Filled with Pride: Meet Some of Our Favorite LGBTQIA+ Bakers and Bloggers

June is Pride Month! Celebrate by getting to know some of our favorite LGBTQIA+ bakers and bloggers and a few of their rainbow-colored creations. 

Photo courtesy of Pamela Maxwell

Butterfly Bakery, Sable Fessler
@butterflygaykery | butterflybakeryne.com

The mission of this LGBTQIA+-owned and -operated bakery in Nebraska is to share kindness and create a welcoming environment for all. The brightly colored walls and butterfly-themed décor add to the warm and safe atmosphere of the bakery, to which baker Sable Fessler attests. Butterfly Bakery offers a wide assortment of pastries, cakes and cupcakes, wedding cakes, cookies, and more, as well as decorating classes. The team also puts their motto of “baking the change by creating edible art, embracing our community, and normalizing queer culture” into action; through The Butterfly Effect, the bakery’s community service initiative, Sable and other team members make weekly donations to local food banks and partner with other local nonprofits to multiply their efforts and continue to make people happy through their work.   

 

Brian Hart Hoffman, Bake from Scratch 
@brianharthoffman | bakefromscratch.com

Brian Hart Hoffman is the editor-in-chief of Bake from Scratch magazine, and president/chief creative officer of its parent company, Hoffman Media. Brian made his way to baking through his love for travel and a previous career as a flight attendant. After years of traveling, stopping in bakeries all over the world, and returning home with a mission to re-create the baked goods he fell in love with, he took that same passion and launched a brand dedicated to celebrating the global baking community. Bake from Scratch has grown into one of the world’s largest baking platforms and includes a magazine, cookbooks, a podcast and YouTube channel, and worldwide in-person baking retreats. He frequently partners with No Kid Hungry and other hunger relief organizations to help end childhood hunger, putting his mission of baking the world a better place into action. 

Brian Hart Hoffman’s Wedding Cake Sandwich Cookies

“As a child, I loved weddings and went to as many as I could. My mom was a church organist, my aunt Janice was a wedding coordinator, and my aunt Cheryl loved a good slice of cake. As I grew up and realized I was gay, my love for weddings faded. How could I love something I wouldn’t be able to have myself? It saddened me to think that I wouldn’t be able to celebrate my future love and my future husband along with my own wedding cake, so I became comfortable on team ‘I don’t need a wedding to be in love, so I don’t want one.’ Then I met Stephen. And I wanted one. After a trip to Seattle, Washington, to get legally married in the courthouse (this was 2013, two years before the nationwide ruling), we had our dream wedding at my mom’s house in Alabama on a bluff at sunset, surrounded by 150 people who love us—complete with my dream wedding cake. This recipe is the flavor of that cake, with rainbow sprinkles added. Now, a celebration is never too far from reach.” —Brian Hart Hoffman

 

Photo courtesy of Rikki Snyer

Dan Langan, Baked by Dan 
@bakedbydan | bakedbydan.com

Baked by Dan was launched on social media in 2012 as a way for Dan Langan to share the custom cakes and desserts he was creating for a local restaurant and caterer. As social media platforms evolved, so, too, did Dan’s custom creations, as well as the recipes he created for himself and his growing audience. Dan’s lifelong passion for baking has led to him appearing on various Food Network shows, and he has recently published his first cookbook. Filled with 100 recipes and helpful kitchen tips for achieving professional-level results at home, Bake Your Heart Out is suited for bakers of every skill level. 

Dan Langan’s Birthday Cake Biscotti 

“I started baking biscotti in middle school to enjoy as an after-school snack, and they are still a top request when I bake for my family. The combination of vanilla, lemon, and a kiss of almond gives these colorful biscotti a classic birthday cake flavor. If sliced almonds aren’t your thing, feel free to substitute with another nut or an equal amount of white chocolate chips. Either way, these light and crunchy biscotti are sure to bring some color to your teatime!” —Dan Langan 

 

Photo courtesy of Elise Smith

Elise Smith, WinniE’s Bakery
@winniesbakery | winniesbakery.com

Elise Smith started WinniE’s Bakery as a way to honor and remember her grandmother Winnie by sharing the recipes and life lessons Elise learned from her. With recipes organized into categories—such as loss, healing, growth, and joy—Elise’s food seeks to make meaning through deeper connections. Elise hosted the Magnolia Network’s TV series Baked from Scratch: Cakes; she owns an eco-sustainable production company and is currently working on her first cookbook. 

 

 

Photo courtesy of Mike Johnson

Mike Johnson, Mike Bakes NYC
@mikebakesnyc | mikebakesnyc.com

What began as a creative outlet for Mike Johnson while he was attending law school, the MikeBakesNYC blog is now home to many delicious baking recipes. While working as an attorney, Mike published his first cookbook, Even Better Brownies. Now a full-time blogger and cookbook author, Mike has another book under his belt, Simple Small Batch Baking. His colorful blog is chock-full of bakes ranging from small-batch muffins and overnight cinnamon rolls to sweet cakes and savory breads. 

 

 

Photo courtesy of Quin Liburd

Quin Liburd, Butter Be Ready
@butterbeready | butterbeready.com

Quin Liburd’s love of all things culinary and photography began when she was a student at the University of Central Florida and was determined to no longer live off fast food. She quickly immersed herself in the area’s farmers’ markets, started researching recipes, and dove headfirst into cooking and baking and learning through self-taught trial and error. Quin launched her blog, Butter Be Ready, in 2016 as a hobby, but it quickly grew in popularity and turned into her full-time career of professional recipe development, food styling, and food photography. Quin frequently showcases her West Indian/Caribbean heritage in her recipes, as well as traditional Southern flavors and ingredients, and, of course, plenty of butter! 

Quin Liburd’s Confetti Pudding Cookies

“Pudding mix helps to give these cookies a bakery-soft and flavorful texture while also giving those signature buttery and crispy edges—my perfect combination!” —Quin Liburd

 

Photo courtesy of Eric King

Eric King, Easy Gay Oven
@easygayoven | easygayoven.com

What started as sharing pictures and videos of his baked goods, Easy Gay Oven has turned into a successful blog with a mission to share ”elevated, but approachable” recipes. A self-taught recipe developer, food photographer, and stylist, Eric King is known for his beautifully piped, elegantly swirled, and deliciously easy-to-make recipes. His blog includes recipes from cakes and cookies to pies and pastries, and he has even worked with clients such as Netflix and Oster. 

 

 

Photo courtesy of Sophie Barr

Shane Smith 
@chefshanesmith | chefshanesmith.ie

Shane Smith shares his wisdom of more than 23 years’ experience in the pastry world. His website, Shane Smith’s Online Cookery School, contains virtual baking classes where bakers can choose to attend live or receive a recording to watch at their leisure. Each class shows how to bake one or more recipes to perfection under Shane’s careful instruction. In addition to his classes, Shane has four mini e-cookbooks in which he shares 10 or more recipes, including the Little Irish Baking eBook.  

Shane Smith’s Pride Swiss Roll

“This Pride flag-inspired Swiss roll is a friendly, colorful nod to my loving community but also a reminder of the career I chose. Training as a professional chef in early 2000s was very tough. I was a 20-year-old gay man with a love for all things pastry, and it left me a very easy interest, it was seen as a weakness. Opening myself up to daily jokes in an already challenging career was tough, but I knew I had to do it. I would work my shift in the main kitchen, and when everyone else would go home, I went straight over to the pastry section to help them clean down, with the hope of watching them plate up the final few desserts. I stuck to my guns, remained focused, and I was finally moved over to the sweet section. It was joyful, freeing, everything I had imagined, and more. Twenty years later, I am still head over heels in love with my career. It’s a gentle reminder to never let anyone stand between you and your dreams and to listen to your heart.” —Shane Smith

 

Photo courtesy of Joann Pai

Rebekah Peppler
@rebekahpeppler | rebekahpeppler.com

Rebekah Peppler has a flair for translating the effortless sophistication of French culture in a laid-back, elegant way through her writing, styling, and recipes. Rebekah moved to Paris, France, from Los Angeles, California, in 2015 to gain a deeper understanding of French culture through its cuisine. She believes cooking and feeding people are separate acts and enjoys being alone while cooking and baking, which helps her be joyfully present when feeding loved ones. When not in the kitchen, Rebekah loves to travel to familiar and unfamiliar places, immersing herself in new rituals, languages, and food. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, eating, and drinking with friends in the 18th arrondissement home she shares with her partner. 

 

Photo courtesy of Kareem Queeman

Kareem Queeman, Mr. Bake
@mrbakesweets | mrbakesweets.com

Affectionately nicknamed “Mr. Bake” after making a birthday cake for a friend, Kareem Queeman’s generous spirit and passion for baking began when he was just 8 years old. Inspired and encouraged by his mother and grandmother, Kareem spent much of his youth baking at home and in school through home economics classes and graduated from the Culinary Institute of New York at Monroe College. Today, he owns a successful bakery that is now celebrating a decade of being in operation, has made several television appearances, and was a semifinalist for the 2023 James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef or Baker. 

The post Filled with Pride: Meet Some of Our Favorite LGBTQIA+ Bakers and Bloggers first appeared on Bake from Scratch.