Last December I was sitting in a movie theatre surrounded by people that I loved, watching Greta Gerwig’s Little Women for the first time. Little Women has been something that has stuck with me throughout this year; holding me together through this time of constant and immense uncertainty, I just kept coming back to this film. During the pandemic, I read the novel for the first time, I listened to the score several times over, I read Gerwig’s script, and I began my search for Little Women themed recipes.
As someone who loves baking and who loves film, it’s inevitable that I would combine the two; and I think about how in films like Little Women the food that is displayed is actually so important because it’s all part of the beautiful art direction. (One tidbit I loved learning about Gerwig’s film is that they had a food stylist create the beautiful displays you see throughout the film with real food that the actors could eat!) And maybe it’s the fact that I saw the film for the first time on Christmas, or the fact that early in the film Jo March wakes up to a world blanketed in snow, and says, “Merry Christmas world!” but I find that Little Women is inherently associated with the holidays. So as the holidays approach us, it’s time to get baking! Here are my top suggestions for how to bake along to Little Women.
- Scones
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Let’s start with the scones. After the infamous dance at which Laurie first encounters Jo and offers to take her and Meg home, he is greeted by Marmee with a scone! Laura Dern tells us, “I enjoy baking in the middle of the night” with such warmth and kindness that I think we all kind of want Mrs. March to be our mom.
- Apple Turnovers
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When reading Alcott’s novel, Hannah’s turnovers are mentioned again and again, as the absolutely irresistible breakfast treat. While it is left unsaid what kind of turnover that Hannah’s infamous turnovers are, I find that apple turnovers are the simplest and most delicious – and they bode well with the chilly, autumn weather.
- Victoria Sponge Cake
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The beautiful Christmas breakfast spread would not be complete without a Victoria Sponge Cake. A bit of a difficult recipe, but a Little Women spread would not be complete without that light, fluffy sponge cake filled with raspberry jam and whipped cream!
- Ginger Snaps
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This summer, I dug up some recipes from the L.M. Alcott household, and was able to actually test out a recipe from the 1860s! The initial outcome was not ideal, proving that sticking to modern iterations might be your best bet if you want more precise instructions. But if you want to go down the rabbit hole of literary recipes, I recommend giving Literary Eats by Gary Scharnhorst a peruse. Ultimately, ginger snaps are great for snacking; they stay fresh for a long time, and they make really great gifts, if you perhaps want to send some over to a friend and have a Little Women virtual watch party!
- Biscuits
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I became a little obsessed with making biscuits for breakfast over the summer when everyone was frantically learning how to bake bread. And to be completely honest, I do not regret it one bit. Fresh biscuits are absolutely delicious. This is another recipe included in Literary Eats from the Alcott household, proving that biscuits are indeed perfect for a Little Women bake-along!
Little Women baking tips: These are just my top suggestions, but anything you bake can take on the aesthetics of Little Women if spruced up with elements of nature, like flowers or leaves (remember to wash them of course)! I like to add mint leaves and powdered sugar to the tops of cakes so that they resemble the kind of treats you might see in the film.