Holiday Baking Essentials

My family loves to bake sweet treats and make delicious candy. One of our family traditions at Christmastime is to come together and makes lots of treats that we can send to friends and family to enjoy. You know one of the best things about baking is the compliments you receive when you share. Of course Mom is the fudge queen is our house. She whips up pan after pan of peanut butter, chocolate, or dreamsicle fudge to give relatives. The rest of us our more bakers than candy makers. We were just saying to each other that we need to plan our Christmas baking menu and make sure we have all of the ingredients so that we can start making treats for people next weekend. While we may not have the ingredients always on hand, we do always have our baking essentials in the kitchen.

ONE // Mixing Bowls- You can never have enough of these. Some recipes call for multiple mixing bowls because you keep the wet and dry ingredients separated at first. It's better to have more than you need so that when you are doing a ton of baking you don't have to keep stopping to wash dishes before you bake your next treat.

TWO // Rolling Pin- When making Christmas cookies a rolling pin is absolutely necessary. You need to be able to roll out your cookie dough evenly so that you can use your cookie cutters to make beautiful shapes!

THREE // Sifter- You really need a good sifter in your kitchen. Most cakes will benefit from having the flour sifted. It helps the cake to be lighter and fluffier and it helps the flour to mix better with the other dry ingredients. It also prevents lumps from being in your batter. Powdered sugar is another ingredient that I always sift.

FOUR // Baking Utensils- Silicone Spatulas like these are a must when you are mixing ingredients. They allow you to scrap everything back down into the bowl so that you can ensure everything is thoroughly mixed together. Then when it's time to pour your batter into the baking pan you can easily scrap out everything.

FIVE // Measuring Spoons and Measuring Cups- I am not my grandma. She can whip up fantastic homemade biscuits and cakes without having to measure a single ingredient. She just pours things into a mixing bowl until "it looks right" and then bakes it. She can't tell you how to make anything because to her it's all "a little of that" or "pour it in until it looks right." Since I am not like that I definitely need my measuring utensils.

SIX // Glass Containers- When you are busy in the kitchen, it is so much easier if everything is organized. Keep dry ingredients in clearly marked containers. Have your spices neat and organized. This will only make your life easier.

SEVEN // Baking Pans- You need pans for everything you plan on baking so a Bakeware Set like this one is a good idea. If it doesn't have everything you need you can always pick up an extra Bundt Pan, Muffin Pan, or whatever other kind of pan you need.

EIGHT // KitcheAid Stand Mixer- I am so jealous of Tracy's KitchenAid Stand Mixer. It is so easy to use, works fantastic, and looks beautiful. A stand mixer is great so that you aren't stuck in one spot using a hand mixer, it frees you up to get your next step ready.

NINE // Display Dishes- After all your hard work baking delicious treats you need adequate dishes to display these sweets on. I love this Maratha Stewart Cake Stand and this Serving Plate.