An easy, less messy option to the classic fireside dessert was his inspiration behind this one. The dough itself has honey, brown sugar, and cinnamon mixed into the base, but the chocolate chips and marshmallows he added should ideally create a similar flavor.
After cutting a piece in thirds, we cheers and take a bite. Our rule is we have to always try it plain first, because butter makeseverythingbetter. It’s a fact.
Immediately, I know this is my favorite so far—beating the strawberry shortcake and the classic cranberry and orange he did for the holidays.
This one is something I’d keep in my house for a late night snack. There’s even a nice crunch to it, giving it more texture without turning it into a cracker.
“Is that feuilletine?” Ana asks, taking another bite.
Following suit, I go for another taste, chewing slower this time. The caramel and praline undertones are overpowered by everything else, so it was almost unnoticeable at first.
Nodding, he swallows his bite and confirms, “It is. Something was missing, but I figured it out this weekend. I even took our head tester, Bella, to the beach and warmed up a couple of pieces by the fire.” Bella’s his granddaughter and the one who showed him the videos. “She approves, by the way.”
“She’d be crazy not to,” Ana jokes around another bite.
I reach for another piece and look at him. “We wouldn’t be eating it if she hadn’t.”
He chuckles but doesn’t deny it. He thinks he’s a tougher man than he is, especially when it comes to the women in his life. Between his personal life and work life, that’s quite a few of us too.
“This one’s going to be really popular,” I add honestly. Even though he has decades of experience over me, it has always meant the world to me how much Chuck respects my opinions and suggestions.
Smiling proudly, he finishes off his last piece and claps his hands together. “I’ll get everything prepped to officially launch it next week, then.”
Washing my hands again, I agree and we break off to our morning tasks.
For a long time, it was only Chuck and me doing a majority of the baking. Lexi and our shift manager Gavin can help with some things. Lexi is surprisingly talented at decorating the sugar cookies; Gavin is strong enough to help Chuck knead and separate the heavy, dense doughs. He can also follow a recipe to the T, which is a great trait in an amateur baker.
We’ve gotten by for the five and a half years since Lexi and I opened Brighter Daze. It’s only gotten better since we hired a mother and daughter duo two years ago. Like me, Juanita has her B.A. in Baking and Pastry Arts. Unlike me, she entered her culinary program knowing that was what she wanted to do. Her daughter Ana is eight years younger than me and has been taught mostly from Juanita, but she’s been as big of an asset as her mom.
Juanita has completely taken over the cookie side of things. She’s got an insane talent and love for them, and they’ve never been my favorite pastry. Chuck and I were able to offer general sugar cookie designs with a few other options, like chocolate chip, snickerdoodle, and the more generic flavors. She’s turned it into something I couldn’t have ever imagined, making the holiday season particularly magical.
Ana’s great because she’s good at everything. She hasn’t quite found her own niche yet, but she can remember almost any recipe after being taught once and is constantly researching anything in regards to the field—flavor profiles, predicted trends, new techniques. Recently, she’s even been helping me create some of the recipes I curate seasonally for the hotel in La Jolla. We’re all trying to convince her to apply to a program. Ana insists she’d rather learn from the three of us, people she trusts.
Plus, we recently hired Trina—one of the students at the public charter school my sister and Grady work at—and she’s taken a real interest in baking. I’ve taught her a lot in the six months she’s been here. Most of the bookstoreemployees are comfortable helping at the bakery counter too, selling pastries and making coffee orders.
All of that to say, the bakery has been doing great recently. Lexi and I haven’t quite figured out what’s going to take us to thatnextlevel, but I have a team who will be ready once we do.
Lexi and I were both in our twenties when we bought the property, and way too ambitious for our own good. There have been hard enough months that I expected our staff to leave, and I wouldn’t have blamed them. They never have—specifically Chuck and Gavin. Juanita and Ana are equally as stubborn and committed to the business. A day doesn’t go by that I’m not immensely grateful to them for sticking by us.
Leaning down to arrange the pastries in the large display cases, I don’t notice Lexi walking over until her face pops up on the other side of the glass. Her long, dark brown hair is loose today, and she has on the barest amount of makeup as per usual.
Lexi doesn’t need it anyway. Not with her mischievous brown eyes or the smirk that naturally graces her lips. She carries herself with an air of shameless confidence that most people can only fake.
Standing at my full height, I place the tray of cookies on the counter and cross my arms. “What’s up?”
Lexi’s behaviors are predictable, so it’s easy to guess she’s going to ask me for something, but her mind is a weird, twisted place I’d never want to understand. There’s no guessing what will come out of her mouth next.
“I need you to do a favor for me.” Her face turns into a pout, but Lexi couldn’t look desperate or innocent if her lifedepended on it. “It’sreallyimportant. Like, life-or-death serious.”
Rolling my head to the side, I give her a bored look that should express how over her shit I already am.
“If it was that serious, you’d ask Vivi for help,” I retort.
She sighs dramatically and flops her body across the counter, thankfully a foot away from the cookies. “If that gorgeous woman wasn’t already engaged, I would be on my knees begging her, too.”
My brows raise and I wave my hand in the space between us. “I don’t see you on your knees.”
“Let me ask first. Jesus Christ, have some patience.” Biting back a laugh, I nod in her direction, giving her the go ahead. “Will you go on a blind date for me this Friday?"
