Friday, September 23, 2011

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars

I force J to go apple picking with me every.single.year.
Smallest apples ever!
 
We always have about 50 apples to use up so I always end up making this at least twice!  One for us and one to pass out to friends :)

One of my go-to faaaaaavorite fall treats.
 
Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars
Crust:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
Cheesecake Filling:
3 (8-ounce) packages cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup sugar, plus 2 tablespoons, divided
3 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Apples:
3 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Streusel topping, recipe follows
1/2 cup caramel topping
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter with a pastry blender (or 2 forks) until mixture is crumbly. Press evenly into a 9x13 baking pan lined with heavy-duty aluminum foil. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned.
In a large bowl, beat cream cheese with 3/4 cup sugar in an electric mixer at medium speed until smooth. Then add eggs, 1 at a time, and vanilla. Stir to combine. Pour over warm crust.
In a small bowl, stir together chopped apples, remaining 2 tablespoons sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Spoon evenly over cream cheese mixture. Sprinkle evenly with Streusel topping. Bake 40-45 minutes, or until filling is set. Drizzle with caramel topping and let cool. Serve cold and enjoy!

Streusel Topping:

1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened

In a small bowl, combine all ingredients. I like to really combine it by using my clean hands to thoroughly combine the butter into the mixture.


Tuesday, September 20, 2011

Homemade Chipotle Bowls!

I will admit it...I am a Chipotle-aholic.  So I found a copycat recipe on pinterest and went to town!


Chipotle Burrito Bowl
adapted from Iowa Girl Eats


What you need


Rice
  • 1/2 cup brown rice (I used Jasmine and it worked great!)
  • Small pat of butter
  • Salt
  • Juice of 1/2 of lime
  • Chopped cilantro 


Beans

In a microwave safe bowl, heat up 1 can drained and rinsed pinto or black beans with:
  • Splash of chicken broth
  • Dashes of chili powder, cumin, oregano & cayenne pepper


Chicken

Cook two chicken breasts in a skillet seasoned with:
  • Chili Powder
  • Garlic Salt
  • Onion Powder
  • Cumin
  • Oregano
I found it was easier to chop it up first for quicker and even cooking.



Pico de Gallo

I had made Fresh Tomato Salsa the day before from allrecipes.com so I just added a can of whole kernel corn to that and it was great! Here is how Iowa did hers!


  • 1 tomato (plus some cherry tomatoes I had on hand)
  • 1 jalapeno
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 1/4 small red onion
  • Sprinkle of chopped cilantro
  • S&P
  • Juice of 1/2 lime


I had some left over guac and sour cream that I added on the side as well.




Nestie Recipe Swap : Tailgating!

I don't think words are enough to explain how excited I was for this weeks swap!  I love sitting around on a Sunday and watching football and eating good food!


My recipe was from Lindsay(lneuner09) @ Peace, Love and French Fries.

We used chicken breast over wings and it worked out really well.  I let them marinate for about 4 hours and they were so tasty!  Def will be making them again!
 
Thanks Lindsay, we loved them!!



Chili-Lime Chicken Wings



















1 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup cider vinegar
1/2 cup lime juice
2 tbsp chili powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp poultry seasoning
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp garlic powder
3 dashes hot sauce
3/4 tsp onion powder
2-3 lbs chicken wings and drumettes  (we used chicken breast cut into 1-2" chunks)
 
Place marinade and chicken wings in large zip-top bag, shake to coat wings.  Refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours, tossing the chicken in the marinade every so often.

Preheat the oven to 400.  Spread wings on 9×13 baking dish in a single layer (use 2 if necessary), shaking off excess marinade before placing in pan.  Bake for 40 minutes then switch oven to broiler.  Broil wings for 4-5 minutes or until crispy.  Serve immediately.


Friday, September 9, 2011

Jalapeno TOSTITOS Scoop Bites

Jalapeno TOSTITOS Scoop Bites




Sorry, I haven't made these in a while so I don't have a picture, but I am making them Sunday, so I'll update it then :)


What you'll Need

  • 1 bag TOSTITOS Scoops
  • 1 jar sliced jalapenos (can be omitted if you don't want them too spicy...I usually make some with and some without)
  • 1 pkg cream cheese (8oz)
  • Small container sour cream
  • 1 can sweet corn (drained)
  • 1 bag shredded cheese (The Mexican blend is really good!)


Prep/Directions


  1. Mix together the cream cheese, sour cream and corn until smooth.  I add about 1 1/2 cups or so of the shredded cheese to the mixture as well, but not necessary.
  2. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil and fill sheet with TOSTITOS, (scoop side up)
  3. Place 1 jalapeno in the bottom of each scoop
  4. Top each with the mixture, do not overfill.  I usually go about 3/4 of the way up.
  5. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted.  Top each scoop with a little of the shredded cheese and bake for another 5 or so minutes until shredded cheese is melted.