

    An easy, no fuss chocolate cake! I used this to make a 3 layer 9 inch round cake, and paired it with the salty vanilla frosting. I recieved many compliments!

  • Myzadim3andGLA on April 06, 2026

    Made this as a sheet cake. A really great moist, flavorful chocolate cake! Very easy to make. No mixer required. Iced with the Salty Vanilla Frosting which complemented the cake beautifully. This made a huge cake and would halve the recipe next time I make it. A big hit with everyone!

  • Running_with_Wools on May 08, 2025

    My twins requested a chocolate mint cake for their birthday cake this year. I decided to use this recipe and I'm glad I did. Turned out great, and I didn't even have to pull my mixer out. I added about a teaspoon of peppermint flavor to the cake mix. I baked it in three 9" circles instead of a big sheet cake. Took about 25 minutes. It came out light, moist, and chocolatey - without being too rich. I made a cream cheese, vanilla frosting and added more peppermint flavor between the layers, then I drizzled some dark chocolate ganache over the top and let it drip down the sides. I was going for a York-peppermint-patty style flavor profile and it worked. Feeds a crowd. I've still got some on the counter four days later and it's still not stale. One of my boys' friends said it is the best cake he's every eaten in his life! I'll definitely use this recipe next time I'm baking a chocolate cake!

  • fultre on April 20, 2026

    Made for K’s 19th birthday and it was delicious. The flavor is moderately chocolately and the texture is fluffy and moist. Made 3 9” layers and used milk chocolate frosting recipe from ATK’s Everything Chocolate since he’s a chocoholic. I think it would be great with Salty Vanilla Frosting, tho.

• Brown butter pumpkin cake

  • katiesue28 on October 21, 2024

    Absolutely incredible. So flavorful and so moist. I served with lightly sweetened whipped cream. An easy showstopper.

  • Lindacookscookbooks on October 29, 2025

    Sprinkled pumpkin seeds and sparkling sugar before baking, rather than icing later. Raved reviews from dinner guests

• Extra coconut cake

  • anya_sf on June 19, 2025

    I made 1/4 recipe as one 7" round layer for a coconut cake bake-off. Baking time was 28 min. This cake was very different from the others in that it has much more fat, and indeed, the flavor was quite buttery and the color yellower (it also uses whole eggs). It was less coconutty than some other cakes, but still coconutty enough - toasting the coconut helped. The frosting was perfect for us - tangier and less sweet. If you're looking for more of a butter cake, this is a great choice.

• Plummy pudding

  • bwhip on October 11, 2023

    I wanted to try something a little different for dessert, so I made this last night with blackberries, and really enjoyed it. Is it pudding? Yes! Is it cake? Yes! Especially great when warm from the oven. Prep couldn't be quicker and easier. Next time I think I'll butter the pan, as it sticks around the perimeter a good bit.

• Hot buttered rum pudding

  • anya_sf on August 05, 2023

    Be careful when you add the vanilla and rum to the butter - it will splatter a lot! Portions are small, but that was okay as this was disappointing. Texture was too thick, and while part of me appreciated that it wasn't overly sweet, I expected (and wanted) something sweeter. The suggested 50/50 topping was good on its own, but did not complement the pudding; sweetened whipped cream would have been better.

• Vanilla pastry cream, a perfect pudding

  • anya_sf on June 13, 2025

    As much as I hate using so many egg yolks, this pastry cream turned out perfectly, super smooth and creamy with no straining required. 3/4 recipe was sufficient to fill my shallow 9" tart pan for the custard tart.

  • kellilee on February 05, 2024

    I made this recipe for the filling in the Simple Fruit Tart but was rewarded with these bonus individual servings and given that this is "a perfect pudding" as Alison says, that was exciting news. Used some of the leftover fruit from the tart on top. We have not tried the Vanilla Pastry Cream alone yet but I'm guessing we will prefer it to the Tart as the Tart's crust was not our favorite but the Cream is absolutely delicious.

  • lena_r0jk5n on April 16, 2026

    Made this because a different recipe online turned out bad- this one was perfect. I halved it for a cake that I’m making and it cooked up great

• Birthday cookies

  • Jviney on June 10, 2024

    Visually delightful for the kids, for sure. The head note says that this is a birthday cookie for those who don’t like cake, but it’s a pretty cake-like cookie. I baked mine 20 minutes and might even pull out earlier again. Probably wouldn’t make again except kids will ask for it…

• Black and white cookies, or, my favorite sugar cookie

  • jmohart on March 06, 2026

    I made these because the note about them tasting like the Danish butter cookies in the blue tin and I can confirm, flavor is pretty close! Baked them for 6 minutes, then rotated, then another 8 minutes. Next time I might do 8 and then 8, to see if they'll crisp just a little more. Recipe says 24 cookies but I made them smaller and got about 60 with rerolling scraps. I took half of the cut rounds and froze them.

  • Feelingsamtastic on December 26, 2023

    Didn't do the frosting, just did the dough for Christmas cookies. Loved the flavor - very buttery, not too sweet, with a touch of salt. Stayed tender for days! Will be our new go-to for sugar cookies. Works well with a cookie stamp as well. Put in freezer for 10 min before baking, and the cookies retained the pattern. We frosted some, and left some plain, delish both ways.

• Very iced, very frozen coffee

  • katmagdunn on November 09, 2025

    This never really set that well for me!

• Banana split ice cream cake

  • Feelingsamtastic on April 29, 2025

    Made this for a birthday party to rave reviews - everyone agreed it was the best homemade birthday cake ever! I was a little concerned after tasting the banana caramel "fresh", but it actually tasted great as part of the cake/once frozen. We couldn't find chocolate wafers at the store so we used Oreo thins (we liked the substitute so much we'd repeat with Oreo thins)

• Festive frozen yogurt (with sprinkles!)

  • kshell on February 11, 2024

    Mixed feelings. This is more accurately a lemon, maple, frozen yogurt. The yogurt I used was plain old whole milk, leading to a very liquid mix. The whipped cream and liquid mix didn't fold together very easily. Would absolutely use Greek yogurt if making again to help add body. I used nonpareils instead of sprinkles (DON'T!) and they immediately bled their colors and turned the whole thing a grayish color.

• Creamsicle

  • pattyatbryce on July 18, 2024

    This has great flavor, but I found the texture a bit odd. Very easy to whip up though.

• Mint and chip ice cream cake

  • amandabs on January 28, 2026

    A very large cake - everyone loved it! I didn’t add whipped cream to the sides and stored leftovers back in the springform pan.

• Stovetop jam

  • ginger2212 on August 06, 2025

    I did half a batch of blueberry jam. It's good! A little too sweet but it is very complimentary to peanut butter/almond butter. Good way to use up extra berries but I won't be going out of my way to stock this in my fridge.

• Sticky cinnamon rolls

  • skvalentine on August 11, 2025

    Not my favorite cinnamon roll recipe-- the glaze got hard after they cooled a bit. Kids said they were "too sticky." Good flavor though, and the dough was so easy to work with!

  • Myzadim3andGLA on April 06, 2026

    Made these as straight cinnamon scrolls without adding the maple syrup. Thought this would make them sickly sweet. Recipe was reasonably successful and tasty enough, but won’t be making again. Added an thin glazed icing just prior to serving.

• Cornbread

  • gootenbeez on November 16, 2025

    Added sour cream because I didn't have enough mayo. This was good but not what I would call cornbread. We couldn't really taste the corn flavor. Still on the hunt for a perfect to me cornbread recipe.

  • ellwell on January 26, 2026

    I mixed sour cream and mayo also because we were low on both. I also didnt have buttermilk so I used a mixture of Greek yogurt and milk. I thought it was fantastic. Not too sweet and the pepper really added something.

  • pattyatbryce on July 25, 2024

    Great corn bread. A definite keeper.

  • anya_sf on July 13, 2024

    Probably the fattiest cornbread recipe I've made, but also the moistest. It did not need butter. It wasn't as sweet as I'd expected, so it was good with dinner, but also nice with honey for breakfast. Baking time in a cast iron skillet was 30 min.

• Perfect pancakes, perfect waffles

  • jmohart on May 31, 2026

    Perfect basic recipe. For my family of 3 I would half it next time.

  • anya_sf on February 17, 2024

    Made the blueberry pancake version using ghee for the griddle. Got 13 large pancakes. Very good, but slightly thinner than my ideal recipe.

  • anya_sf on July 23, 2023

    The batter made 9 round, very good waffles. Made with more baking soda than usual, the color was evenly brown. We had sliced banana (and maple syrup) on top, rather than in the batter, as I worried the fruit would make the waffle iron hard to clean.

  • anya_sf on July 23, 2023

    Note: the coconut oil in the ingredients list is only for cooking. I used canola oil spray for my waffle iron.

  • mdagl on July 22, 2023

    Made the pancake version of this recipe. Added sliced banana to half of the batter. Really, a flawless recipe! Also, they look beautiful on top of them tasting excellent. Agreed with her point that these are “pancakes for waffle people.” Adding banana slices to the batter was delicious!!

  • Running_with_Wools on July 28, 2024

    In my opinion, these were perfect pancakes. I thought the batter seemed too thick but they turned out light and airy. And a little crisp on the edges. Made 16 pretty large pancakes so I was able to wrap some up to enjoy this week.

  • Babycarrot on June 16, 2024

    Made a savory waffle version with cream cheese, scallions and everything bagel smoked salmon. Would make again. The best tip for cleaning is to put newspaper underneath the waffle iron. Yum.

  • rachael_18bc7s on April 04, 2026

    Very good pancakes. My mods: - added teaspoon of cinnamon and vanilla - hydrated 3T of chia seeds to stir into batter - slightly undercook half to freeze and reheat later

• Thin maple pancakes

  • dbuhler on January 06, 2024

    These are delicious! My kids love these so much that they both requested them as their birthday dinner. The only issue I have is the only way I can get the beautiful lacy edges is if my pan is ripping hot and if there is quite a bit more oil that the "touch of oil" stated in the recipe. Unfortunately for me, when I have the pan super hot, I alway manage to burn the pancakes due to the very high sugar content. So, I preheat the pan to medium and then gradually lower the temp as I cook my way through the batter. This makes a lot of "pancakes" so it takes me a good 30-40 minutes to cook up the whole batch.

• Toasted oat and honey cobbler

  • edougherty on May 18, 2026

    Worth toasting the oats for that added flavor. I think I would add some malted milk powder next time too. Used nectarines and blueberries for fruit base. I put together the dish a few house before dinner guests arrived fully assembled but didn't bake until an hour ish before serving and the biscuits held up very nicely.

  • rchewing on August 18, 2024

    This seems to need a higher bake temp than 350.

• The only pie crust

  • pattyatbryce on July 19, 2024

    Repeat recipe from her book Nothing Fancy. Comes together fairly easily and tastes great.

  • anya_sf on June 13, 2025

    Very good, baked up tender and flaky.

  • lena_r0jk5n on May 06, 2026

    Truly the best pie crust recipe

• Tangy chocolate frosting

  • njpoirier on August 05, 2024

    Very good, easy to make chocolate frosting! I made it to go with the festive yellow sheet cake from this same book.

  • BearTrapHouse on February 24, 2026

    Made for the festive yellow sheet cake. Very easy, should have added a bit more salt.

• Salty vanilla frosting

  • dakota_dqnii0 on March 18, 2026

    Just yum! I’ve made this twice, though, and it wasn’t enough to do a 9-inch layer cake with three tiers, like she says. Had to make extra.

  • rachel_ywqstg on April 11, 2026

    An excellent, balanced frosting that’s not too sweet! Paired wonderfully with the all purpose chocolate sheet cake and piped beautifully. I needed to double the recipe to have enough assemble and decorate a 3 layer 9 inch round cake.

  • Myzadim3andGLA on April 06, 2026

    Excellent frosting! Very light and fluffy and not overly sweet. Used it to ice the Chocolate Sheet Cake. The recipe made a lot and only used half. Froze the other half and will be interested to see how this comes out.

  • anya_sf on June 19, 2025

    Made for the coconut cake. Just perfect - tangy (more cream cheese than butter!), not cloyingly sweet. Not really salty (unless you add more to taste), just well balanced. Recipe makes a lot.