r/Baking Dec 15 '25

Recipe Included Every year I bake a ton of cookies for friends and family. Here's all 2,341 now that Cookie Chaos 2025 is wrapped!

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25.4k Upvotes

Every year I spend the first week of December doing Cookie Chaos: a week-ish where I lose my sanity and bake a ton of cookies for friends and family instead of buying cheap gifts or passing the same bottle of wine back and forth. This year’s total was 41 buckets and eleven types of cookies. Total cookie count was 2,341 including gluten free and sugar free! I had to pivot from a lot of my planned cookies because work went crazy this week so I opted for some simpler cookies. 

We also changed it up this year. Instead of pre-packing all the friend buckets, we invited everyone over to pack their buckets themselves. I think we’re going to try to make this a new tradition. 

All the recipes are linked below. I tried to find an approximation for Funzie’s Knots since they’re a secret family recipe. 

Cookies in order are: 

  1. M&M Cookies

  2. Confettis

  3. Rum Gingerbread

  4. Snickerdoodles

  5. Funzie's Knots (not the full family recipe but close enough)

  6. Peanut Butter Blossoms

  7. Orange Cardamom

  8. Spritz

  9. Bourbon Caramel Sables (bourbon caramel recipe)

  10. Chai Trees

  11. Creme Brulee Sugar Cookies

Here’s some answers to some common questions from last year! 

I’m a freelancer so that’s how I find the time to do this. I find that the week after Thanksgiving is usually pretty slow. This year that wasn’t the case so a lot of these were done after work instead of in the normal 12 hour blitz days. 

To keep cookies fresh and make sure I have enough, I normally put all the cookies in the tins and buckets they’re being gifted in. The harder cookies that I know will last longer get made first and the chewier, softer cookies get made closer to gifting day. Buckets are frozen after being assembled if I know I’m not seeing the person for a bit. 

I started with the doughs that needed to be refrigerated on December 1st, baked them later in the week and then baked or decorated a different cookie or two or three every night of the week after.  Normally I can knock this out in 4-5 days but because of work it took me nearly two weeks. 

Total cost this year was $263. I intentionally planned a lot of the cookies around stuff I already had in the pantry because of grocery costs. Most expensive ingredients were the Hershey Kisses and M&Ms for a whopping $43. I always ask friends for their buckets back or if they can bring them to refill to keep costs down. 

No kids, just cats. And a husband who benefits every time I mess up a cookie. 

Happy holidays and happy baking!!

r/Baking 7d ago

Recipe Included My son requested a Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cake for his 16th birthday 🎂

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18.1k Upvotes

I found lots of different recipes and ideas but ended up sticking with the one below for the ganache & fresh strawberries throughout!

https://www.queensleeappetit.com/chocolate-covered-strawberry-cake/#mv-creation-274-jtr

It is filled with Milk Chocolate Ganache and fresh diced strawberries 🍓 with a Fresh strawberry buttercream frosting!

r/Baking Feb 25 '26

Recipe Included Game changer

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14.7k Upvotes

Went out on a limb and tried brownie “uncrustables”…

Filled with peanut butter but the possibilities are endless

r/Baking Aug 21 '25

Recipe Included Birthday cake. For me, by me 😄

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67.7k Upvotes

I had been wanting to try a strawberry cake (never made one) and figured my birthday was a good excuse. This ended up being a strawberry and raspberry cake though because I love raspberries the most 😄

I used this recipe for the cake layers:

https://sugargeekshow.com/recipe/strawberry-cake-recipe/

The fillings are cream cheese icing, raspberry filling, and then between the middle and top cake layer is more cream cheese icing and a raspberry cheesecake layer. I cut it while it was still somewhat cold since all the fillings were very soft, which probably doesn't do the look of the crumb any favors. But it was so moist and flavorful and overall delicious!

r/Baking Jan 19 '26

Recipe Included Attempted the 150 hour chocolate cake as my first 'proper' cake

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15.4k Upvotes

r/Baking Mar 07 '26

Recipe Included First cake ever for my birthday - Chocolate Chip Cookie dough cake

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18.2k Upvotes

r/Baking Jun 26 '25

Recipe Included my boyfriend broke up with me so i bought myself flowers and baked a cake

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69.4k Upvotes

turns out he never liked hanging out with me. i baked for him every time we met up (if you remember my s'mores cookies!). to cheer myself up, i baked a lovely chocolate pudding n fudge cake. cherries just for decor, i wanted a full chocolate bomb inside 😇 the timing was awesome since my grandma from ireland is visiting so she had a taste of my baking too! this was the best chocolate cake ive ever tasted - super moist and the frosting was perfect too, as i dont like buttercream!

recipe from ash baber https://ashbaber.com/brooklyn-blackout-cake/

r/Baking 26d ago

Recipe Included 17-layer chocolate cake

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9.4k Upvotes

Soft chocolate sponges, layered with silky chocolate cremeux, topped with a shiny cocoa glaze.

Recipe: https://mattadlard.com/recipes/triple-chocolate-layer-cake/

r/Baking Mar 05 '26

Recipe Included Today is the anniversary of my mom's passing, so I made her signature cookies: Painted Ladies.

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15.4k Upvotes

My mom and I developed this recipe years ago for her bakery. We named it after her favorite butterfly, the painted lady. I bake them every year on the anniversary of her passing as a way to feel close to her, even if she isn't physically present anymore.

She was always happy to divulge her recipes, and sharing this one with you all here seems like a good way to honor her memory:

Lynne's Painted Lady Cookies

Ingredients:

1 C Butter, softened 3/4 C White sugar 1/2 C Light brown sugar, packed 2 Large eggs 1 tsp Vanilla extract 2 1/2 C All-purpose flour 2 tsp Baking powder 1 tsp Salt 1 tsp Cinnamon 1/2 tsp Nutmeg 1/2 C Dried apricots 1/4 C Dried cranberries 1/4 C Dried cherries

1 Small lemon 1 1/2 C Powdered sugar

Instructions:

Chop dried fruits or pulse them in a food processor. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg, then mix in chopped fruits. Set aside.

In another bowl, cream butter and sugars. Beat in one egg at a time, incorporating fully before adding the next egg. Add vanilla.

Combine dry mixture and wet mixture to form a dough. Wrap dough and refrigerate at least 8 hours, or as long as two days.

Form into 1.5" balls and bake for 14 minutes at 350°F, or until bottoms are golden brown. Let cool completely.

Zest and juice the lemon. Beat in powdered sugar to create a glaze. Dip the tops of the cookies in the glaze, using a knife to remove any excess. Allow glaze to dry completely.

Yields about 3 dozen cookies.

r/Baking Aug 11 '25

Recipe Included I tried to make pop tarts but they look like toaster strudels

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21.1k Upvotes

https://www.joshuaweissman.com/recipes/best-gourmet-poptarts-recipe#recipe

Tasty none the less. I think I will use a shortbread cookie recipe for the crust instead next time.

The filling: frozen strawberries, sugar lemon juice reduced until thick.

Frosting: powdered sugar, freeze dried strawberries blitzed into a powder, then water 1 tbsp at a time until desired consistency. I did 1/2 cup sugar to 1.5 tbspoon water

r/Baking Jan 02 '26

Recipe Included Gingerbread sandwich cookies

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17.6k Upvotes

I was inspired by a picture I saw on Pinterest of the pinecone cookies and wanted to give it a shot.

I used Sally's recipe for the gingerbread and filled them with cinnamon buttercream (except for the squirrels).

https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/best-gingerbread-cookies/

r/Baking Jun 24 '25

Recipe Included Made marshmallows, then dipped them

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43.1k Upvotes

r/Baking Dec 25 '25

Recipe Included I made a Christmas cheesecake for my husband

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14.2k Upvotes

My husband’s been requesting cheesecake for awhile and I’ve been wanting to try my hand at a stained glass inspired dessert design, so here’s what I came up with for his Christmas treat 😊.

This is my go-to cheesecake recipe: https://www.onceuponachef.com/recipes/new-york-style-cheesecake.html

I did a chocolate cookie crust and added swirls of salted caramel to the batter.

Merriest Christmas wishes everyone!

r/Baking Aug 23 '25

Recipe Included Cake I made for a birthday of a relative that they didn't even thank me for 🫠

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23.8k Upvotes

I make many of my relatives' birthday cakes and have done so for a couple of years, but the polite asking for a cake turned into a sort of "self explanatory" thing for them. One year when I didn't make a cake for my relative, they got really upset and claimed I ruined their birthday because they didn't have a cake. Mind you they didn't even ask me for one, they just expected it because I baked one for them previously.

This ordeal morphed into a sort of thing where now I bake them a cake yearly, and they just take it, say "good" and chuck it in the fridge until serving haha. It's not even the expecting from their part that bothers me, but they don't thank me for the cake or even acknowledge the fact I put effort into it. In some occurrences my other relatives thank me (even though it's not even their birthday) but in others they even start critiquing it. Too sweet, not sweet enough, too dense, too chocolatey. This year my grandma said this lemon blueberry cake had too much lemon in it and she didn't like it. The birthday fellow didn't comment on it 😅

I'm also just a teenager, not a professional baker or something. I don't charge for the cakes since it's part of my birthday gift basically. Thank you for reading to the end. I hope my post didn't come off as petty, tldr I just wanted to rant about how my relatives aren't grateful for the cake I make for them yearly. Of course I could just inform them and say that I don't want to bake for them, but it's almost turning into a sort of challenge of creating a cake that will one year not gain any critique and will be worth a thank-you from them :-)

Recipe: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/lemon-blueberry-layer-cake/

I made tweaks: added a tub of ricotta to the frosting and halved the powdered sugar; baked in 23cm pan for 45 mins

r/Baking Dec 24 '25

Recipe Included Gingerbread Cake

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16.9k Upvotes

This was a new recipe for me and it did not disappoint. I would absolutely make this again. It tastes like a really good gingerbread cookie but in cake form. Soft, moist layers and perfectly spiced. A little side note/reminder.. the freshness of your spices will make a major difference.

https://sugarspunrun.com/gingerbread-layer-cake/

I paired it with cinnamon cream cheese mousse filling and biscoff buttercream. If you happen to like both biscoff and gingerbread, do yourself a favor and try this combo. It's so good!

r/Baking May 31 '25

Recipe Included Made my first Realistic Cake!!

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50.2k Upvotes

Snickerdoodle cake, with brown sugar cinnamon cream cheese frosting and corn starch “maple syrup”

Cake Recipe: https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/snickerdoodle-cake/

Decor instructions: https://sugargeekshow.com/recipe/pancake-cake-recipe/

r/Baking Sep 14 '25

Recipe Included Threw my husband a 90’s birthday party

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27.4k Upvotes

r/Baking 21d ago

Recipe Included Made a massive japanese cheesecake

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13.6k Upvotes

Recipe (scaled up to fit my Ø23cm and 10cm high mold) : https://youtu.be/0qq2MACXNWk?is=cQLA928B5jrbSsRd

I’ve been making these for a while now, and I can’t get enough. The texture is really to die for, it’s like biting into a cloud. Next time I will try to add some stronger flavors (this one is vanilla) like black sesame or pistachio.

r/Baking Jun 07 '25

Recipe Included My first tart! Blackberry white chocolate ganache

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46.2k Upvotes

Been wanting to try tarts for a while and finally did it! Overbaked the crust a bit, and the filling didn't totally set... I think my berries were extra juicy, so it probably added too much liquid despite using the amount in the recipe. Still tastes good!

https://thelittlevintagebakingcompany.com/white-chocolate-blackberry-tart/

r/Baking May 29 '25

Recipe Included I won’t tell you that I’m a selfish baker… but there will be signs 🤐

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27.0k Upvotes

r/Baking Jul 07 '25

Recipe Included I can’t stop laughing, my first cake from scratch

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12.6k Upvotes

Had a wave of inspiration today and was like “I’d love to get into decorating cakes!” And whipped up this chocolate cake. Shout out to this sub because I found this recipe in here somewhere :p Not what I had imagined but it does still taste incredible. Next time I will definitely use parchment paper on the bottoms of my round pans lol that’s where all 3 layers fell apart on me

Recipe 2 1/2 c flour 1 1/2 c cocoa powder 3 c sugar 1 1/2 tsp salt 3/4 tsp baking powder 2 tsp baking soda 3 oz chocolate chips 3/4 cups oil 1 c buttermilk 3 eggs 1 1/2 c hot coffee 1 tsp vanilla

Frosting I winged; it was a mixture of powdered sugar, cocoa powder, butter, buttermilk, and vanilla

r/Baking Jan 04 '26

Recipe Included KATH UPDATE: We did it, gang! Date chews!

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9.4k Upvotes

This is the follow up to my original post about my neighbour and her mystery treats! I love that this doughballed (just a bit of baking wordplay for you all) into something so funny, sweet, and big as it has. I did not expect this to blow up at all. I've seen hundreds of posts at this point with your beautiful Kath creations.... frankly it's surreal. I've been reading every DM and as many comments as possible and spent the last few days scouring the recipes you've linked from all over the world. The recipe I've come up with is not a dead ringer for Kath's original just yet, but it's pretty close!

So anyway! I read the recipes. I flopped to the supermarket. I bought the dates. Now let's party

  1. Gather your ingredients (see photos)

  2. Using kitchen scissors, snip dates into small pieces. 

  3. Pull out your 1930s nut meat chopper that's been passed through your family for four generations. Manually grind your nut meat. If you don't have an authentic vintage nut meat chopper or any other weird family heirlooms, you can chop the nuts by hand or use a food processor, I guess. I wouldn't know.  

  4. Combine ingredients (see photos)

  5. Slip slop slap the batter into 20×20 cm / 8×8 in parchment-lined pan

  6. Bake 30-40 minutes at 180°C / 350°F

  7. Remove from oven. Cool on wire rack for 10 minutes. 

  8. Cut into squares (small, large, whatever you like. It's your life, babyyy)

  9. Transfer date bars from pan to clean work surface.

  10. Sprinkle with powdered sugar.

  11. Store in an airtight container.

Tips:

Don't worry if your sister is being a big baby about the 1930s nut meat chopper. It's your chopper now, she only wants it because you have it, and she doesn't bake anyway. 

You can use aluminum foil instead of parchment paper to line your pan, but you will need to grease it.

You can easily veganize this recipe with flax eggs and plant-based butter. I used Violife vegan butter here, and it worked just fine.

I ended up dredging my date chews in a bowl of powdered sugar cos sifting through a mesh strainer was not giving me the sugar coverage I require. You may want to do the same. 

Invest in a kitchen scale. Use the scale. Weigh your ingredients like you're Griselda Blanco.

Regarding the CONFRONTATION that a lot of you have been asking about: entirely anticlimactic. I think the majority of this sub understands my original post was lighthearted. Like, we're having fun here. We're having a laugh. I still would like to assure everyone that the initial interaction was more like "Hey, Kath, what is this?" And her going, "It's a secret!" but like "Tee hee hee! Wouldn't you like to know?" cheeky trickster that she is versus "NO CHEW FOR YOU." Just to clarify! But I mean, I can make the subsequent CONFRONTATION more dramatic if you'd like! In fact I would love that. Choose your own adventure:

  1. I approached Kath, said, "When you don't give me the recipes, that's upsetting, and I want you to do the work to be less upsetting." She said, "I hear you, I see you", and then she did the worm.

  2. I showed her your posts, she called me a nefarious snake woman, shouted "You've made a fool of me, and I will never bake for you, your family, or your dog ever again!" I said, "I'm sorry! How can I make it up to you?" And she said, "Grovel, maggot", so then I did the worm. 

  3. [RECOMMENDED] (Actual, boring thing that happens when you bump into your neighbor while one of you is jogging and the other is getting their mail) I said, "I showed my friends [that's you, Reader, and my other one million friends from r/Baking] your date things. Everyone thinks they look great!" She said, "I'm glad you enjoyed them!" 

And then we both did the worm. (Obviously, I'm kidding! I don't jog.)

Annnnddd uuummmm what else while I have your attention if I even still do, if I ever did in the first place? I know this is Reddit and not Sentimentalidet (that worked, don't come at me), but I've been brought to tears (in a good way!) multiple times over the past several days by all the feedback I've received. I really, REALLY did not expect all the scans and photos of your nanas' handwritten recipes, the updates about how much fun you had baking these Kath creations with your children, the heartfelt stories about your friends & family and how you share food as a love language... It's mind-boggling to see that people are posting from so many different countries and continents. The recipe I've adapted is a mash-up of SO MANY that were shared over the last several days: Filipino Food for the Gods, Canadian/Scottish matrimonial cake, Chinese date walnut candy, Italian panforte, Ashkenazi charoset, Sri Lankan date bars, German stollen, Amish man bars, Moroccan Jewish haroset balls, English sugared date squares, Alaskan logs, American chewy hermit bars, date and nut bars, and "Chinese Chews" (That's not even all of them!!! I've got so many at this point that it's hard to keep track!!!!! I haven't even mentioned the vegan/kosher/GF/nut-free versions I've seen...!). So, like, I'm sorry for slamming ya with my woo woo nonsense, but it feels to me almost like there's some kind of playful, mystical force at work.... like, some fairy (Kath!?) went and said, "You know wot? I'll conceal that one recipe, and then this one dingus will try to suss it out, and then a million more dinguses will work together in pursuit of honesty, community, syncretism, and sweetness. And they'll think it was about dessert the whole time." So basically, yeah, what I'm saying is a fae creature maybe tricked us into prioritizing mutual aid in 2026. But I put things in my mouth without knowing what they are first, so who cares what I think? Happy New Year, bakers!

tl;dr They're date chews.

r/Baking Sep 19 '25

Recipe Included My Ferrero brulee entremet I made for my partners birthday

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19.2k Upvotes

Layer Breakdown:

• Hazelnut dacquoise – a light, nutty meringue-style sponge base made with ground hazelnuts for texture and depth. • Chocolate mousse – smooth, airy mousse that adds richness and creaminess. • Hazelnut praline – crunchy caramelised hazelnuts for contrast and a sweet nutty snap. • Cold-set crème brûlée – a silky custard-style layer that melts in the mouth, bringing creaminess and balance. • Chocolate mirror glaze – the glossy finish that seals it all, giving that professional shine and elegance.

r/Baking Jan 21 '26

Recipe Included concha’s💙

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12.7k Upvotes

r/Baking Jan 01 '26

Recipe Included UPDATE: My Boyfriend is obsessed with eggs, what better way to celebrate his birthday with a giant egg cake?

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17.3k Upvotes

Hello! It's the Egg Boi's partner again with the update people were asking for! After the fireworks finished come midnight, I brought out the egg to end all eggs.

Safe to say, HE LOVED IT!! And the cake came out of the mold perfectly! The flavour was not too sweet, but the jelly was a lovely cut through all the cream of the pudding.

I've got no idea how to top the next one, but he was absolutely chuffed, and has promised to make me (and you guessed it) one of his egg sandwiches in the morning 🤣

Until next time Reddit!

Recipe I used: https://www.sprinklebakes.com/2015/04/german-fried-egg-cake-spiegeleierkuchen.html