12 Secrets for Better Holiday Baking from a Professional Pastry Chef — Tips from The Kitchn

It's (finally!) prime holiday baking season. And although we may have our favorite recipes for pies, cookies, and cakes that we go back to year after year, it's never too late to add fresh tips and tricks to our baking arsenals. After all, baking is a science — and small, smart changes can have a big impact on the final product.

And no one knows this better than the professional bakers and pastry chefs who spend all day long doing just that. So we turned to one for advice: Kyle Bartone is the executive pastry chef of Eataly Downtown in New York City, where he oversees all pastry production from cakes to cannoli. We asked him for his best baking-on-the-job tips and techniques — that anyone can still use in their home kitchen this season. Here's what he told us.