Celebrity Chefs Share Their Favorite Thanksgiving Recipes

Once the tryptophan wears off and you’ve taken a break from eating, circle back for some delectable desserts.

Showing an obvious affinity for pumpkin-centric dishes on her holiday menu, Anne Burrell shares her Maple-Pumpkin Bread Pudding. “This is my idea of all and winter all wrapped up in a pudding dish! I take basic custard and ratchet it up by adding pumpkin and maple syrup.” effuses the popular chef.

She continues, “Then to keep it super-sexy, I use challah, which is a rich, buttery, and slightly sweet bread. This isn’t your ordinary, everyday, bread pudding: this bread pudding is more like cake–and I like cake!”

Here’s how to make Chef Anne’s amazing holiday dessert.

Maple-Pumpkin Bread Pudding

MISE EN PLACE

·         1 4-pound pumpkin, preferably a sugar pumpkin, or 3 cups canned pumpkin puree

·         2 cups heavy cream

·         ¼ cup packed light or dark brown sugar

·         4 large eggs

·         1 cup REAL maple syrup

·         1½ teaspoons cinnamon

·         ¼ teaspoon nutmeg

·         ¼ teaspoon allspice

·         1½ teaspoons vanilla extract

·         1 tablespoon unsalted butter for greasing dish

·         1 loaf of challah, cut into 1-inch chunks (about 8 cups)

·         ½ cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

·         ½ cup dried cranberries or golden raisins

DIRECTIONS

1.      Preheat the oven to 375•F

2.      Cut the pumpkin into quarters, place it on a baking sheet, and roast for about l hour or until the pumpkin is fork-tender. Remove the pumpkin from the oven and let cool (this can be done a day or two ahead). When the pumpkin is cool enough lo handle, peel off the skin, remove the seeds and guts, and puree the flesh in a food processor. If you’re using canned pumpkin, skip this step.

3.      Reduce the oven temperature to 325•F.

4.      In a large bowl, combine the pureed pumpkin, heavy cream, brown sugar, eggs, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, allspice, and vanilla, and mix well to combine.

5.      Butter a 9 x 13-inch baking dish well. Toss the bread, walnuts, and cranberries together in the baking dish. Pour the pumpin mixture over the bread and let sit for 30 minutes.

6.      Put the dish in the oven and bake for 50 to 55 minutes or until the custard is set.

If you are looking for a little different twist, Anne suggests using a cinnamon brioche of a pound cake instead of challah.

If you do not want to turn on the oven, consider using the air fryer to make dessert. What would Thanksgiving 2020 be without the use of an air fryer? The latest kitchen craze will come in handy when whipping up this dessert from Donatella Arpaia.

While baking a cheesecake can be difficult, this air fryer version is quite easy. Even the worst baker can feel accomplished.

Air Fryer Cinnamon Ricotta Cheesecake with Pears and Candied Hazelnuts.

Ingredients

Cheesecake

8 large eggs
2.5 cups Confectioners sugar
2.5 lbs. Whole Milk Ricotta
½ cup Marscarpone
½ cup heavy cream
¾ tsp. Vanilla extract
¼ cup orange or lemon liqueur, such as limoncello
Juice and grated zest of 1 lemon, strained
Teaspoon of cinnamon
Butter Baking spray (enough to cover springform pan)
2/3 tbsp hazelnut
2 pears (optional) or other stone fruit
10-12 inch spring form pan
Topping

1 tbsp. Confectioners’ sugar
1 cup Granulated sugar
2/3 tbsp hazelts (slightly crushed)
½ medium pears cleaned pits and skin removed.

Instructions

Turn on airfryer to bake at 325. (or Preheat oven to 350)
Spray pan thoroughly with baking spray
Separate egg yolks and egg whites.
Beat yolks in a large bowl with an electric mixer until light yellow, add in whole cream, marscarpone and half of confectioners sugar.
Beat for at least a minute on medium speed. Then slowly add in the remaining sugar.   until fully incorporated. Then slowly add in remaining sugar until fully incorporated and smooth.
Add in Whole Milk Ricotta ½ a cup at s time and mix.  Add lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla, and liqueur to Ricotta and stir gently until incorporated.
In a separate cold bowl whip egg whites until soft peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into mixture.
Pour mixture into pan. Sprinkle cinnamon over top and with a toothpick swirl into mixture.
Bake for about 50 minutes to an 1 hour in Airfryer (regular oven up to 90 minutes)
Remove from airfryer to cool completely.
Dust top of cheesecake with confectioners’ sugar.
In a small saucepan melt cup of granulated sugar with a tablespoon of water when it starts to bubble add pears and nuts coat evenly until toasts and slight hardens and pour on cake.