Category: Pastry
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Eastern Flavors, European techniques
When I was a kid I loved milk chocolate: milky ways, caramellos, reese’s peanut butter cups. I remember my mom saying ‘just you wait. When you get older your palette will change and all those will taste too sweet’. Didn’t believe her then, but she proved to be right. I think most American desserts suffer…
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One weekend, two Popups
I have two upcoming popup events this weekend: May 3rd I’ll be at Spotmarket, a group show of 60 local makers at Lloyd Center. There’ll be jewelry, clothing, decor and stationery. And I’ll be serving scones, empanadas, cake, cookies and truffles. Show runs 12-6 in the old Ulta Beauty space next to the Marshalls mall…
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Truffles & Bonbons: My Journey
I grew up with a mom who started a truffle business and as much as I loved eating them, I resented having to decorate and fill boxes after school rather than play outside. But the experience ultimately inspired me to try my hand at bonbons and I’ve never looked back. Chocolate truffles are rich, ganache-filled…
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The Joys (and Challenges) of Running a Cottage Bakery
I’ve been an artist and designer (jefdesigns.com) for 25 years. But starting in 2020 I developed a love of baking that became an obsession. Since then it’s branched out into French entremets and chocolate bonbons. Last year I made it official and registered FIKA as a cottage bakery. A cottage bakery is a small-scale, home-based…
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The Sweet Upside of Custom Orders
I’ve had the pleasure of doing several custom orders and I really enjoy giving the customer the option of having something special for their event. Some past examples: a chocolate basque cake for a birthday, a batch of entremet for a dinner party, key lime bars for a Memorial Day picnic. And 200 scones for…
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Take & Bake Option Now Available
Several customers gave me the idea to offer frozen empanadas and scones so they could bake them fresh at home. Both pastries freeze extremely well and can last for weeks without losing quality. Take & Bake is the perfect option for an event. A fresh batch of scones will complement your brunch. An empanada with…
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For the Love of Empanadas
In the last couple of years, empanadas have become one of my most popular menu offerings. A humble, rustic pastry, with sweet or savory fillings, that is incredibly satisfying to make and to eat. Almost every region has their version of an empanada. Latin countries use a firmer dough made with eggs, and are fried,…
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January 18th Bake Sale
The upcoming bake sale sold out so quickly I wasn’t able to post here. For next week, due to popular demand, I will be doing sausage gruyere empanadas again. Pandan is on of my favorite new flavors and I’m combining it with my favorite style of cheesecake. And the Butterscotch toffee cremes are big crowdpleasers
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November 16th Bake Sale
The upcoming bake sale sold out so quickly I wasn’t able to post here. For next week, due to popular demand, I will be doing sausage gruyere empanadas again. There’s also a new scone done in a cinnamon roll shape and filled with raspberry jam. And due to their new shape and type of chocolate,…
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October 26th Bake Sale
I’m posting a day before I text it to my regulars as they tend to order immediately. So if you see anything interesting, please contact with your order before 12pm tomorrow. For this sale I will be doing one of Sweden’s most popular desserts, fluffy brioche buns filled with a cardamom cream. If you haven’t…