Superior Creamery & Confections / The Weekly Bake

05/01/2026

When I think of all the women who've taught, mentored, buoyed, loved me, who've held me in their hearts and held me to account, who've believed in me and taught me to believe in myself, I realize mothers come in all ages and forms, and come along all through our lives. And I'm grateful, daily, for all those phenomenal women in mine. Next weekend is a chance to show our love to those who've mothered us all, whether they're our own moms or extraordinary women who've given themselves to us when we've needed their wisdom, strength, friendship and kindness. The May 1 Special Edition Mother's Day Tea Party Bake Box is the perfect way to say "Thank you," with a sweet little tea party in a box. In addition to the usual three Bake Box selections are our annual petite bouquets of blooms, locally-grown by the flower farmers of the and other local growers. Also in the box: a package of our exclusive Mother's Day tea - a blend of beautiful dried blossoms and berries, and CaryTown Teas Mother's Bouquet tea: an aromatic mix of bright, sweet orange; calming chamomile and soothing, luxurious roses. Brew a pot and enjoy it with the four large Red Berries Cream Scones made with Carytown Teas Strawberry Kiwi & Scarlet fruit & herbal tisanes and the four big London Fog Cookies, also infused with one of Carytown Tea's most popular blends of Italian bergamot fruit, lavender and milky oolong. Our Superior Creamery and Confections selection is no less luscious; Matcha and Ruby Chocolate Bark with Raspberry & Toasted Coconut...gilt with edible silver leaf. Every box includes a full sized quarter pound package. This box arrives wrapped in a beautiful hand dyed silk ribbon the afternoon of SATURDAY, May 9, just in time to give on Sunday or enjoy at a tea party with the special women in your life. Sales for the May 9 Special Edition Mother's Day Tea Party Bake Box go live tomorrow, 9AM, at .com. Only a limited number will be available, so don't wait to order your box of love!

05/01/2026

The combination of fresh strawberries, soft cake, and dairy is a universal culinary concept. However, how these three elements are structured varies significantly across different global baking traditions.

In Europe, the focus is often on distinct layers and rich custards. The French Fraisier uses a precise architecture of sponge cake and mousseline cream topped with marzipan. The German Erdbeerkuchen relies on a specific flan-like base holding vanilla pudding, while the British Victoria Sponge keeps it simple with a dense butter cake layered with strawberry jam and cream.

Other regions manipulate the texture of the base itself. The American Strawberry Shortcake abandons the traditional soft sponge entirely, using a crumbly, sweet biscuit to absorb the fruit juices. The Mexican Pastel de Tres Leches con Fresas, on the other hand, aggressively soaks the sponge in three types of milk to create a heavy, pudding-like texture before adding the fruit.

Meanwhile, Japanese and Nordic traditions favor extreme lightness. Both the Japanese Kurisumasu Keki and the Finnish Mansikkakakku are built on highly aerated, fluffy sponge cakes covered in simple whipped cream, ensuring the fresh strawberries remain the absolute center of the dish.

04/24/2026

Sales of May 1 Bake Box are live!

Order your four Double Chocolate Muffins, four Lemon Meringue Cookies and jar of Superior Creamery and Confections Pear Caramel Sauce today, for free hand delivery to your door next Friday.

Place your order at TheWeeklyBake.com.
(muffin photo: Sue Moran)

04/14/2026

Who's up for a Ancient Rome themed Bake Box?

Two thousand years ago, Roman families had a specific cake they baked to keep their household gods happy. It was made from cheese, flour, egg and drizzled with honey. It was left at a small shrine in the home, often in the kitchen or the atrium, on a bed of bay leaves. The gods got their portion and the family ate the rest.

The cake is called Libum and the recipe comes directly from Marcus Porcius Cato, known as Cato the Elder, a Roman statesman and writer of the 2nd century BC who included it in his agricultural manual De Agri Cultura. The original Latin reads: "Libum hoc modo facito. Make libum by this method. Break up two pounds of cheese well in a mortar. Mix in a pound of wheat flour, or if you want it more delicate, half a pound of fine flour. Add one egg and mix together well. Make into a loaf, place bay leaves beneath it, and cook slowly on a hot hearth under an earthen pot." It is one of the oldest surviving recipes in Western culinary history and it is genuinely, surprisingly good.

The household gods Libum was made for were called the Lares and Penates. The Lares were guardians of the family and the home. The Penates were specifically the gods of the pantry and storeroom, the gods of food abundance. Roman families kept small shrines called lararia in their homes, usually in the kitchen or the entrance hall, where offerings were made regularly. The Kalends, Nones, and Ides of each month were particularly sacred to the Lares. On those days the shrine was decorated with garlands, and simple offerings including food, incense and wine were left for the gods. Libum, along with grain, grapes and wine, was among the most common food offerings. The paterfamilias, the head of the household, served as the family's priest for these domestic rites.

So what you had was essentially a family sitting down together to eat the same thing they had just offered to the divine, in a ritual of gratitude and communal participation that was deeply ordinary and deeply meaningful at the same time. You baked a cake. You thanked whatever you believed was watching over your home. You ate together. The gods of the pantry were happy because the pantry was full. You were happy because there was cake.

Two thousand years later, I am not sure we have improved on this as a concept. Maybe we should take some time to show gratitude before diving into our sweet treats ;)

Full Recipe: https://eatshistory.com/libum-ancient-roman-cheesecake/

-Donnie

04/10/2026

Sales of the APRIL 24 's Sixth Anniversary Bake Box are live! Order your four Croque-Monsieur Pastries, four 3" Thin Mint Brownies and a full sized package of Superior Creamery and Confections Dark Chocolate Dipped Candied Orange Slices today, for delivery in two weeks on Friday, April 24. (Please note we'll be away from the kitchen next week, and there will be no Bake Box delivery next Friday, April 17.) Order before April 20, 11:59 PM at TheWeeklyBake.com; link in our bio. (photos: Joscelyn Abreu, Alex Snodgrass, Jen Wooster)

04/09/2026

It's 's SIXTH anniversary next week, but I'll be away from the kitchen visiting with out of town family. The April 24 Sixth Anniversary Bake Box is too good to wait to announce, so we're doing it today, and opening sales tomorrow morning...because I know myself and I'll forget to do it next Friday. One of my favorite indulgences is a VERY occasional Croque Monsieur sandwich. If you've ever eaten one, you know why. Not only is the toasted French bread filled with the most delicious French-style ham and Gruyère, it's smothered in a rich béchamel and more cheese, and broiled golden. NOT an everyday meal. The April 24 Bake Box includes four pastry versions of the Croque: buttery puff pastry holds Parisian-style ham from Les Trois Petits Cochons, rich Gruyère cheese and, like their sandwich sisters, is topped with decadent béchamel and finished with fresh thyme and MORE cheese. Just enough to make you feel like you're lunching in a Parisian café, but not so much that you feel like you need to walk all of Paris to burn it off. You may have to hit the walking trail after finishing one of our huge Thin Mint Brownies, though. A perennial favorite of Bake Boxers, it's a triple threat of a fudgy, deeply chocolate brownie slathered with fresh, cool peppermint frosting and finished with a layer of rich chocolate fudge. These 3" squares are plenty big enough to cut in half and still feel like you've had a real treat. Every Bake Boxers includes four. Finally, our friends at APOTHEC have been asking us to make Dark Chocolate Dipped Candied Orange Slices for a while, and we've decided the time is now. Soft, sweet hand-candied Valencia oranges are dipped in our favorite dark chocolate and gilt with a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. They're perfect and every box includes a full sized package. Sales of the APRIL 24 Sixth Anniversary Bake Box go live tomorrow, and will stay open until 11:59PM on Monday, April 20. You've got a bit more time to order but don't delay, we predict this box will be very popular. Place your order at TheWeeklyBake.com; the link's in our bio. (photos: Alex Snodgrass, Joscelyn Abreu, Jen Wooster)

04/09/2026

This week's seasonal cake in the APOTHEC Pantry's
pastry case is a light & luscious Lemon Lavender Polenta Cake with Crème de Mûre Glaze, fresh blackberries and organic pansies, lavender & wisteria blossoms.

Lemon Lavender Polenta Cake 🍋🪻
Fresh in the APOTHEC pantry from
Enjoy a slice with a cup of Creamy Earl White or ask one of our herbaristas for their tea pairing suggestions. ☕️

04/08/2026

A triple threat of pollution, extinction and warming temperatures is altering the way the planet smells. Scientists are only beginning to understand the stakes for humans

04/03/2026

Sales of the April 10 Birthday Bake Box are live! Celebrate my birthday with me, with four Custard & Caramel Buns French Toast Buns, a 4" Strawberry Lychee Rose Birthday Cake and a full sized package of Superior Creamery and Confections Bourbon & Butterscotch Sugar Fudge. Order today and we'll deliver for free to your door next Friday! Place your order at TheWeeklyBake.com - link in our profile.

04/02/2026

Next Saturday's my birthday, so it's time for the Jeannie's Birthday Bake Box! The April 10 box is gonna be SO GOOD.

I LOVE custard, caramel and stuffed French toast and I just found out there's such thing as CUSTARD & CARAMEL FRENCH TOAST BUNS!!! You know I have to make them. You know you have to have them. Next week's box contains four custard-dipped, cinnamon sugar-filled, caramel iced breakfast rolls and you better believe I'm making extras for me.

I always end up making my own birthday cake, and this year, I'm making one for you, too. Every box includes a 4" Strawberry Lychee Rose layer cake. Strawberry cake was always my favorite as a girl, and this one's a strawberry cake for grownups. No bright pink Jello & box mix here; it's a beautiful cake delicately flavored with fresh berries, lychees and rosewater. So fresh and feminine.

Of course any birthday box of mine HAS to include fudge, and our Bourbon Butterscotch Sugar Fudge in this one is spectacular.

Celebrate my birthday with me, with next Friday's April 10 Bake Box. Sales go live Friday, 9AM at TheWeeklyBake.com. There's a link in our profile. (fudge photo: Michael Graydon/Nikole Herriott)

03/29/2026

That'll do it for Easter ordering! Thanks to everyone; see you Saturday afternoon!