Try using milk or cream in place of water when mixing the batter.

This will still check the liquid off the ingredient list while creating a richer, fudgier, moister brownie.

A plain brownie batter is calling for mix-ins, and the possibilities are endless. Consider adding chocolate chips or dark-chocolate chunks.

Crushed Oreo cookies, M&M's, Reese's Pieces, chopped walnuts or hazelnuts are excellent options as well.

Fold them in once the batter is prepped, and then transfer to the baking pan to bake as directed.

Switch up the flavor of boxed brownies with just a few drops of an extract. Even just a teaspoon of vanilla extract can go a long way in enhancing the flavor of this treat.

You can also play around — adding peppermint extract will offer a chocolate-mint combo that's wonderful for the holiday season.

Coconut extract is another great pairing to try, maybe even paired with shredded coconut folded into the batter.

Most brownie mixes call for a few tablespoons of water on the back of the box. To enhance your brownies, swap that water out for strong brewed coffee. This can add a more complex depth of flavor.

For an even more pronounced coffee flavor, add a teaspoon of instant espresso powder to the dry ingredients as well.

Once the brownies are baked, the sky's the limit.

You could serve them as-is, or dress them up further. Consider adding frosting to the top, whether you want double-chocolate brownies with mint frosting or peanut-butter icing.

Chocolate ganache or salted-caramel sauce are excellent toppers, too.

To upgrade your brownies and curb their sweetness, try adding some of your other favorite snack foods to them.

Opt for salty mix-ins, like crushed pretzels or salted peanuts. You can also crumble up ridged potato chips or kettle chips and sprinkle them over the batter before baking.

Combine two beloved desserts in one with this trick.

Make the brownie batter according to the instructions on the box. Then, combine one block of softened cream cheese, 1/3 cup granulated sugar, one egg, and one teaspoon of vanilla extract. For best results, use a hand mixer or stand mixer.

Dollop the cream-cheese mixture over the brownie butter and use the back of a spoon or a butter knife to swirl the top. Bake the brownies as directed, and you'll end up with dreamy cheesecake brownies.

This sounds wildly simple, but it can make a huge difference. Just a touch of flaky sea salt will not make brownies look pretty and enhance their flavor tenfold.

Before the brownies go into the oven, sprinkle flaked sea salt on top. Then, bake as directed.

For these cookies, you'll need:

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon pure peppermint extract
• 1 1/3 cups flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/3 cup oats.
• 4 ounces of good-quality baking chocolate
• 14 mini or four regular-sized peppermint candy canes.

Before starting the dough, chop the chocolate on a cutting board and crush the candy canes into small, fine pieces.

You can crush up round peppermint candies instead if preferred.

To make these cookies, preheat your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt together in a small bowl and set it aside.

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attachment or a large mixing bowl with a hand mixer, cream together the butter and sugars until the mixture is well-combined and fluffy.

Then, mix in the egg and peppermint extract.

Gradually mix the flour mixture into the wet ingredients until the cookie dough comes together.

Next, mix the oats into the cookie dough.

To finish off the dough, mix in the chopped chocolate and the crushed candy canes until well incorporated.

Transfer the dough to the fridge and let it chill for 15 minutes. This quick step will help to produce the ideal cookie texture.

Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper to ensure the cookies won't stick while baking.

If you don't have parchment paper, spritz your sheet with a light coating of cooking spray.

Use a tablespoon-sized cookie scoop to scoop balls of dough. Roll enough balls until smooth, flatten gently, and place them on the prepared baking sheet.

If you don't have a scoop, which helps create uniform balls of dough, eyeball it and grab sections with your hands.

With 12 balls of dough evenly spaced out on the cookie sheet, place it in the oven. Bake the cookies for 10 to 12 minutes until the edges turn golden.

Take the cookies out of the oven and let them sit on the hot baking sheet on top of the oven for five minutes before transferring them to a wire rack to cool completely.

This will help to create a wonderfully chewy center.

These cookies are great to bring to any holiday gathering.

They're soft, chewy, and incredibly flavorful, thanks to the chunks of chocolate and crushed candy canes.

Plus, you can always play around with the fixings to make a custom cookie that's perfect for you.

You can upgrade your cookie dough by adding spices to it, said Tracy Wilk, lead chef at the Institute of Culinary Education. .

To do so, combine ground cinnamon, ginger, and sugar, and then roll your balls of cookie dough in the mix before baking. This can result in a warm, spicy cookie.

If you're feeling bold, you can even spice up your cookies with a sprinkling of cayenne pepper, said Jackie Newgent, chef and author of "The Clean and Simple Diabetes Cookbook."

To add depth to your cookies, add a few drops of a pure flavor extract to your dough, Newgent said.

This is a simple way to personalize the cookies to your liking or give them a unique twist each time you bake them. Some extracts to try include peppermint, lemon, vanilla, coffee, almond, or coconut.

Another way to add flavor or texture to your cookies is by rolling the balls of dough in your garnish of choice, Jennifer Hill Booker, chef, cookbook author, and culinary educator, told Business Insider. 

To start, you can try using chopped nuts, sanding sugar, miniature chocolate chips, cocoa powder, or sprinkles. 

For added texture, crunch, and color, stir nuts into your cookie dough.

Newgent said pecans, walnuts, and macadamia nuts can work — but, if you want a real homemade feel, you may want to use nuts that aren't commonly found in store-bought cookies, like pistachios. 

Mix-ins are another great way to add a unique flavor to a cookie and make it seem like you spent a lot of time making them.

"Plop in a surprise ingredient that you love, like crushed pretzels, potato chips, roasted chickpeas, or popped popcorn," Newgent told BI. 

Try topping cookies with a pinch of flaky sea salt before you put them in the oven, Newgent said.  

"Salt helps to balance sweetness, providing a more well-rounded taste and bonus deliciousness," she told BI.

Use a bit of melted chocolate to give your cookies a high-end look and homemade flavor, Wilk said. 

"Once the cookies are baked and cooled, dip them into chocolate or drizzle them with it," she said. "This will give a finished and fancy look without a lot of extra work."

Newgent told BI that if you really want to impress, you can use freshly grated citrus zest as a cookie topper.

She said orange pairs well with many chocolate cookies and lemon can elevate vanilla ones. 

"It'll make the cookies seem extra special and kind of fancy," she said. 

This story was originally published on May 15, 2020, and most recently updated on December 5, 2024.

As a professional baker, I know how to make a solid pumpkin pie at home — but sometimes grabbing one from a local grocery store is the best option. 

To find the best store-bought pumpkin pie, I put four desserts — from Costco, Safeway, Kroger, and Walmart — to the test.

There are plenty of pies on display at most grocery stores in the fall, so I didn't call ahead at any of the places I went to and just walked in and grabbed the seasonal treat.

Because pumpkin pies are typically made with a custard filling, which contains milk and eggs, the USDA recommends keeping them refrigerated. At the Costco and Safeway, I went to, the pumpkin pies were kept in a refrigerated area.

At Walmart and Kroger, they were on display at room temperature, which means they likely contain preservatives or artificial ingredients to make them shelf-stable.

With all of these factors in mind, I judged each one for flavor and texture.

Walmart had a huge display of pumpkin pies sitting out at room temperature so I grabbed a 10-inch one.

The pie came in an aluminum pie pan for easy serving and was packaged in a cardboard box.

Walmart's pumpkin pie was easy to cut at room temperature so it was simple to get a clean slice that didn't fall apart. The crust was nice and light with a tasty flavor and the filling had good structure while still being smooth.

The balance of flavors was ideal, as the pie itself wasn't too sweet and the pumpkin-spice flavor wasn't overwhelming.

I found this pie on display at room temperature, which meant that Walmart's pumpkin treat likely had some added ingredients to make it shelf-stable.

Kroger sells pumpkin pies under the store's Bakery Fresh Goodness brand. According to the employees working at Kroger's bakery, the pies are baked and frozen prior to arriving at the store.

I bought an 8-inch pumpkin pie, which was packaged in an aluminum pan and a plastic container.

Kroger's pumpkin pie was the smallest of the four I tried, but it sliced beautifully at room temperature and looked appealing. However, I couldn't enjoy more than one bite.

In my opinion, the crust was lackluster without much flavor, and the taste of the filling was overpowering, with an odd combination of spices. I thought it had a slightly artificial taste to it as well.

Because this pie was shelf-stable, I'd guess that some of the preservative ingredients added to the mixture changed the classic pumpkin-pie taste I was looking for.

I used to work at Safeway's bakery, so I already knew the chain sells pumpkin pies that come prepared and frozen and are then baked in the store.

I had the option to grab pies with or without whipped cream, both of which were kept in a refrigerated case in the bakery section. According to the label on the pie, the whipped cream is made fresh on-site from real heavy whipping cream.

I bought an 11-inch pumpkin pie, which was packaged in an aluminum pan and placed in a plastic container.

By the appearance of Safeway's pumpkin pie, I definitely could tell it was baked fresh in the store. It had a great structure and was easy to slice at room temperature.

The crust was light and flavorful, with a hint of salt that paired well with the filling, which was absolutely delicious. The balance of the pumpkin filling with the cinnamon and other spices was spot on.

You'll need a Costco membership to grab one of the jumbo pumpkin pies, which can be found in a refrigerated case in the bakery section.

When I asked the employees at the bakery, they told me Costco's pumpkin pies are baked at the warehouse.

I bought the 12-inch pumpkin pie, packaged in an aluminum pan and plastic container.

The pumpkin pie I got at Costco was over 3 pounds, so I knew it would certainly dish out plenty of servings. Notably, I found it difficult to get a clean slice out of the Costco pumpkin pie at room temperature, but I had an easier time when it was chilled.

The crust was thin, without much flavor or texture, and the filling was incredibly fluffy, as opposed to other richer, denser pies.

It had a sweeter taste, with notes of vanilla, but it didn't have as much pumpkin-spice flavor as the other pies did. Though it tasted good, I also wanted a bit more cinnamon.

As a baker, a homemade pie will always be at the top of my list. Still, I think some of the store-bought versions I tried were pretty tasty.

The textures of both Costco's and Safeway's pumpkin pies were very good. However, I thought Safeway's was the best store-bought pumpkin pie. Its flavor gave it an edge over Costco's famed dessert.

Though Costco's pie was really good and a great deal, in comparison to Safeway's, it was just a bit dull.

Next time I'm in a rush and want to grab a pumpkin pie, I'll head to Safeway's bakery section.

This story was originally published on November 18, 2022, and most recently updated on November 25, 2024.

First, I tried the beloved berry Chantilly cake.

This treat has had a longtime cult following and is probably the most popular bakery item at Whole Foods.

According to its ingredients list, it consists of vanilla cake, Chantilly icing and frosting, cream cheese, mascarpone cheese, raspberry syrup and puree, and a mixture of fresh berries — including strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, and blackberries.

I got a 6-inch round of it for $30.

I've tried this cake before, and now for a second time, I still don't feel like it lives up to the hype.

Is it better than many other grocery-store-bakery cakes? Yes. It's also wonderful that there is real, fresh fruit in the cake. But I was still longing for something a bit more for it to live up to its fame.

The cake layers are pretty dry. However, the addition of the smooth Chantilly cream helps to make up for that. Though the ingredients list mentions raspberry syrup and puree, I couldn't seem to taste or find any of it.

A few berries were added to the layers, with a thin layer of cream between each. Before owning my own bakery, I was a grocery-store cake decorator, and I can certainly understand how tricky these layers would be to stack with chunks of fresh fruit.

Overall, the flavor is excellent, without the cake being too sweet — I just wish the texture of the actual cake layers were a bit more moist.

Whole Foods sells whole New York cheesecakes in its bakery case, but individual slices are also available in the cold case.

I grabbed a slice for $5.

To me, a good cheesecake should have a flavorful, textured crust balanced by a smooth, rich filling.

This cheesecake slice was almost there but had a few shortcomings. The crust was soggy and reminded me of a sugar cookie. I'm a graham-cracker-crust fan, so this was a bit of a drawback for me.

The texture of the cheesecake filling was wonderfully smooth and rich, and the flavor wasn't too sweet. However, it was pretty overwhelming. It had a very robust cheese flavor, and I wished for a bit more balance.

I only tried one bite because I found it too overpowering, but I could see it being an excellent choice paired with a fruit sauce or fresh berries.

A store employee told me that the chocolate-eruption cake is another customer-favorite dessert (alongside the berry Chantilly cake, of course).

I had a 6-inch cake boxed up from the bakery display cake for $27.

I'm still thinking of this chocolate cake, which means it was a top winner for me.

The cake itself was stunning with a ganache drip, piped details, and chocolate curls to spruce it up even further. The three layers of chocolate cake were wonderfully moist and tender — and pairing them with a chocolate-mousse filling made it even much better.

As the name suggests, it was incredibly chocolaty, but it wasn't too rich. It was well-balanced for a chocolate lover to enjoy every bite.

Packaged up and ready to grab out of the cold case, the family pack of tres leches looked quite unassuming.

The plain-looking piece cost me $14.

What this dessert lacks in appearance, it certainly makes up for in flavor. Talk about finding a hidden gem!

The simple cake-layer base is soaked in cream and sweetened condensed milk and finished with a whipped topping. The texture was incredible with an excellent balanced flavor.

Every bite contained subtle notes of coconut and caramel that weren't too sweet or overpowering.

It's perfect on its own, but there's certainly room to dress it up at home if you plan to serve it for a special occasion. A few sliced strawberries on top will go a long way.

There are plenty of cookie options in the Whole Foods bakery, but I chose something classic with a slightly elevated twist.

I picked up a pack of four brown-butter chocolate-chunk cookies for $7.50

Perfectly chewy and packed with flavor is the best way to describe these tasty cookies. I loved that they had chocolate chunks rather than chips — and there were plenty of them!

Thanks to the brown butter and vanilla extract, the flavor of this cookie was slightly enhanced compared to a typical chocolate-chip cookie.

Overall, excellent in every bite.

I found several flavors of Parisian macarons in the bakery display case. I chose one vanilla, one chocolate, and one salted caramel.

Each macaron was $2.

I will always get macarons if they're offered at a bakery. I'm a forever fan, and I had high hopes for these offerings.

I tried three different flavors, and although each tasted decent (especially salted caramel), their textures were a bit off.

The interiors of the macarons were chewy, but the exteriors were far too crunchy and dry to me.

Brownies are a classic, and every bakery should offer a great version of this treat.

Whole Foods sells brownies in packs of four, or you can grab individually-wrapped ones for $2.75 each.

It's hard for me to believe that a grocery-store bakery would produce a lackluster brownie, but I think Whole Foods has.

The top of the brownie was surprisingly dry and crackly, yet underneath there was actually a wonderful cakey-meets-fudgy balance.

Unfortunately, the dry top detracted from that.

In terms of flavor, I expected a wonderfully balanced, chocolaty brownie — but I thought it was relatively bland and disappointing.

The Whole Foods bakery had several flavors of pie, from pecan to four-berry to apple.

To get a taste for the crust and fruit filling, I chose a 9-inch cherry pie for $15.

Even for seasoned bakers, putting together a homemade pie can feel like a lot of work. For $15, this is a decent option if you aren't up to the task of making your own.

The not-too-sweet flavor was excellent. However, the crust wasn't one bit flaky or buttery and seemed a bit soggy, like it had been pulled out of the oven a few minutes too early. Still, I may have just gotten a dud.

Overall, I wished for a better pie crust, but it's a decent option in a pinch.

Among the bakery's cookie selection, I found shortbread shaped like little Scottie dogs that were partially dunked in a chocolate coating.

The cookie four-pack cost me $5.50.

I hoped for an adorable cookie that also tasted fantastic, but I ended up disappointed.

These were definitely an impulse buy based on the cute shape and design of the cookie, but biting into one let me down.

The texture was fine, but the flavor was oddly artificial to me. I don't think they tasted balanced or buttery, and the hint of vanilla I was expecting didn't come through.

Whole Foods sells tiramisu dessert cups, but there's also a whole tiramisu cake available in the bakery display case.

I got a pretty 6-inch tiramisu cake for $27.

Making tiramisu isn't necessarily difficult, but it requires a few steps. If you want to skip them and buy it premade as a cake, this one from Whole Foods is a worthy option.

The two-layer dessert had terrific flavor thanks to the vanilla cake paired with a creamy, coffee-flavored filling. The top was dressed up nicely with even more piped cream, a dusting of cocoa powder, and chocolate curls.

I think it's a bit pricey for what it is, but a good option if you need to pick up a showstopping dessert for a special occasion.