By Cindy Peterson

November 30, 2022

Malerie Holcomb-Botts Shares Holiday Recipes

3.7 min read| Published On: November 30th, 2022|

By Cindy Peterson

Malerie Holcomb-Botts Shares Holiday Recipes

3.7 min read| Published On: November 30th, 2022|

For the love of baking

Influencer-turned-baker shares favorite holiday recipes.

“There is just something so magical about all things Christmas. From the decorations to the lights, the music, and of course the food.”

Malerie Holcomb-Botts is a woman of many hats. Literally. She loves hats. Metaphorically, this wife and mother of two wears many hats—managing her household, looking for new adventures, and running her own at-home bakery, Malerie’s Cakerie–all while keeping a solid social media following developed when she was an event coordinator in Hawaii.

“I hate the title ‘influencer,’” Malerie says. “But that’s what it’s called. I would video my adventures and things going on.”

Originally from Connecticut, Malerie lived in Hawaii for 15 years, working as a wedding and event coordinator. There, she married her husband Nathan and had two kids back-to-back.

“I tried to go back to work after but realized I just couldn’t with two babies only a year apart,” Malerie says. “So, I decided to leave and take care of my kids exclusively. But I can’t sit still.”

Malerie started her own company, Brunch with Aloha, where she hosted decadent monthly brunch events with various themes, gifts, and centerpieces. For the events, she wanted a cute dessert table, so she decided to bake some treats herself to create her vision.

And they were a hit.

“People started asking me to make things for them, so I mainly just did it for friends,” Malerie says.

She even had a monthly Brunch With Aloha television segment on KHON2 Honolulu.

Starting the Cakerie

Malerie and her family moved to Leesburg in 2021 and decided to start her own custom cake business, marrying her love of art and baking together. She offers simple, elegant cakes to unique hand-painted creations.

“I used to paint a lot growing up and really loved it,” Malerie says. “One day I just got the idea to try painting on cookies and cakes with food coloring.”

She does everything from Paw Patrol and Harry Potter themed cakes to hand-painted nature and wildlife edible works of art topped with fresh fruit, flowers, and macarons.

Seasonal favorite

Family means everything to Malerie, which is why the holidays are so special to her. She loves baking with her kids, making cookies, cupcakes, and memories she’ll cherish the rest of her life.

“Christmas is my absolute favorite time of the year,” Malerie says. “Honestly, I’d keep it going for six months out of the year if my husband would let me. There is just something so magical about all things Christmas. From the decorations to the lights, the music, and of course the food. It’s all plain old good for the soul comfort and getting to create these traditions with my own children, especially the baking, is something I cannot wait for every single year.”

1 // Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 cup shortening
1/2 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
1 1/4 cup molasses
2 eggs
1 tsp. vanilla
5-6 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
2 tsp. ground ginger
3 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
2 tsp. ground nutmeg

Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.
Mix together shortening, butter, and granulated sugar. Add eggs and molasses and whip up until light and fluffy.
Sift all dry ingredients together into a large bowl.
Add to your butter mixture one cup at a time until it no longer sticks to the side of the bowl.
Divide the dough equally in half, and wrap in plastic wrap.
Chill for two hours.
Roll out on floured parchment paper to about 1/4 an inch thick and cut into desired shapes.
Place the cutout cookies into the freezer for 15 minutes.
Bake at 375, 8-10 minutes. Let cool, then decorate with vanilla royal icing. If desired, paint with food coloring.

2 // Eggnog Buttercream Frosting

(pair with vanilla cake)

Ingredients:

1/2 tsp. nutmeg, ground
4 cups powdered sugar
1 cup salted butter
4 tbsp. eggnog

Directions:

Whip butter with mixer.
Sift in sugar and mix one cup at a time.
Add in nutmeg and eggnog, mixing until light and fluffy.

3 // Spice Cake Cupcakes with Orange Buttercream and Orange Marmalade

Spice Cake Ingredients:

1/3 cup vegetable oil
3 eggs
2/3 cup buttermilk
1/3 cup salted butter at room temperature
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground clove
1 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 2/3 cups flour
1 cup lightly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar

Spice Cake Directions:

Preheat oven to 350° F. Place cupcake liners in mini muffin pan.
Whisk together dry ingredients (flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves, salt, baking powder, and baking soda) and set aside.
Mix together butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until creamy. Gradually beat in the oil.
Add in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Scrape down the sides and the bottom of bowl as needed.
Add in the vanilla.
Alternate adding in your buttermilk and your dry ingredients. Stir until just combined.
Pour batter into cupcake liners. Bake at 350° F for 15-20 minutes. Begin checking them at 10 minutes.
Once a toothpick comes out clean, they are finished.
Once cooled, scoop out a small portion of the center, fill with orange marmalade and top with frosting.

Orange Marmalade Ingredients:

1 orange
1 tbsp. water
1/2 cup sugar

Orange Marmalade Directions:

Wash orange well.
Do not peel orange, but cut into slices.
Place the slices in a food processor with water and blend until mixed, but still slightly chunky.
Pour mixture into a saucepan and add sugar.
Boil until thick, 15-20 minutes.
Let cool.

Orange Buttercream Ingredients: