Laura Kasavan | Tutti Dolci
For Laura Kasavan, there’s always room for dessert. Tutti Dolci, Italian for “all sweets,” is a blog that combines four of Laura’s enduring passions: writing, photography, baking, and—you guessed it—dining on sweets. Though she considers herself an equal opportunity cookie lover, shortbread occupies a special place in her heart. Known for accessible but genius hacks, like using a fluted tart pan to create elegant, no-fuss wedges of shortbread, Laura offers four recipes that are simple in method but decadent in execution. Celebrating classic flavor pairings, from toasted hazelnut and chocolate to rich pumpkin and warm spice, these buttery, crumbly cookies offer all the holiday comfort you could want.
Amy Ho | Constellation Inspiration
Amy Ho’s hunger for baking goes beyond the basic craving for something sweet. Behind each layer cake, pie, or tart is the desire to transform base ingredients (flour, sugar, and butter) into something deliciously extraordinary. Amy refers to each recipe in her blog, Constellation Inspiration, as a love letter. Like any good love letter, Amy often accompanies hers with flowers—be it roses, lavender, or chrysanthemums—either as photographic accents or as a flavor component. With her personal brand of flower power, Amy’s holiday cookies make the most of floral inspiration, with rose-scented wreath cookies, spicy chocolate sandwich cookies held together with a piped rosette of horchata buttercream frosting, addictive Speculoos cookies, and browned butter cranberry bars styled with baby’s breath.
Sarah Brunella | Fragola e Limone
Sarah Brunella is a woman of many nations and culinary influences. Swiss-born and Italian-based, Sarah created her blog, Fragola e Limone, as a way to share her multicultural tastes. With her signature natural light photography and heartfelt enthusiasm, the blog highlights both well-tread and uncharted baking territory, a challenge for both Sarah and readers to venture outside of the familiar and bake something new, something unexpected. With this philosophy in mind, Sarah offers sandwich cookies that will both comfort and surprise, from an American apple pie-themed sandwich cookie to Spitzbuben, a Linzer cookie hailing from the Alps-crested land of Austria.
Mary Ann Dwyer | The Beach House Kitchen
Mary Ann Dwyer was always the type of mom that had the best homemade snacks and treats, making every visit to her house an event. Now, as an empty-nester, Mary Ann channels that same mom-of-the-year energy into her blog, The Beach House Kitchen, a collection of no-nonsense recipes that should be part of any hostess-with-the-mostest’s arsenal. During the holiday season, Mary Ann’s home is a revolving door of incoming family and friends. To make sure that no impromptu gathering catches her off guard and without something sweet, she keeps a collection of make-ahead cookies—from classic slice-and-bake cookies to jam-filled gingerbread thumbprints—on hand and ready to serve.
Christine Carlson | What do you crave?
Christine Carlson’s blog title asks the enigmatic question, What do you crave? After ogling her compulsively delicious Instagram feed, the short answer is: anything Christine is baking. With roots in Nicaragua, her fond childhood memories of baking in the kitchen with three generations of women has turned this savory guru to the sweet side.
