Many of my favorite bakers and restaurants have entered HOLIDAY MODE, the first stage of which is the selling of the first round of holiday desserts, mostly pie - because I like pie and it’s the time of the season. I would just like to state that even though I’m referencing food writers articles on these pastry chefs, I was a fan before they were. So there. I’m not going to get too cute, because time’s a wasting and pies are selling out as we speak. Here goes:
Casey Ann Shea, who was on the the “cake virtuosos” singled out by Bill Addison in his article at the LA Times and who won the first Godiva Chocolatier Scholarship at Culinary Institute Of America is currently taking orders here for Holiday pies, cookies, and a coffee cake! She has pick ups on the 24th and 25th and has the following pastries available. Pies are $55 each, Coffee Cake is $30, cookie prices are noted on each listing.
Chai Pumpkin Pie: Flaky Sonora pie crust, silky chai spiced pumpkin custard, brown sugar Chantilly. (My favorite. I ate one whole pie by myself last year)
Banoffee Pie: Sugar cookie crust with flecks of toffee, roasted banana mousse, dulce de Leche, salted peanut butter Chantilly.
Ginger Apple Pear Pie: Classic Sonora pie crust filled with apples, pears, ginger, and pops of cranberry. All tossed in sugar and spices, topped with an brown butter oat crumble.
Pumpkin Citrus Coffee Cake: Roasted pumpkin purée baked into a tender coffee cake loaf, glazed in a tart citrus blend for an amazing balance of tart & spice.
Honey Cornbread Cookie: Soft and chewy yellow dense corn sugar cookie smothered in honey. (Her cookies are really good) $30 for a dozen, $15 for a half dozen
Soft Gingerbread Cookies: Soft and chewy sugar cookie spiced with ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove with hints of molasses. $25 for a dozen, $15 for a half dozen
Karla Subero Pittol’s Chainsaw is selling a small selection of pies and a tamarind ponche. Chainsaw is a combination food pop up and bakery/creamery/adult beverage house of deliciousness with pick ups on the 23d and 24th. Chainsaw was also part of Eater’s The Pastry Revolution Will Be Instagrammed article by Megan McCarron. I’m giving you this one next because the sale is about to being in a few minutes and some of my other favorites are sold out or nearly sold out.
Passionfruit Lime Icebox pie, The Chainsaw classic. “In the style of key lime pie ~ passionfruit + lime custard set in a graham cracker crust and topped with Salvadoran crema whip, and topped with sweet 'n' sour citrus sugar. Served frozen and best enjoyed at each stage and every stage of the thawing process!” $65.00
Apple+Strawberry+Date take and bake pie that is made available frozen so you can eat it straight out of the oven hot at home. “A juicy combination of pink lady apples, strawberries, creamy honey dates, verjus, wrapped in our KCRW award winning pie crust” $65.00
Brown Sugar and Crema Whip “Pint of our brown sugar + Salvadoran crema + labneh whip.” (Delicioso) $8.00
Tamarind Ponche $35.00 (tasty adult beverage, message them on IG for details)
Fat + Flour
Nicole Rucker’s pop up at the Grand Central Market now has a new space in the DTLA Grand Central Market, they reopened, and has a few pies left for the upcoming Holiday That Shall Not Be Named. Pickups are on the 23d and 24th. The original menu was Caramel Pumpkin, Owen’s Bourbon Pecan and the hallowed standby Chocolate Chess. Even though they just went on sale yesterday at noon, F+F only has Chocolate Chess pies available now and here’s the description: Dark chocolate baked custard with a crumble chocolate cookie crust. It’s really a great option for everyone who is sick of the traditional squash and nut pies. BTW: Rucker’s cookies are also amazing.
All Day Baby has a full Holiday That Shall Not Be Named menu here where you can get all the dinner bells and whistles and selections from ADB’s excellent bar. Here’s the pastry menu from Thessa Diadem, who is ADB’s resident pastry chef and one of Food And Wine’s Best New Chefs for 2021. All pies are $50 and serve 6. All of these pies would serve one (me) in my house over a few days.
Apple Crumb Pie w/ almond frangipane
Purple Yam Coconut Pie w/ chamomile cream
Chocolate Cream Pie w/ graham, vietnamese coffee jam, vanilla bean whip
Key Lime Pie w/ graham, vanilla bean whip
Pumpkin Pie w/ tahini whip (the tahini whip is amazing and brings out the earthiness of the pumpkin)
Bourbon Pecan Pie
Coconut Meringue Pie
Banana Cream Pie w/ dulce de leche
Hannah Ziskin’s House of Gluten opened up orders and sold out that day, but she is still doing cake slices with Quartersheets Pizza on the weekends. You can use cake and Aaron Lindell’s absolutely dynamite disco pizza to dry your tears. Not this week though, because they’ve already sold out. Hannah Ziskin was in both the Eater article and The LA Times article.