Kim-Joy's Adorable Tip For Adding Character To Fruity Bakes

When you're in need of a dessert that's packed with bold, tangy flavors rather than one that's too sweet, bakes filled with juicy, bite-sized fruits are the way to go. Perhaps you'd even like to go a step further and infuse your baked goods with some creative personal flair, much like the series nine runner-up of the Great British Baking Show, Kim-Joy. Viewers were wowed by her colorful, kawaii culture-inspired bakes, usually featuring cute animals or otherworldly creatures and always delicious. Her wholesome fanbase can't get enough of her fun ideas on social media, where she never fails to transform an ordinary bake into something with an adorable edge. When it comes to fruit-laced desserts, Kim-Joy really knows how to take advantage of the innate cuteness of berries.

One thing that gives Kim-Joy's baking designs major cuteness overload is how she puts tiny faces on everything. Twinkling icing eyes and winking lids piped with a little smile are enough to win over anyone who's got a soft, squishy center, and her creamy blueberry cheesecake is no different. While waiting for her cake to finish cooking, the star baker puts a little extra effort into the finer details, giving a handful of fresh blueberries her signature Kim-Joy touch. Once the cheesecake has cooled and the saucy blueberry topping has been added, she decorates it by carefully placing her tiny round friends on top. Those peepers are pretty small, but there are a few ways you can try making them yourself.

With delicious-looking cheesecake recipes like Kim-Joy's blueberry version, it can be easy to dig right in, but with these tiny, round berries gazing up at you, you may find yourself gazing back at them, happy but hesitant. If you want to create the effect, it may be a little tedious depending on how many blueberry eyes you want to create, but it is well worth the effort, especially if you're baking for a group to enjoy.

@kimjoyskitchen

On people pleasing 👇 As a chronic people pleaser, it still takes me daily practice to remember that it isn't selfish to care about myself. That being a kind person whilst setting boundaries is possible, and saying no is okay. Because you CAN be a kind person and set boundaries You can be a kind person and disagree with someone's opinion You can be a kind person and say you don't feel like doing something You can be a kind person without forgetting about your own needs You can be a kind person and walk away from a toxic situation or relationship You can be a kind person and care about yourself In FACT – caring for yourself and setting and knowing your boundaries helps you to continue being a kind and caring person. Otherwise you do too much and burn out or feel resentful. It's not about flipping the opposite way and 'just saying it how it is' – but about being assertive and saying what you're comfortable with. A lot of my own people pleasing issues come from low self esteem, and that's such a common issue with a lot of us people pleasers. We just want to do everything we can to be liked, because external approval is everything we have. There's little foundation below that to hold everything up – just bricks and bricks made up of what other people think of us. But actually, every time I set boundaries and still remain kind, it helps me heal my self esteem bit by bit. I feel like that foundation can build up. Just got to keep remembering and practicing it 🤗 And I hope you enjoy my version of a blueberry cheesecake 🫐💛 it was much cuter and sootsprite-like in my head than how it turned out...

♬ Strangers – Kenya Grace

Pick out the biggest blueberries in the bunch to top your cheesecake with and make sure they're dry, as they will be easier to place the eyes onto. Simply whip up some white royal icing or use your favorite buttercream frosting recipe to pipe on the whites of the eyes, followed by a black pupil made of food coloring. You can also take a toothpick, dip it in the dark blueberry sauce you've already spread onto the cake, and use that instead. If you find some edible glue and sugar paste eyes that are small enough, those could also work.

Kim-Joy groups all her cutest blueberries together on the cheesecake and drips some of the syrupy topping down the side to create an artsy cascading effect. Plopping a few more at the base of the sauce drips makes it look like they accidentally rolled off the edge. True to her name, Kim-Joy definitely puts the joy in baking.