10 Thanksgiving DESSERTS

November 13, 2017November 13, 2017 Michael Metzler Jr.Leave a comment

With the holidays just around the corner (and Halloween already behind us) now comes the time for planning how you are going to celebrate Thanksgiving, and then Christmas… Though most people plan Christmas first…

Anyhow, I’ve compiled some great Thanksgiving DESSERT ideas from around the web to get you thinking about what you can start preparing to bake!

PUMPKIN PIE on Michael’s Test Kitchen

First and foremost, of course is our PUMPKIN PIE, the most popular thanksgiving dessert, and most popular pumpkin dessert all around. For this one, I actually have a quick and easy recipe on my blog for pumpkin pie, check it out here:

pumpkin-pie-main — Pumpkin Pie on Michael’s Test Kitchen

2. PUMPKIN ROLL on Taste of Home

Another favorite of mine, pertaining to Thanksgiving and pumpkins, is the Pumpkin Roll. Basically a layer of pumpkin cake rolled around cream cheese frosting–very sweet and delicious! Check this great recipe out on Taste of Home.

3. PUMPKIN BREAD on Michael’s Test Kitchen

Another awesome and quick way to use pumpkins in your next thanksgiving baking project. Pumpkin bread is easy, takes hardly any time to make, and makes a very moist and sweet quick-bread. Slice and enjoy with butter or cream cheese. Check this Pumpkin Bread recipe out on my blog:

4. “Apple Pie by Grandma Ople” from allrecipes

Yes, apple pie seems to be the most universally used pie for holidays or even birthdays. It is probably the most popular pie, and yes, of course can be used perfectly well for Thanksgiving. Unless you are already planning on making apple pie for Christmas, Apple pie is a great dessert to bake on Thanksgiving. Check out this amazing recipe on allrecipes.

5. Candy Corn Cupcakes on Michael’s Test Kitchen

These cupcakes are a great way to make a dessert based of the traditional Candy Corn. Check out this Thanksgiving dessert on my blog:

6. Pecan Pie on Epicurious

Speaking of traditional pies, Pecan Pie is one of those popular traditional desserts usually served on Thanksgiving or Christmas. It is incredibly simple, and if you haven’t tried it before, there’s always a first time for everything. Check out this great recipe for Pecan Pie on Epicurious:

7. Apple Cake on Michael’s Test Kitchen

This Apple Cake is a great festive dessert with an awesome use of apples to create a quick & easy moist and spice-filled bread. Check it out on my blog:

8. Pumpkin Pie Bars on Delish

These pumpkin bars are a small version of pumpkin pie, reducing it into little bites, a very creative idea! Easy to make and of course great for the holiday baking season.

Check out this great recipe on Delish.

9. Molasses Marble Cheesecake on Michael’s Test Kitchen

molasses-cheesecake-main — Marbled Cheesecake

This cheesecake is great for the holidays, and has enough cheese in it for any cheese eater. Molasses is marbled into the filling to achieve the festive splash of brown, and the crust is made by crushing / processing molasses cookies.

Check out this amazing recipe on my blog!

10. Apple & Blueberry Layered Pie on Michael’s Test Kitchen

This apple & blueberry layered pie is an awesome twist on the classic apple pie, and is another amazing pie to put on your holiday-baking to-do list.

Check out this recipe on my blog!

Thanks for stopping by, and be sure to check out additional recipes on my blog!

7 Desserts to Try

March 22, 2017March 20, 2017 Michael Metzler Jr.2 Comments

This post is basically me compiling 7 different desserts that I’ve tried and recommend. Some are my recipes, but alot of them come from different areas of the internet.

Sur La Table’s CHOCOLATE SOUFFLES

These souffles are probably the easiest gourmet dessert I’ve made; and they don’t take super long to make. The middle of these souffles are meant to be a very rich creamy chocolate. I recommend you make these souffles, especially if you love chocolate, and don’t mind buying the 6 oz ramekins needed for the recipe.

2. APPLE BLUEBERRY CRISP on Michael’s Test Kitchen

I actually just posted this recipe on my blog. It was inspired by the apple crisp by Tastes Better From Scratch, and both are great recipes. Blueberries add a dash of bright contrast to the autumn-colored apples, and it is good for serving at larger gatherings.

3. BLONDIES by America’s Test Kitchen

This is an America’s Test Kitchen recipe that I made, and I liked it. If you’re bored of the traditional chocolate brownies recipes, then make this and add butterscotch chips to the mix.

4. CHOCOLATE CAKE from Michael’s Test Kitchen

This chocolate cake I developed from different cake recipes on the internet, but I also add fresh raspberries inside the layers with chocolate ganache frosting. Dark brewed coffee added to the mix makes the cake more rich and moist.

5. HOMEMADE CINNAMON BREAD by Pioneer Woman

This cinnamon swirl loaf from Pioneer Woman is basically like taking cinnamon rolls and putting them in a loaf pan. I actually made a recipe inspired this one, but as I have not posted it it yet, I recommend this one for a twist on the good old cinnamon roll. Optionally, you can toast these swirled pieces of bread, and spread over with butter.

6. CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES from Michael’s Test Kitchen

These chocolate chip cookies on my blog are soft and delicious. Plus, the recipe provides healthier partial substitutes to sugar and some flour.

7. CREAM SCONES by America’s Test Kitchen

I’ve really liked almost all the America’s Test Kitchen recipes I’ve made, and this is one of them. It is a simple base for scones, and leaves you the opportunity to add in chocolate chips, or any kind of fruit pieces, such as dried blueberries.

That’s it for now; I hope that gave you some ideas.

Have fun baking!

RECIPE REVIEW: Apple Crisp from “Tastes Better From Scratch”

January 18, 2017January 17, 2017 Michael Metzler Jr.Leave a comment

Apple Crisp is a great dessert for any time. It can be made for pretty much any holiday, substituting apple pie on some occasions, and works great as well for birthdays–just be sure to serve with ice cream on the side!

This post will be my “RECIPE REVIEW” of the Apple Crisp recipe from ‘Tastes Better from Scratch.com’

SUMMARY:

I’d give this a 5 star as far a apple crisps go. It’s classically construed; so if you don’t mind cutting a bunch of apples into thin skinless slices, this recipe is easy to accomplish, just as most apple crisps are–and I’d highly recommend it, having made it twice, and it having turned out simply awesome both times. I don’t know about you, but when it comes to thickening mixtures of fruit in the oven, I don’t take the outcome for granted. But this recipe seems to be simple, sweet, and foolproof. Foolproof is an important part.

METHOD:

This recipe calls for only 3-4 apples, and requires an 8×8 baking dish. I think that is a good size for 4 or less people, so the first time I made this I doubled the recipe and simply put it in a 9×13, in order to feed more people. That works just as fine. However, if you double it, make sure to leave it in the oven for about ten minutes longer, until apples are soft.

As with most crisps, you’ll be cutting some cold butter into a mixture of oats, sugar, and salt, and the like. This is your crumb topping. Make sure to follow the directions and be chilling it as you work with other steps. The same goes for all recipes; be sure to be keeping that cut-in butter cold!

The next thing is you’ll be cutting all your granny smith apples. This can be tedious unless you have a special piece of equipment: an Apple Corer Peeler Slicer. See link to get an idea of what this tool looks like. I recommend you get something like it if you don’t like cutting apples, coring them, and peeling them by hand.

CHANGES:

As I said before, if you want to double the recipe, use a bigger pan and up the time it spends in the oven.

Also, I like doing the cold butter step first, to get that out of the way and in the fridge, to say cold while I do the rest of the steps.

So go make your Apple Crisp at TastesBetterFromScratch.com! I highly recommend you try this recipe next time you want a fruity dessert. Go to the recipe here.

RECIPE REVIEW: Pumpkin Bread from “Once Upon a Chef”

October 22, 2016October 21, 2016 Michael Metzler Jr.Leave a comment

Instead of posting one of my own recipes, I decided to review a recipe from another food blog; so this post is a Recipe Review from the food website: ‘Once Upon a Chef’, with its recipe for Pumpkin Bread.

SUMMARY:

First, I made this pumpkin bread, and it was a very good pumpkin bread. I would recommend you make it. It is a quick, easy, and pleasing recipe for fall, and if you don’t want to used the canned pumpkin, just buy a sugar pumpkin, and see my instructions on how to make pumpkin puree.

METHOD:

This pumpkin bread is as quick and easy to make as cookies. It starts with the sugar and butter; then the eggs, whipping until fluffy; then the pumpkin puree, then the dry ingredients. Then you simply pop it into the oven–the only thing being that it takes approximately 65 minutes to bake at the relatively low temperature of 325 degrees, insuring a burn-free soft bread.

Also, I really like that the recipe calls to butter and flour the bread pans (and I highly recommend it, too) because it makes the bread so much easier to come out of the pan. This goes especially for cakes, as well. It makes a lot of difference.

The pumpkin bread was very soft, with a great pumpkin flavor.

CHANGES:

The only thing I did differently was to reduce the amount of sugar (something I do with all my desserts, now). In my experience, even if you reduce the sugar by a third, you may never notice a difference at all. And, it is automatically much healthier for all that.

I used homemade pumpkin puree instead of canned pumpkin. Homemade pumpkin puree is good if you want it fresh and healthy, and canned pumpkin is good if you like saving yourself time in the kitchen.

So, overall,it was an awesome recipe, and I recommend it to anyone who likes baking and making seasonal treats; and anyone who is looking for a great pumpkin bread recipe, most of all.

Thanks for stopping by, and be sure to check out this Pumpkin Bread Recipe from Once Upon a Chef!

Instructables: Share What You Make

September 14, 2016 Michael Metzler Jr.Leave a comment

I decided to do a post on this awesome website called ‘Instructables.‘

Instructables is a great DIY website where anybody can post step-by-step instructions on how to make anything imaginable.

If you like woodworking, puzzles, crocheting, sewing, baking, cooking, writing, crafting, costumes, etc., you can use instructables to ‘share what you make,’ in easy to follow posts with step-by-step pictures and instructions.

I have used instructables to post many of my own recipes, and all the pictures I have in my previous posts actually use pictures that I took for my recipes on Instructables.

Instructables is an awesome way to share your ideas easily and clearly with other people around the web.

Better yet, Instructables has many contests each month, each relating to something different. Instructables just last month created 10 insructable contests, which it regularly does every month of every years. This gives creators a perfect chance to enter their instructable creations for a chance to win something amazing–and the prizes are usually fantastic.

Be sure to check out Instructables here. You can also check out my profile on instructables.

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