Pretty much anywhere in the U.S., January means winter. Even in the Deep South and the arid western states, January means cold weather and spending more time around a fireplace or kitchen stove in search of comfort.

Some of the things I like to do in the winter months is bake. It’s all about baking classic cookies, pillow soft cakes and heavily spiced pies. Some of my favorite cookies are the classic Toll House chocolate chip cookies and peanut butter blossoms – you know, the ones where you bake the peanut butter cookie dough and then as soon as it comes out of the over you plop an unwrapped Hershey’s Kiss into the middle of the cookie so it slightly melts.

Winter cakes in my kitchen include carrot cakes, gingerbread cakes made with applesauce, and traditional yellow layer cake with white, coconut frosting. In the summer, I like Poke Cakes and lighter citrus flavored cakes. And, of course, chocolate cakes are a year-round favorite.