“The problem with traditional pie weights is you never have enough and they're expensive. Common substitutes like dried beans just aren't heavy enough to do the job. Our genius solution? Small steel balls that fit inside ball bearings and that can be purchased at any hardware store.”

American food writer and chef

Claire Saffitz is an American food writer, chef, and YouTube personality. She became widely known through her work at Bon Appétit, where she was a contributing editor until mid-2020 and appeared in several video series, including Gourmet Makes. In Gourmet Makes, she reverse-engineered popular snack foods into more elaborate versions, which helped make her a familiar face online. After leaving Bon Appétit, she published Dessert Person and What’s for Dessert, both New York Times best sellers, and has continued as a video host on her own YouTube channel and as a freelance recipe developer, including for New York Times Cooking.