Category: Recipe Reviews

7 Desserts to Try

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.

  1. Sur La Table’s CHOCOLATE SOUFFLES

IMG_1994

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

apple blueberry crisp main

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

blondies main

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

chocolate-cake-main

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

cinnamon swirl bread main

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

chewy-chocolate-chip-cookies-main

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

cream scones

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”

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’

Apple Crisp main.jpg

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.

img_1066

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”

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.

pumpkin bread main #2.jpg

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!