Food Blog Forum and Favorite Fall Desserts Recipe Roundup

I’m getting married next weekend, and when fellow foodies find out about my upcoming nuptials, their first question is inevitably: What kind of cake?

This was actually one of the first wedding planning decisions I made… forget the cake, I wanted wedding PIES. That’s pies, plural. I was planning a fall wedding, so visions of apple and pumpkin and pecan pies were dancing in my head. I mean, fall pies are just the best. Well, not that I don’t enjoy summer pies, but there’s something about pecan pie and apple cider amid the crisp fall weather and autumn foliage that seems like the most perfect way to end an evening.

My mom eventually talked me into having one tiny, simple (in wedding terms) cake to please those cake-lovers. I know cake fanatics exist, though I’ve never been on the cake bandwagon. My mom made a birthday cheesecake for me every year. At office baby showers, I eat the buttercream frosting out of the middle layer, leaving a mess of cake and top icing behind.

That said, fall somehow adds good flavor to cakes, even for reluctant cake-eaters like myself. Those are the only cakes I really enjoy, the ones that are more akin to sweet breads, featuring apples and pumpkins and cinnamon and cloves, that can double as breakfast, too.

In the middle of the final countdown to my big day, I attended Food Blog Forum, a food blogger conference here in Nashville. We at Farm Flavor provided the printing for name tags and agendas, and we also were able to check out a few of the sessions, where we learned food blogging tips from the likes of OXO and Gourmet. We gave away Jack-Be-Little pumpkins and recipe cards to attendees, and we met and talked with food bloggers from all over the country.

In honor of our new friends, here are a few favorite fall desserts to try out this autumn. I’d serve all of these at my wedding if I could!

Apple Dessert Recipes

Topsy Turvy Apple Pie from So, How’s It Taste: Leah is a Nashville food blogger who helped pull this event together, and I’ve been reading her blog for quite a while now. Her recipes often have a unique twist on an old favorite, and this one is no exception. She took something as American as apple pie and flipped it, quite literally. The pecans make me think this combines my two favorite fall pies – apple and pecan – into one gooey, delicious treat. Can’t wait to try this out at Thanksgiving… or sooner.

Gingered Applesauce Cake With Dark Chocolate from Bran Appetite: I only left the event with a couple of business cards, and Brandi’s was one of them. She’s in rural Virginia, canning and freezing food from her own garden. This recipe caught my eye because I love ginger, I love applesauce (especially my mom’s home-canned cinnamon applesauce) and I really love dark chocolate.

Apple Cheesecake Crumb Pie from Dessert for Two: I didn’t actually meet this blogger, but I came across her site through the #FBFNash hashtag on Twitter and absolutely love the concept. Cooking for two without too many leftovers is difficult but manageable – baking for two is downright impossible. I’ve already mentioned how much I love cheesecake, so I don’t see how this dessert could not be amazing.

Pumpkin Dessert Recipes

Pumpkin Chip Cupcakes With Brown Sugar Buttercream from Love & Olive Oil: Lindsay was also on the planning committee for Food Blog Forum. I’ve already mentioned my fondness for buttercream, but these little mummy cupcakes are just too cute for this time of year… I’m pinning them as we speak.

Cream Cheese and Butterscotch Pumpkin Pies from Picky Palate: Jenny spoke about blogger etiquette, recipe copyright and commenting practices. I learned all sorts of interesting tidbits from her session, and it made me feel more comfortable posting other bloggers’ photos here – as long as I’m giving full credit and proper links, of course. Anyway, these pumpkin mini pies topped with gingerbread streusel look just unbelievable, and I don’t even like the taste of butterscotch. I think I’d make an exception for these, though.

Pumpkin Creme Brulee from White on Rice: Diane and Todd, the couple behind White on Rice and the original Food Blog Forum, gave an excellent presentation on photography, with cool tips on backgrounds (tile from Home Depot) and lighting (even in dimly lit restaurants) and how to sell food (farm kids!). My soon-to-be-husband adores creme brulee, and this recipe highlights some of their amazing photography.

Finally, I’d like to share a post from Beth of Eat, Drink, Smile. She rounds out the trio of Nashville bloggers who made this event possible, and I stumbled across this “No Wedding Cake for Me, Thanks” post today while browsing her blog’s dessert section. Obviously, I can relate, but I absolutely adore how their families baked all the different desserts served at her wedding. We’ll be having homemade apple pie topped with red hots as one of our many wedding pies, so I can relate, although she truly went above and beyond – coconut cake, chess squares, chocolate peanut butter balls, oh my!

Anyway, thanks so much to the hosts of Food Blog Forum and to all the bloggers we met last Saturday. If you’re interested in becoming a part of our blogger program, please feel free to contact us.

And what’s your favorite fall dessert – your must-have, quintessential sweet treat this time of year? Let us know in the comments.