Sisters Sophie Kallinis-LaMontagne and Katherine Kallinis-Berman have built an empire around cupcakes, resulting in six bakery locations and an extremely successful TLC show. So if anyone can give us some useful holiday baking tips, it’s these two!

“For us, the holidays are definitely all about baking,” Sophie, co-owner of Georgetown Cupcakes, shares with Closer. “When we were little girls, it was a bonding experience. We baked with our grandmother, and there’s just something about baking for the holidays that brings people together.”

The ladies estimate that they’re shipping out around 1,000 dozen cupcakes for Thanksgiving this year and around 100 deliveries just in the Georgetown area. “It’s a busy day for us,” says Katherine, “We’re making pumpkin spice cupcakes like crazy!”

Luckily, the sisters took some time out to share a few tricks of the trade on how to make the perfect holiday treats!

“DC Cupcakes” Holiday Baking Tips:

  1. Use the best ingredients you can find.

    “When you use fresh ingredients and the best ingredients, it makes a difference,” says Sophie. “So if you can get a really good butter, we like to use a European-style butter called Plugrá, and you can find that in the supermarket, try to use that versus using oil or shortening.”

  2. Embrace the flavors of the season.

    “Try for things that have a special meaning and that are seasonal,” Sophie tells *Closer. “If your family loves gingerbread, go for a gingerbread cupcake. Or if your family loves chocolate peppermint, go for peppermint.”*

  3. Follow the recipe carefully.

    “Always be sure to take the time and be patient and sift through the ingredients,” says Sophie. “People have a tendency to look at a recipe and throw everything into a bowl and think if you mix it, it’s all going to turn out ok.”

  4. Bake in a group.

    “I think baking is sometimes stressful when you’re doing it by yourself,” shares Katherine. “So instead of looking at dessert as a task, look at it as a fun activity. Bring in your friends and family, pour a glass of wine, have someone sifting the flour, have someone cracking the eggs and really make it a group experience.”

  5. Don’t over-bake.

    “I think people have a tendency to leave things in the oven a little too long," says Sophie. "You have to remember that when you take things out of the oven, they continue to bake in the pan. When they look like they’re done, take them out.”

  6. Whip the frosting on high.

    “Take your time making the frosting,” says Sophie. “Really whip it on high speed for at least 5 minutes. So when you think it’s done, whip it for another 5 minutes. You want it to be light and airy.”

  7. It’s okay to store cupcakes at room temperature.

    “I think people have a tendency to think that [cupcakes] should go right into the fridge, but the fridge actually dries the cake out, it ruins the texture,” shares Katherine. “It’s okay to frost the cupcakes ahead of time and just set them on a beautiful tier.”

  8. Have fun with it!

    “Don’t’ be intimidated by it,” says Sophie. “If you make it a fun group experience with your friends or girlfriends or cousins or your aunts, it becomes really enjoyable.”

Make sure to check out some of Sophie and Katherine’s best recipes, as well as tasty dishes from other TLC stars, in the new cookbook “TLC Kitchen: 120 Timeless Recipes from Our Family to Yours,” available at Amazon.