Margaret Chen · January 20, 2026
I almost ruined Christmas with a funnel and a bag of brown sugar. That’s the short version. The long version involves my kitchen floor, a very judgmental cat, and the moment I accidentally invented what is now my most-requested holiday gift: a cookie mix in a jar gift that costs about five dollars to make … Read more
Margaret Chen · January 19, 2026
Quick pairing picks I actually use: I still remember standing in my kitchen at 11 p.m. on a Thursday, covered in powdered sugar, with a sink full of dirty bowls and approximately zero functioning brain cells left — all because I had promised my mother-in-law, Diane, that I would bring “something homemade” to Easter dinner. … Read more
Margaret Chen · January 17, 2026
I want to tell you about the year I confidently committed to making thirty — yes, thirty — cookie gift baskets homemade from scratch, announced it to my entire extended family in a group chat, and then completely forgot that December also contains things like school concerts, work deadlines, and the basic human need for … Read more
Margaret Chen · January 15, 2026
Let me tell you about the Great Cookie Catastrophe of last December, which is what my sister now refers to as “the incident.” I shipped my college roommate a box of gorgeous, perfectly iced sugar cookies — little snowflakes, mittens, the whole festive lineup. She called to ask if I had intentionally sent her a … Read more
Margaret Chen · January 14, 2026
I almost didn’t give them away. It was the night before my mother-in-law’s retirement party, and I had spent an entire Saturday baking four dozen brown butter chocolate chip cookies — the kind with sea salt flakes on top and crispy edges and a center that stays soft for days. I had flour in my … Read more
