Though you’re probably not splitting a slice of pie with a non-pod friend this Thanksgiving, you can still bake and share these single-serving desserts without the creeping anxiety of potentially getting anyone sick.
Even the logistics of cutting a whole pie and handing out wedges can feel like a lot right now. To get around that and make baking the therapeutic joy it should be, go small with these takes on pecan, sweet potato and cranberry pies. Whether they’re for doorstep delivery or for a masked, socially distanced outdoor gathering, these pre-portioned desserts get around the awkward middle-school-dance nerves of desperately wanting – and not wanting – to get close to others.
Some bakers have already pivoted to smaller goods. Cheryl Day, a cookbook author, chef and owner of Back in the Day Bakery in Savannah, Georgia, saw orders for large cakes decline, so she started selling more cupcakes – and then mini cupcakes. “Those are taking off,” Day said by phone.
“For Thanksgiving, people are still craving the comforts of traditions, so we’re doing pumpkin pie bars,” she said. “Maybe there’s just two people at home, so they’ll just get a couple bars.”
When turning desserts into individually portioned sweets, it’s important to consider how to package them for delivery. Paola Velez, executive pastry chef at La Bodega at Compass Rose in Washington, D.C., saw that firsthand this past summer. As a co-founder of Bakers Against Racism, Velez helped organize large-scale bake sales with contactless delivery for the pandemic era. She said she had been impressed by New York City bakers who optimized the space of generic takeout boxes by filling them with square-edged treats.