Made. by Lia, Everyday Craft Baking by Lia Holter, Reviewed

Growing up in a suburb of St. Louis, I’ve always had a soft spot for local gems, so discovering Made. by Lia, Everyday Craft Baking by Lia Holter, the heart and soul behind the adorable Made. by Lia bakery, felt like a homecoming. As someone who doesn’t consider herself to be a master baker (though I dabble), I was drawn to this book not just for its recipes but for the warmth and nostalgia Lia pours into every page. Her story, rooted in family, community, and a triumphant win on “Next Great Baker" resonates deeply, especially since her bakery is in the very suburb where I spent my childhood.

What I love most about this book is how approachable it feels. The recipes, from crowd-pleasing Lemon Blueberry Scones to the indulgent Chocolate Cherry Birthday Cake, are written with such clear, concise instructions that even a baking novice like me feels confident tackling them. The Birthday Cake Scones? Adorable and drool-worthy. The Butter Biscuits? They’re on my to-bake list this week, and just looking at the photos makes my mouth water. Lia’s ability to balance simple and complex recipes ensures there’s something for everyone, whether you’re a seasoned baker or just starting out.

The book’s design is a thoughtful touch, especially for someone like me who appreciates readability as I get older. The sans-serif font is large, clear, and easy on the eyes—perfect for flipping through while covered in flour. I was also thrilled to see vegan and gluten-free options, making this a cookbook that truly welcomes all bakers. The chapters on scones and cakes stole my heart, particularly the Chocolate Peanut Butter Cake, which had me practically licking the page.

Lia’s passion for baking as a craft shines through, and her professional tips make you feel like she’s right there in the kitchen with you. This book isn’t just about recipes; it’s about creating memories, sharing love through food, and embracing the joy of baking. It’s become a staple in my kitchen, and I can’t wait to pass these recipes on to my own family.

 You can order a copy here.

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

 Disclaimer: I received a complimentary copy of this book from Ready Press Publishers in exchange for my honest review.

[Incredibly] Ridiculously Easy Snickerdoodle Scones

It has been ages since I last made scones, so when I spotted this recipe on the Té Café Sucré Farina blog I decided to give it a try. Her name for them were Ridiculously Easy Snickerdoodle Scones, employing the use of a freezer method that does make these easier than cutting the butter and dry ingredients together with a pastry cutter. It still seemed like trouble to me when I compared it to my incredibly ridiculously easy version [of any kind of scones] using a food processor -- the food processor cuts butter and dough together like nobody’s business -- it makes short work out of any scone recipe, and it worked beautifully here.

The glaze and cinnamon sugar topping are what make these extra special. Do give them a try. If you don’t have a food processor and want to use Chris’s method, click here and head to her blog.

Ridiculously Easy Snickerdoodle Scones

 For the scones:

1 large egg

¾ c. heavy cream (approximately)

1 stick (8 T.) butter

2 c. plus 2 T. all-purpose flour

⅓ c. sugar

1 T. baking powder

1 t. cream of tartar

½ t. salt

 For the glaze and cinnamon-sugar sprinkle:

¾ c. powdered sugar

¼ c. water

1 t. vanilla extract

2 T. granulated sugar

1 t. ground cinnamon

 For the scones:

 Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a cookie sheet or jellyroll pan with a Silpat or parchment paper.

 Add the egg to a liquid measuring cup. Add enough heavy cream to equal 1 cup. Place the egg/cream mixture in the freezer for 15-20 minutes while proceeding with the recipe.

 Place flour, sugar, baking powder, cream of tartar, and salt into the work bowl of a food processor. Pulse until the mixture looks like heavy sand. Add heavy cream and pulse again until all flour is incorporated and the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

 Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Pat dough into a circle, and cut into wedges. Bake for 14-18 minutes or until nicely light golden brown.

 Transfer to a cooling rack, brush two at a time generously with the glaze. Grab a nice pinch of the cinnamon-sugar mixture and sprinkle over the wet glaze.

Serve warm or at room temperature with butter, if desired.

For the glaze and cinnamon-sugar sprinkle:

 While the scones are baking, mix up the glaze by combining the powdered sugar, water, and vanilla. Whisk until any small lumps disappear. Set aside.

Combine the cinnamon and sugar in a small bowl.

 *You can also scoop the dough up with a retractable 4 tablespoon ice cream scoop.

 As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

Peach Pie Scones

Peach pie for breakfast? Why not! Particularly when it's in the form of Peach Pie Scones. A friend recently gave me a jar of delicious, authentic Georgia peach preserves. I had been doling it out, bit by bit, in order to stretch its usage for as long as possible, when the idea came to me that it would be marvelous not just spread on top of a scone, but actually baked into one. I gave it a try this morning, and the results were fantastic! I'm sure this would work with any type of preserve that you have on hand, be it your own homemade, or one from the grocery store, so you have to try this. Peach is a wonderful variety to try for summer, but consider fall, and perhaps a nice berry filling, or even cranberry! There's no limit to what you can do with this recipe.

Peach Pie Scones

2 cups flour
1/3 cup sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 tablespoons unsalted butter, frozen, cut into cubes
1/2 cup sour cream
1 large egg
1/4 cup peach preserves

1 large egg
1 teaspoon water

2 tablespoons heavy cream
Sanding sugar

Preheat oven to 400° F.

Place flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and unsalted butter into the work bowl of a food processor. Pulse repeatedly until dough forms. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured cutting board. Divide into two equal portions. Pat each into an 8-inch round. Spread jam on one of the rounds to within an inch of the edge.

Beat egg with 1 teaspoon of water until frothy. Brush egg wash around edge of jam-covered circle. Top with the remaining circle. Press down on edges with the tines of a fork. Brush top with heavy cream, and sprinkle with sanding sugar, if desired. Score dough into wedges to make cutting upon removal from oven easier. Bake for 22 to 25 minutes, until edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and transfer to wire racks to cool. Cut and serve.

PRINT RECIPE

This post is linked to:

Full Plate Thursday

Home and Garden Thursday
Home Sweet Home
Weekend Linky Party
Grace at Home

Coffee and Conversation

Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Create, Bake, Grow and Gather
Share Your Style

Simple Saturday Blog Hop

A Bouquet of Talent

Paula's No Rules Weekend Blog Party

Cream Scones with Amaretto Cherries

I've been having a lot of fun working with bing cherries, but decided to switch from the fresh ones to the dried ones because, after all, bing cherry season need never be over as long as you have a package of delicious and sweet dried cherries in your pantry.

Because I had such wonderful success with adding amaretto to the cherry preserves, I decided to make some scones with amaretto cherries in them. You have to plan ahead for this recipe by soaking your dried bing cherries in amaretto overnight. Once that's done, the scones go together easily and are, I think, the best scones I've ever eaten. Topped with homemade Devonshire cream (that recipe will be coming up tomorrow), and a dollop of delicious fresh Bing Cherry Preserves, nothing is better for breakfast than this. Whether you are serving it to guests at some special occasion breakfast or brunch, or just treating yourself, these are wonderful!

Cream Scones with Amaretto Cherries

2 cups sifted cake flour

1/4 cup sugar

2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

6 T. unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces

1 3-oz. pkg. Melissa’s dried bing cherries, 

soaked overnight in 1/3 cup Amaretto

1 egg

1/2 tsp. almond flavoring

1/3 cup heavy cream

Heavy Cream

Sanding Sugar

Preheat oven to 375°F with rack in middle. Drain cherries; set aside.

In the work bowl of a food processor combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, and butter.  Pulse until mixture resembles coarse meal; empty mixture into a large bowl. Add cherries, toss to coat.

In a small mixing bowl whisk together egg, cream, and almond flavoring.  When thoroughly blended, pour it over the flour mixture in the large bowl and fold until it just comes together.  Add 1-3 more teaspoons of cream, if needed.

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface. With floured hands, press into a 1/2-inch thick rectangle. Cut out rounds with a 2" biscuit cutter and arrange 2 inches apart on a Silpat-lined baking sheet. Gather scraps together and cut out additional scones.

Brush tops of scones with cream and sprinkle liberally with sanding sugar. Bake scones, rotating baking sheet halfway through, until edges are golden, 25 to 30 minutes. Cool on a rack before serving.

Makes 8-10

PRINT RECIPE

This post is linked to:

Wow Us Wednesday

Wine’d Down Wednesday

Full Plate Thursday

Thursday Favorite Things

Home and Garden Thursday
Home Sweet Home
Grace at Home

Coffee and Conversation

Friday at the Fire Station
Foodie Friday & Everything Else

Create, Bake, Grow and Gather
Share Your Style

Simple Saturday Blog Hop

Paula's No Rules Weekend Blog Party

Tea, Scones & Sherlock Holmes TBT

We were on our way home from a two-week vacation in Italy.  Our plane was late leaving Malpensa Airport in Milan, so we had little time once we got to London Heathrow to make our connection into New York.  We were dragging heavy suitcases, loaded with goodies (Venice has the most AMAZING paper stores...but I digress), breathing heavily, worried that we wouldn't make our gate on time.  We zoomed past younger passengers with skilled ease.  We ignored our parched throats every time we passed a beverage stand or café, knowing our gate was our only mission.  And then I saw it.  The most wonderful little Sherlock Holmes teapot in the front of a shop of British goods that I knew belonged in my collection.  I had nothing like and I knew that I must, MUST!! I say, add it to my collection.  Without breaking stride I veered to the right.  I shifted my purse and two cases into my left hand, pulled my credit card from my pocket and secured it between my teeth.  With my free arm I scooped up the boxed teapot and in the blink of an eye slipped into the checkout, leaving heads of tourists behind me in a spin.  My lips parted and my credit card dropped onto the counter.  I nodded at the checker who knew what to do.  Swipe!  And the deed was done.  I signed, thanked him, and pressed on.  I made it!  And so did this little gem from England.  I smile every time I see it remembering that moment as though frozen in time.  Ahhh, the beauty of it all!

The cinnamon scones are delicious and the recipe is a breeze.  

You can find it here.

Nothing beats clotted cream with any type of scone, but

when it's not readily available you can make a reasonable

(though not authentic) Devonshire Cream at home.

DEVONSHIRE CREAM

1 cup whipping cream

½ tsp. cream of tartar

½ cup powdered sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

Beat all together until stiff. Refrigerate. Serve with scones and jam.

This post is linked to:

Make it Pretty Monday

Amaze Me Monday

Tea Time Tuesday

Teacup Tuesday

Friends Sharing Tea

Tuesday Cuppa Tea

Teach Me Tuesday

Inspire Me Tuesday

The Scoop

Wow Us Wednesday
Work It Wednesday

What’s It Wednesday

Before and After Wednesday

Share Your Cup Thursday

Thursday Favorite Things

Tablescape Thursday

Create It Thursday

Home and Garden Thursday

Show and Tell Friday 

Friday Unfolded

Fridays Flash Blog
Simple and Sweet Fridays

What To Do Weekend 
The Weekend re-Treat

Flashback Friday