12 Lovely Baking Recipes For Holiday House Guests

By Jenn Segal

Treat your holiday house guests to the warm, comforting smell of something sweet in the oven. From the best-ever coffee cake to indulgent sticky buns, these recipes are sure to draw everyone to the kitchen. So gather your ingredients (and your guests, if they’re up for it!) and preheat the oven—it’s time to bake!

Sour Cream Coffee Cake with Cinnamon-Walnut Swirl

This classic sour cream coffee cake from the famous Zingerman’s Bakehouse in Ann Arbor, MI has become my go-to brunch cake.
Marble Cake

This marble cake may look fancy, but its flavor is pure old-fashioned goodness.
Cranberry Orange Bread

Chockfull of burst fresh cranberries and scented with orange zest, this quick bread is tailor made for the holidays. Serve it for breakfast or leave it out on the countertop for all-day snacking.
Butterscotch Pecan Scones

These butterscotch pecan scones are tender, sweet, and rich — almost like giant cookies — and perfect for holiday brunches.
Baked Apple French Toast

A delicious mash-up of French toast and apple pie, this prep-ahead breakfast casserole has all the makings of a special holiday brunch dish that becomes a tradition.
Biscotti

These are everything you want biscotti to be: buttery, lightly sweet, and crunchy but not tooth-shattering. Perfect with morning coffee or afternoon tea!
Banana Nut Muffins

You can make muffins out of any banana bread recipe, but these are especially delicious because they’re sweetened with honey and topped with crunchy walnuts.
Chai-Spiced Banana Bread

In this recipe, I’ve taken one of my favorite banana bread recipes and subtly infused it with warm chai spices like cardamom, cinnamon, ginger and allspice.
Pumpkin Bread

I’ve tried many pumpkin bread recipes over the years, but none as good as this one. It’s easy, too: just a bit of mixing and stirring, pop ’em in the oven, and, in about an hour, you’ll have a house smelling of sweet autumn spices and two scrumptious, pumpkiny loaves.
Double Chocolate Biscotti

These crisp double chocolate biscotti are tailor-made for dunking into into coffee, warm milk, or hot chocolate.
Nantucket Cranberry Pie

Nantucket cranberry pie is a simple and lovely dessert that says ‘holidays.’
Sticky Buns

Wake up to gloriously gooey, cinnamon-scented sticky buns.