Milkbar holds a special place in my heart (and stomach). Fun fact: my college essay was essentially a sappy love letter to their Cereal Milk Ice cream. After watching Netflix’s Chef’s Table Episode on Christina Tosi, the mastermind behind the bakery, I knew I needed to sign up for a Milkbar baking class. Tosi’s recipes make you feel at home with flavors that remind you of childhood.
Once you navigate your way to Brooklyn, walking into the Milk Bar Williamsburg Kitchen is like stepping into sugary buttery heaven. Sprinkles, birthday cake crumbs, cookbooks, and chalkboard signs colorfully line the walls. Upon arrival, you know you can kiss that recent trip to the gym goodbye. But trust me, it’s worth it.
This class is perfect for all levels. My friend, the Seamless fanatic, who has never stepped foot in a kitchen, created a wonderful crack pie. Our leader Sarah, corralled the group for a quick story time of how Crack Pie was invented. Similar to Chess Pie, Crack Pie is made with sugar, butter, eggs, and vanilla. It’s perfect for when you want to make a pie, but have no fruits for the filling!
Crack Pie
Armed with our headbands and aprons, we were ready to begin. Headscarves are special at Milkbar because Tosi's grandmother, her baking inspiration, used to make them for her. After she passed away, Tosi continues the tradition by providing head scarves for all of her bakers and class participants. First, we flattened crumbled oatmeal cookies to create the crust. Next, we made the filling by mixing the dry and wet ingredients. Every ingredient was perfectly measured and laid out before us.
Sarah emphasized that Milkbar’s desserts are so tasty because they use European butter for their desserts. Their butter has a higher fat content than American butter which allows it to melt quicker. (Yum!) The hardest part of the entire experience was probably smelling the gooey buttery filling and not being able to eat it. Thankfully, they handed out some leftover oatmeal cookies to satisfy our cravings.
Birthday Cake Truffles
While our pies baked in mini convection ovens, we moved on to concocting Birthday Cake Truffles. We arranged ourselves into an assembly line. The first person attacked sheets of birthday cake and crumbled them into a large bowl.
Next, the crumbs were soaked in vanilla milk. Once the dough is created, it’s scooped and shaped into spheres. Then, the truffles take a bath in melted white chocolate which creates a yummy shell.
The truffles are finally rolled in crunchy birthday cake crumb and ready to eat.
Totally overloaded with sugar, our crack pies and truffles were all set! Crack Pie can be eaten as a warm salty caramel goo or frozen for a melt in your mouth experience. All in all, we went home with sugar highs and delighted stomachs completely loaded with Milkbar sweets. Sign up for a Milkbar baking class in NYC or the new DC location for a wonderful experience. There are new treats that can be baked such as Chocolate Malt Cake or even a design your own cake!