Gobble, Gobble.

What am I thankful for this year?  Cheesecake.  Pumpkin cheesecake, to be exact.  This is my second Thanksgiving in a row to make this recipe.  I was considering going back to the standard pumpkin pie, but the cheesecake must have left a good impression because the Martins requested that I do this one again.  And I must admit that after a healthy slice I'm glad I did.  It's got that great combination of being very moist and creamy but still fluffy.  It sits on a crumbly cinnamon graham cracker crust, and it's nestled under a semisweet chocolate drizzle.  (Heavy on the drizzle.  Who can't use a little extra chocolate in their life?)  C'mon now... who couldn't use a slice of this after their turkey?

Because Thanksgiving is all about indulgence we can't just stop at one dessert.  (Or at least I can't.)  The holiday would not be complete without a pie, so I did my go-to apple pie based off of Rombauer's recipe in The Joy of Cooking.  Mine has a few more spices and uses brown sugar.  I think a lattice top is always pretty, and I added a few leaves and acorns to look very autumnal.  Some chose to top it with ice cream, others whipped cream, I went solo.  I think we all agreed on one thing-- it was a great way to end Thanksgiving.

Stay tuned-- a little birdie tells me I have an early Christmas baking gift coming my way in the next couple of days...

If you would like information about having these desserts or others catered, please contact me at susangietl@hotmail.com.  Pricing information will be coming soon to the blog.

Bigger is Better.

So tonight I made one of my favorite cake recipes to eat with my fiancé and his family after our Sunday dinner.  But the fun part is the kind of cake I baked-- a giant donut cake.  It's too cute.  It looks just like a glazed donut... but bigger.  And the best thing about it?  It's very easy to make, and the homier it looks, the better.  


The pan is from Williams-Sonoma.  I just used a basic butter cake recipe that I jazzed up for the fall with a healthy dose of cinnamon and a tiny bit of ginger.  And I couldn't go wrong with some autumn sprinkles.  Add a semisweet chocolate glaze and some chocolate jimmies and I can just hear it calling my name.


I love that it looks so homemade.  I often think that with cakes especially, the crumblier or gooier the better.  It just looks so delectable that way!  We'll just have to see if it is...