Dessert Person with Claire Saffitz - Season 2

Fortunately you need no special occasion to make this delicious, celebratory, kid-friendly, and deeply nostalgic confetti cake. A tender white birthday cake studded with rainbow sprinkles and covered in smooth, tangy cream cheese frosting, it tastes like childhood (which is to say, better than the box).

Claire's favorite brownie is chocolatey but not too intense brownies with multiple textures, but chewiness above all. Enter, Claire's recipe for Malted Forever Brownies -- so good, it’s pretty much the only one she plans on making until the end of time.

Claire Saffitz goes through and explains her 13 essential kitchen tools, most of them small, simple and inexpensive, that put her (and all home bakers) on the road to success. Do you need them all? Maybe not. But if you’re committed to learning how to bake at home, these certainly help.

In this special episode of Dessert Person, Claire Saffitz and her special guest go off-script and decide to make a recipe together just for fun. Check it, and learn from the one and only Gaby Melian how to make empanadas with the prettiest twisted edge.

One of Claire’s favorite desserts from childhood is, Gooey Butter Cake, a St. Louis tradition unlike any other cake. While most recipes call for a box cake mix, Claire takes it back to its German origins as a yeasted coffee cake base with a buttery, gooey, vanilla-scented topping. THEN, Claire puts fellow STL-native, longtime friend, and comedian extraordinaire Jo Firestone to the taste test while the two settle old Gooey Butter Cake beefs.

In this episode, Claire shows you how to make the most of whole vanilla beans, from extracting the seeds to making your own vanilla extract. It’s a simple process but will ensure that no part of the splurge-worthy ingredients goes to waste.

After much testing, this is her ideal sticky bun, a soft, nutty, maple-y swirl scented with cardamom and orange zest. Claire thinks it’s a whole lot better than a giant, overly sweet Cinnabon cinnamon roll, although — ahem — some family members disagree. It’s a family affair this episode!

Spring is around the corner, but if you need a pick-me-up in dessert form, look no further than this sunny, zingy, Meyer lemon tart with a hidden ribbon of raspberry jam. It’s one thing Claire loves to make in winter, using the gift of Meyer lemons, but is even more classic if made with regular lemons all year round.

Join Claire as she takes you around her small NYC apartment kitchen for a quick kitchen tour and provides quick tips for making the kitchen as functional as possible.

Claire Saffitz engineered this seedy maple breakfast muffin to actually taste good while also providing some nutrition (in the form of seeds, whole wheat, and blueberries). It’s finally a blueberry muffin you can feel good eating -- and did we mention it’s vegan?

Follow Claire as she walks you through the steps to getting those telltale nooks and crannies in your English muffins and how to make sure they cook all the way through in a skillet or griddle. Whether you like it sweet with jam or savory as the base of a breakfast sandwich, you’ll love the versatility of a freshly cooked English muffin.

Part of being a dessert person is celebrating all the possibilities that baking offers -- in this episode, it’s a beautiful savory tart filled with caramelized onion and endive and topped with a fresh, bright salad of bitter and tender greens (this salad pizza is all dressed up). Who said baking can’t be dinner?

What makes the best chocolate chip cookies? In Claire’s opinion, it’s a chewy edge, soft and chewy center, puddles of chocolate (in this case, dark and milk), a healthy amount of salt, and, crucially, lots of butterscotch-y flavor from the interplay of vanilla, brown sugar, and brown butter. That might sound like a lot, but it all comes together easily in a couple of bowls, no stand mixer required.

In this episode of Dessert Person, Claire teaches her brother-in-law Nick, a dessert enthusiast but amateur baker, how to make Croquembouche. It’s a French tower of caramelized cream puffs and an exceptionally challenging pastry feat that combines lots of technique, precision, and architecture.

Traditional cornbread this is not, but you won’t be overly concerned with strict definitions or categories when you try this savory, slightly spicy, bacony, baked corn [insert name here: cake, bread, pancake, etc.]. It’s a maximalist bakers’ dream, filled with lots of flavorful and textural bits that complement the corn flavor. Best of all, it’s baked in the same skillet used to cook the filling and comes together with two bowls and a whisk.

Heading into spring and summer fruit season, for your consideration: a light, lemony, interesting-in-good-way cheesecake that pairs perfectly with any topping. The key ingredient is goat cheese, which adds a complex flavor, and the key technique is using less filling to keep a reasonable filling-to-crust ratio. See Claire’s tricks for avoiding a soggy bottom and a cracked top!