We make a lot of cakes! In this episode, we weigh the pros 
and cons of cake mixes vs. homemade cakes, kid cakes vs. adult cakes and
 talk about decorations and give you some of our best birthday cake 
strategies.
Recipes mentioned in this episode:

 ⁠Pineapple upside down cake (Snacking Cakes)
 Strawberry summer cake (Smitten Kitchen)
  Devil’s food with salted milk chocolate frosting (Smitten Kitchen Keepers)
  Chocolate Midnight cake (Salt Fat Acid Heat)
  Toasted coconut cake (Now & Again)

Cookbooks mentioned in this episode:

  Momofuku Milk Bar
  Mary Berry’s Baking Bible

Resources mentioned in this episode:

  Erin McDowell’s rainbow frosting
  The Kitchn’s funfetti cake recipe roundup
  Unicorn cake topper

Join our Cookbook Club!

  Our Instagram, ⁠@cookbookclubshow⁠
  E-mail us: ⁠cookbookclubshow@gmail.com⁠
  Find Renee and Sara on Instagram: ⁠@hipchickdigs⁠ and ⁠@realtor_saragray⁠
  Our sponsor: ⁠Dropcloth Samplers⁠
  Cook along with us! Next cookbook episode (releasing 3/20/2024): Modern Comfort Food, by Ina Garten


68: Birthday cakes

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Pie is wonderful. Dessert pie is the best. And it makes us 
feel downright patriotic. Join us as we geek out on crust, fillings and baking techniques in this episode all about pie.
Recipes mentioned in this episode:

 ⁠Tart and pie dough (The Art of Simple Food)
 All butter crust (America’s Test Kitchen)
  The only pie crust (Alison Roman)
  Lime pie with Anzac biscuit crust (Family)
  Carrot pie (Six Seasons)
  David Liebovitz’s salted honey pie (Grains for Every Season)
  Banana cream pie (NYT)
  Coconut cream pie (America’s Test Kitchen)
  Salted lemon cream pie (Sweet Enough)
  Apple ombre pie (NYT)

Cookbooks mentioned in this episode:

  The Book on Pie, by Erin Jeanne McDowell
  Baking with Dorie, by Dorie Greenspan
  Dessert Person, by Claire Saffitz

Join our Cookbook Club!

  Our Instagram, @cookbookclubshow
  E-mail us: cookbookclubshow@gmail.com
  Find Renee and Sara on Instagram: @hipchickdigs and @realtor_saragray
  Our sponsors: Dropcloth Samplers
  Cook along with us! Next cookbook episode (releasing 6/12/2024 most likely — thanks for your patience!): Mi Cocina, by Rick Martinez


74: Pie

Bryant Terry is a visionary in the vegan cooking world, and 
we tried out this well-known cookbook. We talk about nesting doll recipes, brilliant vegan flavor boosters and decide whether this book could ever work on a weeknight. (And yes, we know we sound a little breathy in the audio on this episode, we’re working on it!)
Recipes mentioned in this episode:

 All-green everything salad with creamy sage dressing (page 148)
 Cornbread muffins (page 37)
  Dill pickled fennel (page 44)
  Red rice with spring vegetables (page 74)
  Sweet potato, russet potato and tempeh hash (page 183)
  Millet, red lentil and potato cakes (page 175)
  Lentil soup (page 215)
  Creamy carrot coconut soup (page 208)

Resources mentioned in this episode:

  Spotify dinner playlist

Join our Cookbook Club!

  Our Instagram, @cookbookclubshow
  E-mail us: cookbookclubshow@gmail.com
  Find Renee and Sara on Instagram: @hipchickdigs and @realtor_saragray
  Our sponsors: Dropcloth Samplers
  Cook along with us! Next cookbook episode (releasing 6/12/2024 most likely — thanks for your patience!): Mi Cocina, by Rick Martinez


73: Vegetable Kingdom

We love to bake — so today, we talk about some favorite 
recipes for these easy go-to bakes. Sara won a prize for quickbread at the Oregon State Fair, Emily brings us tips on making these treats gluten free, and Renee, as always, loves Melissa Clark.
Recipes mentioned in this episode:

 ⁠Carrot loaf cake with tangy lemon glaze (NYT)
 Banana bread (Weeknight Baking)
  Spiced banana brown bread (Now & Again)
  Gluten free zucchini muffins (Sprouted Kitchen)
  Pumpkin bread (Smitten Kitchen)
  Most adaptable one-bowl cornmeal pound cake (NYT)
  Pumpkin maple muffins (NYT)
  Caramelized brown butter rice krispies treats (NYT)
  Perfect blueberry muffins (Smitten Kitchen Every Day)
  Blueberry muffins (Grand Central Baking Book)
  Cranberry crumb muffins (NYT)
  Morning glory muffins (NYT)
  Toasted oat & apple muffins (Small Victories)
  Sled dog muffins (Simply Julia)
  Lunchbox harvest muffins (NYT)
  Figgy buckwheat scone (Good to the Grain)

Cookbooks mentioned in this episode:

  Weeknight baking, by Michelle Lopez
  Good to the Grain, by Kim Boyce

Join our Cookbook Club!

  Our Instagram, @cookbookclubshow
  E-mail us: cookbookclubshow@gmail.com
  Find Renee and Sara on Instagram: @hipchickdigs and @realtor_saragray
  Our sponsors: Dropcloth Samplers
  Our guest: Emily Pagliarulo, @ejmaletz on Instagram
  Cook along with us! Next cookbook episode (releasing 5/15/2024): Vegetable Kingdom, by Bryant Terry




72: Quickbreads & Muffins

This book grabbed Renee’s eye over the summer when she was traveling in the UK, so she brought it back and we dove in to this ingredient-focused, easy weeknight book from our neighbor across the pond.
Recipes mentioned in this episode:

 Persian saffron chicken, fennel & barberry stew (Persiana)
 Harissa & lemon roasted chicken thighs (page 80) 
  Bloody Mary spatchcocked chicken (page 58)
  Butternut, cardamom & tahini soup (page 27) 
  Tahini cinnamon swirls (page 222)
  Halloumi, bacon, date and apple salad (page 31)
  Spicy nutty roasted cauliflower (page 160)
  Zucchini, apple, peanut and feta salad (page 46)
  Persian flatbread (Persiana)
  Yogurt, marjoram & pul biber flatbreads (page 209)
  Cheat’s dhal (page 144)
  Zesty mackerel pate (page 24)
  Pistachio feta dip (Persiana) 

Cookbooks mentioned in this episode:

  Persiana, by Sabrina Ghayour

Join our Cookbook Club!

  Our Instagram, @cookbookclubshow
  E-mail us: cookbookclubshow@gmail.com
  Find Renee and Sara on Instagram: @hipchickdigs and @realtor_saragray
  Our sponsors: Dropcloth Samplers
  Our guest: Emily Pagliarulo, @ejmaletz on Instagram
  Cook along with us! Next cookbook episode (releasing 5/15/2024): Vegetable Kingdom, by Bryant Terry


71: Persiana Everyday

There are very many things you can put on buns. Make your 
own buns, buy some at the grocery store, make a thing on a bun! We give you a whole list of ideas you can use for a meal on a bun!
Recipes mentioned in this episode:

 ⁠Beautiful burger buns (King Arthur Flour)
 English muffins (King Arthur Flour)
  Crispy oven pulled pork (Smitten Kitchen Keepers)
  Turkey burgers (Food Health & Happiness)
  The ultimate veggie burger (NYT)
  Jamie Oliver’s vegetarian black bean burger (NYT)
  Potato chip fish cakes (Simply Julia)
  Homemade merguez with herby yogurt (Small Victories)
  Superiority burger’s crispy fried tofu sandwich (NYT)

Cookbooks mentioned in this episode:

  Mooncakes & Milk Bread

Join our Cookbook Club!

  Our Instagram, ⁠@cookbookclubshow⁠
  E-mail us: ⁠cookbookclubshow@gmail.com⁠
  Find Renee and Sara on Instagram: ⁠@hipchickdigs⁠ and ⁠@realtor_saragray⁠
  Our sponsor: ⁠Dropcloth Samplers⁠
  Cook along with us! Next cookbook episode (releasing 4/17/2024): Persiana Everyday, by Sabrina Ghayour




68: Birthday cakes

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