lokokitchen

We’re officially in the full swing of peak pie season, and I want to know what everyone is baking! 👀 Normally I’m so over pie by this point that I make chocoflan for holidays meals instead, but this year, our dessert table will actually feature this Stokes Purple® Wave Pie by unanimous request! ⁣

When baked, the flavor and the color of these Stokes Purple® sweet potatoes deepen, making them a feast for both the eyes and the tastebuds. They’re super versatile for sweet or savory presentations but this particular dessert rendition is especially great for palates on the “not too sweet” end of the spectrum. Hello to my family. ⁣💜

The recipe for this Stokes Purple® Wave Pie is on the @friedasproduce website, so you too can showstop next week with this textural purple number! Happy baking!⁣

⁣November 18, 2021

@withwarmwelcome is an initiative amplifying Asian American faces and voices in hospitality, and they’ve been touring the country all year–a different city each month–with their Bakers Box featuring local pastry chefs and bakers. They’re closing out 2021 in Seattle and I’m so honored to be participating in their last Bakers Box of the year!⁣

I’m contributing Black Sesame Piewiches that have the fluffy Whipped Strawberry Cloud from PIEOMETRY! Pre-orders for the Bakers Box(es) open this Thursday, November 11 at 11am PST! Set your alarmssss. (Preview link complete with names of the other incredible contributors in my bio!) ⁣

Many thanks to my dear friends @thepastryproject_ for facilitating this wonderful collaboration and allowing me to be part of the fun!⁣

[Pictured: a round ready-to-serve tart with a tan shortbread crust and a mosaic design made of deep red cherry pieces.]

November 9, 2021

If you missed the big news in my stories yesterday, @hulu is debuting its first baking competition, Baker’s Dozen! Each episode features 13 amateur bakers going head-to-head with seasoned professionals, and in this real *pinch me* timeline, yours truly gets to be the guest judge in episode 5! 😱 Baker’s Dozen premiers on 10/7, and I will be sleepless with anxiety and mortification from now until forever.⁣ 😅

This was such a wild and wonderful and totally new experience for me. I’ll share more snippets in the weeks to come, but for now, enjoy this ultra derpy throwback shot of me in my own trailer(!!!), completely losing my mind. Four years ago, I started this Instagram account on a lark, and now this dum dum gets to wear a lot of makeup (that clearly someone else put on) and moonlight as an “expert.” Wonders never cease… ⁣🤯

[Pictured: a round, unbaked plum and pluot pie with a surface design of tiny purple geometric shapes on a white sheet of dough. The pie is set against a black background.]

September 10, 2021

To be honest, I have a backlog of pie photos that I continue to amass but I don’t know how to keep posting as the world is burning, flooding, collapsing, restricting, dying. On repeat. ⁣

Take care of your family, be a mindful friend and neighbor, and participate in mutual aid are the best I can come up with right now. And be easy on yourself.⁣ 💛

[Pictured: a round honey cinnamon tart with wedges of purple Mission figs, green figs, and yellow and green striped Tiger figs arranged tightly together, skin-side out. The final effect looks woven.]⁣

September 4, 2021

Earlier this summer, I teamed up with @spoonflower for a stone fruit design challenge. 🍑 Nearly a thousand participants submitted a stunning range of vibrant designs chock full of peaches, plums, cherries, and pie. @andrealeonelli_illustrations’ bright, peppy plumscape was the juiciest of them all and earned the top prize. ⁣

The cheery color palette, jaunty shapes, and the vibration of the lines in her design got two plums up from me. Summer is my favorite time of year and the whimsy in her design reflects everything I love about the season--from playful days spent in the sunshine to the glorious bounty of sweet stone fruit. The color-matching and detailwork really pushed me on this one, so I hope I did the design juicy crustice by packing my pie with as much fruit and fun and color inside and out!⁣ ☀️

[Pictured: a round unbaked plum pie set against a black background. The pie top surface design features dough cutouts of pink and purple plums and plum slices and thin black leaves laid out a sheet of light teal dough..]

August 21, 2021

It’s Friday. Let’s get pitted. ⁣🤙🏽🍑

[Pictured: A round cinnamon cream tart with a shortbread crust and a surface design of bright orange-yellow apricot slices arranged tightly together in swirls and curls. The tart is set against a black background.]⁣

July 30, 2021

Easy come, easy grow. 🌿I It’s my birthday! Officially into my mid-thirties and...well, still pollen it together. But floral intents and purposes, I’m here to stay. No ifs, ands, or buds about it. ⁣🌻

[Pictured: an unbaked pie with a surface design of edible flowers pressed into hexagonal dough tiles. The flower tiles are organized by color--dark pink, light pink, orange, yellow, lilac, and blue. The pie is set against a black background.]⁣

July 20, 2021

Paid #partnership with @amindfulstate. ⁣

Years ago, I started dabbling in pie design and tart art simply because I enjoyed the creative outlet. The quiet process of precisely cutting produce and meticulously laying out new designs was therapeutic--a meditative and restorative space for focus. ⁣

Over time, as this undertaking has evolved into a professional pursuit and this platform has grown to a size impossible for me to comprehend, making my art and sharing it so publicly has felt increasingly fraught. As a reserved, sensitive introvert, I’ve struggled with navigating life as a public personality and coping with the more abrasive and harmful aspects of social media. ⁣

After a continuous decline in my mental health and thanks to people in my community who candidly answered all my questions and connected me with resources, I finally mustered up the nerve to seek professional support. The weekly sessions have been immediately challenging and healing. Because friends, family, and acquaintances discussing and normalizing therapy was so critical for me, I hope that sharing my own experience will also serve as an endorsement for seeking the support you need to ensure your health in all ways. ⁣

Shared in partnership with A Mindful State, a collaboration devoted to the individual and collective well-being of Washingtonians. More information and resources available in the link in my bio. ⁣

[Image ID: a round tart with a white filling and pink watermelon radish triangles radiating around the center of the tart in concentric layers. The tart is set against a black background.]⁣

June 30, 2021

All rays and forever. ☀️| Just a little sunthing from the archives while I’m OOO and eating every last taco in San Diego. 🌮| Strawberry rhubarb pie with a signature spoke crown and the most luxurious @lewisroadusa butter dough. 🍓🧈⁣

[Pictured: a round, unbaked strawberry rhubarb pie with white all-butter pie dough. The pie features a spoke design constructed of dough strips radiating around a center opening, where sliced strawberries and rhubarb peek out. The pie has a crimped edge and is set against a black background.]⁣

June 4, 2021

Love ‘em and weave ‘em. 💚I Earlier this month, I ordered 6 total mini cucumbers and instead received 6 BAGS of cucumbers. 😳 Woof. We’ve since consumed absurd amounts of cucumber salads, noodle dishes, cocktails, pickles, and other assorted cucumber Trojan horses. Subbing cukes for tomatoes on the smoked salmon tart with the everything (but the) bagel crust from PIEOMETRY was the coup de grâce. I would be glad not to see another cucumber for a very long time...which is just as well as I foresee a diet exclusively comprised of fish tacos, California burritos, and carne asada fries over the next few weeks. ⁣😎

We start our road trip to San Diego tonight, and it’s hard to fathom being *this* excited about 22 hours of driving but I haven’t seen my family since January 2020 and the weather forecast promises so much sunshine. 😭 Byeeeeeee!⁣

[Pictured: a round tart with a speckled Everything But the Bagel crust, smoked salmon filling, and an imitation lattice surface design made with cucumbers. The tart is set against a black background.]⁣

May 28, 2021

All aboard the wavy train. 🚂🌊I As you may know, I don’t sell any of my pies. 😬 Buuuut if you’re local to the Seattle-ish area, here’s an opportunity to snag one:⁣

To support Asian and Pasifika creatives in the Puget Sound Area, I’ve partnered with @upliftapa for a giveaway! You can donate and be entered to win a baked Lokokitchen pie and a signed copy of PIEOMETRY (plus bonus stickers)!⁣ Tomorrow, May 2, is the last day for this prize!! 🚨

100% of donations will be distributed to APA artists and entrepreneurs in the area who need emergency relief to pay for rent, utilities, medical needs, and food. Priority is given to our NHPI neighbors who have been hit the hardest with COVID. Head to @upliftapa’s link in my bio for information on entering, how to apply for relief, and to check out the other amazing APA creatives who are offering giveaways over the next few months!⁣⁣

[Pictured: a round unbaked pineapple blueberry pie with an abstract surface design of wavy layers of all-butter and blue butterfly pea flower pie dough strips. The pie is set against a black background.]⁣

May 1, 2021

Winner winner...baked pie for dinner. ⁣🏆🥧🏆

Pandemic times have been tough for Asian and Pasifika artists and entrepreneurs, especially in light of the recent violence against folks in our communities across the country. To support APA creatives in the Puget Sound Area, I’m so honored to partner with @UPLIFTAPA for a GIVEAWAY this week! Today through Sunday (5/2), you can donate for a chance to win a baked Lokokitchen pie and a signed copy of PIEOMETRY (and maaaybe some bonus stickers)!⁣ 🎉

100% of your donations will be distributed to APA creatives in the area who need emergency relief to pay for rent, utilities, medical needs, and food. Priority is given to our NHPI neighbors who have been hit the hardest with COVID. Head to @upliftapa’s link in my bio for information on entering, how to apply for relief, and to check out the other amazing APA creatives who are offering giveaways over the next few months!⁣

[First image: a round tart with a speculoos cookie crust, pink blood orange curd filling, and a geometric surface design of mango triangles and kiwi semicircles. Second image: waist-up shot of Lauren in a banana print jumpsuit. Green text reads “Uplift week 3, Lauren Ko, Lokokitchen.” Third image: a baked spoke pie on a striped yellow plate next to a stack of Pieometry cookbooks. The photo is set against a yellow background and text reads “Uplift week 3. Lauren Ko. Donate for a chance to win.”⁣]

April 27, 2021

I’ve been trying to post for weeks but what is there to say as violence against the Asian community persists and police continue to kill Black people (children!)? How does one form words to fit around the shape of grief and anger to accompany a...pie? Nothing has felt appropriate or adequate. ⁣

Here’s a cookie update: we raised over $10,000, which means we doubled our initial goal and were able to donate $5175 to @advancing_justice_atl and $5000 to @acrsnews. Thank you for partnering with us to support the families of the victims in Atlanta as well as the Asian community here in Seattle. ⁣

@jenmagofna and I started doing these bake sales together as a way to make small but meaningful connections to our community in increasingly fraught times. Obviously baking and selling cookies is not the start or the end or the whole of dismantling white supremacy. That effort must be an intentional act of examining every aspect of our lives in pursuit of this. Whether you have purchased cookies or made a donation, we hope that you too will make it a daily practice to consider all the other ways you can continually fight for our communities and work to build a system that allows people to not only live but to thrive as well. ⁣

[Pictured: a round unbaked cherry pie with a geometric tile design inspired by @pophamdesign and made up of butter, Nutella, and chocolate pie dough pieces. Cherries and sugar peek out from two rectangular cutouts on the pie top. The pie is set against a black background.]⁣

April 16, 2021

I spent last weekend in a fog of sadness and outrage--reading portraits of the lives stolen in Atlanta, mourning continued attacks on Asian elders, grappling with the sick relief that three of my own grandparents are no longer here and therefore not subject to the risk of targeted violence, and avoiding my own social media after a glut of racist DMs. ⁣

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Since immersing ourselves in a meditative rhythm of butter, sugar, flour, salt is one way we process and take action together, @jenmagofna and I are running another bake sale this week. Along with @paolocampbell and @kristinamcap, our goal is to raise $2500 for the families of the victims through @advancing_justice_atl and $2500 for @acrsnews, which serves our AAPI community here in Seattle.⁣

We’re selling boxes of assorted shortbread (black sesame, matcha, and strawberry) and mini meringue kisses for local pick-up on March 27-28 @opuscoseattle. We’re also looking for matching donors or anyone who wants to throw in a few dollars to help with ingredients. Click the High Point Bakes link in my bio to join us. ⁣

A note: this fundraiser is of course open to everyone but we are especially hopeful that people outside of the BIPOC community will step up here. ⁣

[Pictured: A round tart with a white filling and a surface design of pink watermelon radish geometric tiles. The tart is set against a black background. ]

March 23, 2021

Happy Pi(e) Day!! 🥳 A year ago, I hosted my last in-person pie design workshop before going into lockdown. With everything that has (or hasn’t) happened in the last 12 months, I haven’t felt particularly inspired or productive.⁣

Teaming up with @spoonflower to make this pie inspired by @alice___moore’s whimsical “The Dog Ate My Ruler” print was the creative roust I’ve been trying to conjure. What a blast!⁣

My work is often inspired by textiles and surface pattern design, so it’s a dream to collaborate with a company that is a whole marketplace of makers and artists and textiles galore!⁣ 🤩

To celebrate this partnership and this pastry-co opted math holiday (heh), we’re offering 5 winners all of the following: a signed copy of PIEOMETRY, a table runner, a tea towel, and a set of dinner napkins with this peppy print, and $50 in @spoonflower store credit!⁣ 🎉

March 14, 2021

Sparks and Rec. 💥I I’m spilling secrets with @atlasobscura this afternoon on their Secret Arts series (tune in at 4pm PST). Right after, at 5:30pm PST, I’m joining the @kcts9 Pi(e) Squared round (square?) table with fellow pie-makers @katemcdermott, @mizkatelebo, and @lavidphotos (of @BreezyTownPizza and @WindyCityPie) to pre-game for Pi(e) Day. Links are in my bio and I hope you’ll pop in for a slice! ⁣😉🥧🍕

[Pictured: A round tart with a brown coconut pecan crust, deep purple blueberry curd, and a shower of tropical fruits--white dragon fruit, papaya, mango, and kiwi--cut into spark-like triangles and arranged by color. The tart is set against a black background.]⁣

March 11, 2021

Bars and stripes. 📶| Still bumbling along over here, anxiously awaiting our turn for a vaccine--though Ben and I are probably in the last group, all demographics considered, so it’s going to be awhile. In the meantime, the run-up to Pi(e) Day is keeping me occupied at home and I love seeing all the PIEOMETRY creations keeping you busy in yours! ⁣🤩

Hang in there, be safe, and take care of each other! And check back in next week for Pi(e) Day festivities and a giveaway! ⁣🥧

[Pictured: a round unbaked pie with a geometric top design of chocolate, raspberry, and beet doughs cut into right triangles and stripes and arranged in rows. A strawberry can be seen peeking out of a triangle vent cutout. The pie is set against a black background.]⁣

March 7, 2021