When I start thinking that the world of baking has already been completely filled to the brim with every imaginable sweet, I come across a tasty-beyond-belief discovery. Recipes like these quickly become favorites and I wonder why, exactly, it took me so long to find such desserts. They’re the kind of treats sugarplum fairies dream about. Tannazie’s adapted Pumpkin Pecan Pie with Cinnamon Whipped Cream is one of those desserts.

The original recipe called for a whisky butter sauce instead of cinnamon whipped cream as a topping…but where there is pumpkin flavor, there needs to be cinnamon :)! Ok, so maybe I’m a bit biased, since cinnamon just so happens to be one of my favorite ingredients! Then again, the idea of making cinnamon whipped cream is pure genius! A fluffy spoonful of cinnamon whipped cream on top of a generous slice of pumpkin pecan pie?! Yes, please! I thought you’d never ask!

…and you won’t need to ask your Thanksgiving dinner guests if they want a piece of this pie! Just say the words Pumpkin Pecan Pie with Cinnamon Whipped Cream and even your neighbors will be lined up to have some. Just make sure you say it in a whisper so that there are lefovers for breakfast the next morning. Yes, breakfast! There’s nothing like eating pie in your pajamas when it’s cold outside; it’s pure bliss! I know you’ll agree right after you try Tannazie’s pie :)! Because, like her blog is appropriately named, this recipe is All Kinds of Yum!

What do you do when your kitchen can’t fit all of your ingredients? You get a bigger one! We’ll be doing some background remodeling on the sites to accommodate our growing demand. We’re gearing up for our biggest holiday season yet! So if you notice certain functions not working, don’t worry, they’ll be back up and running in no time.

The Key Ingredient Team

Sometimes you can just look at a dish and know that whoever made it is passionate about food. Coco’s blending of flavors and textures and her beautiful presentation clearly communicates her passion for the culinary arts.

Wanting to avoid the grocer as well as a detailed recipe, Coco gathered what she already had and created this delicious dish. The spicy mint chutney is what gives the kebabs a nice kick, and her addition of cubed paneer (an Indian cheese) gives the chicken an interesting flavor that is not seen too often. It’s always fun to experiment with exotic ingredients and to try something out of the norm. Coco says this dish is a definite winner, so serve this one up before the flavors of summer are long gone. I’m sure it’s not too late to fire up the grill one last time, and if it is already a bit chilly try cooking these on an indoor grill.

Coco has a slew of delicious recipes on her blog, Ambrosia; go by and check them out!

Who says you can only make pizzas out of pizza dough? What about grissini? It’s a breadstick that can be molded into a few different shapes, Dhivya will tell you all about it on her blog Culinary Bazaar. Making breadsticks that’ll fool in-laws into thinking there’s no way they were homemade, Dhivya’s recipe is foolproof. Whether you want to make them perfectly shaped or ‘rustic’, as Dhivya calls her most recent batch of Basil and Parmesan Grissini, her recipe will come in handy.

An edible soup utensil, Dhivya’s Grissini is perfect for dipping in soups or sauces. She says its crunchy texture nicely complemented her mint and pea soup. Though we commonly consider buttery garlic bread or toast the appropriate match for our spaghetti or lasagna, use Dhivya’s breadsticks the next time you’re preparing a saucy meal. If your favorite part of the pizza is the crust, then it’s guaranteed that you’ll love grissini. The fresh basil and parmesan Dhivya uses make her homemade breadsticks extra tasty, too!

Chocolate and pecan pie are two desserts that are delicious on their own; put them together and, suddenly, they’re inseparable. Sure chocolate pecan pie is amazing. Definitely a delicious twist on a favorite Thanksgiving dessert, but what if instead of twisting that, you flipped it. Lia does just that on Swirling Notions.

When she isn’t putting a book together, she’s creating sweets that will definitely have your head spinning and swirling. Her Chocolate Pecan Tart with Caramel Sabayon is a perfect example of a unique and mesmerizing dessert. Unlike chocolate pecan pies, the pecans in this dessert are all in the crust. Completely homemade, it consists of pecans, butter, brown sugar, flour, and a few sprinkles of nutmeg thrown in to give taste tester’s taste buds a pleasant surprise.

Bite into Lia’s tart, and you’ll want to take another, and another…and you’ll love the secret ingredient, cognac, just when you thought the chocolate filling couldn’t get any better :). So the next time you’re tempted to stop by the bakery and pick up a pie, consider making Lia’s Chocolate Pecan Tart with Caramel Sabayon and your home will be smelling like a bakery in no time.

I think we have all found ourselves aimlessly wondering the aisles of the grocery store searching for inspiration. Celine recently found herself in this situation when she went to her local farmers’ market. Grabbing a few pieces of produce that caught her eye as well as a bunch of basil to go along with the tomatoes she picked up, she put them all together with an ear of corn she already had to make a beautiful skillet casserole. The best things about this meal, other than the taste, is that it all comes together relatively fast and has very little clean-up. That’s always a plus!

Casseroles always seem to make an appearance when people are bringing meals for a sick family or whenever a new neighbor has just moved in. Using Celine’s skillet casserole recipe I wouldn’t be surprised if your friends became “sick” a lot more often! Whether you are making this casserole for a friend or just for your family during a busy week it’s sure to be a hit!

For more delicious recipes visit Celine’s blog, The Purple Kitchen!

In about a month, you’ll be seeing chocolate covered cherries filling the candy aisle at your local grocery store. Why not give the chocolatey stocking stuffer a break this year and, instead of just leaving cookies for Santa, make cherry brownies for him and the entire family?! Just be sure there’s plenty of milk to go around, because Julia’s Cherry Brownies will be asking you to dunk them in a glass right after they’ve cooled…

But they might not last that long! Brownie’s à la mode might be the way to go instead; who could resist these brownies served with ice cream? A much more loved dessert than a holiday fruit cake, Julia’s brownies only have two things in common with the stereotypical Christmas treat. They contain fruit and a bit of rum, thrown in for good measure. She doesn’t use dried cherries, though, she goes for the frozen ones. Julia doesn’t say anything about thawing them beforehand, which is likely due to the fact that frozen fruits thaw nicely during the baking process.

Taking the brownies to the next level, Julia adds natural cherry flavour. This is a recipe that can be put together fairly quickly, but make sure your batter makes it to the baking stage…the challenging part is waiting an hour for the brownies to finish baking. But don’t worry! Your patience will be greatly rewarded with an addicting batch of heavenly brownies that any chocolate covered cherry lover will love! See what other great desserts Julia has on her blog Sweet Lady Sweets.

Shari’s consommé is an edible work of art. Clear and crisp in appearance, you’d never guess how many different ingredients go into making this crystalline and appetizing soup. The secret is all in the preparation. This isn’t a soup that can be thrown together and forgotten about, and that’s precisely why it is well appreciated by those who get to savor it. And there is so much to savor. However, in her blog Whisk, Shari says it really isn’t that difficult to put together!

In the background you’ll taste the vegetables: leeks, celery, carrots. Fresh herbs heighten the flavor of the beef and chicken broth. This is a soup that doesn’t just have a pretty name, there is plenty of substance behind it. Shari goes into explaining all the different terms associated with the soup on her blog. For instance, she talks about clearmeat, which is what all of the tasty ingredients become after they rise to the top, above the aromatic broth.

Some things are simply better homemade; Shari is right when she says consommé is just one of those things!

You won’t find any tuna in Isha’s Tomato Casserole, just layers of vegetables! Unlike most casseroles that are a bit heavy, Isha’s recipe is on the lighter side. Still including a very important casserole ingredient (the cheese!), Isha’s recipe has a few layers, like a vegetarian lasagna. But nope, you won’t find any noodles or tomato sauce in this recipe, just plenty of tomatoes!

So what makes Isha’s recipe a casserole? Isha doesn’t use any soups or broth to give her dish the creamy consistency most casseroles are known for. Instead, she prepares a sauce. Composed primarily of milk with some butter, the sauce thickens once flour and bread crumbs are added in the final stages of the cooking process. After this, she briefly cooks the tomatoes and capsicum, also known as bell pepper. Then, the layering begins!

The cooked tomatoes and bell peppers serve as the base. Then corn and black olives are layered on top of the tomatoes. Oh…and let’s not forget about the finishing touches. The sprinkling of the cheese finishes off this oven-baked casserole :)! Find more tasty home cookin’ at Isha’s Kitchen!

Banana pudding is highly underestimated. I myself have discounted this traditional southern dessert to be overdone and boring. Just this past weekend my sister requested banana pudding for her birthday dessert, and to say the least, I was slightly disappointed. I thought to myself:”you could have any dessert and out of all the possibilities you choose pudding??” As soon as the first spoonful of pudding was in my mouth I took back all of my doubts and disappointment.

There is a vast difference between regular banana pudding and southern style banana pudding, and no one could explain the difference better than Nick, from The Peanut Butter Boy. When Nick was looking for a second dessert to serve at his party he turned to Allrecipes.com for a little guidance. He had been wanting to make a traditional southern pudding for a while, so he seized this as his opportunity. Just by looking at the list of ingredients anyone can see that this pudding is far more involved than a simple box of instant vanilla pudding and a few slices of banana. Nick’s recipe includes sour cream, whipped topping (I suggests making homemade whipped cream, it really is so much better!) and peanut butter. Nick’s staple ingredient, peanut butter, is a fantastic addition that gives this dessert a whole new twist!

Banana pudding is a dessert that can be enjoyed for several days if you can resist eating it all at one time! I love this pudding on day two when the wafers are soft and the flavors have really fused together! If you are like me and have underestimated this classic dessert, give it another try, you might just find that this is the most faithful dessert recipe you have collected over the years!