Chocolate Chip Cream Cheese Squares

I can't claim any credit for this awesome recipe.  It all goes to my Aunt Lisa who shared it with me after Christmas a couple years back.  Cheesecake sandwiched by chocolate chip cookie?  Yes, please. :)

Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 - 8 oz. pkgs cream cheese; softened to room temperature
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 2 eggs
• 2 - 20 oz. pkgs prepared chocolate chip cookie dough frozen for 1/2 hour before use (or make double batch of chocolate chip cookie dough and refrigerate or freeze for a little bit)

Preheat oven to 350

Line metal pan with parchment paper.  This will make removal of the cooked bars from the pan much easier.  Don't use a glass pan, they never seem to cook up correctly.

Mix cream cheese, sugar, vanilla and eggs until smooth.

Cover bottom of pan with dough (or 1 pkg. premade)

Pour the cream cheese mixture on top and spread out evenly.

Either drop blobs of homemade dough on the top to cover most of the filling <OR> slice the second package of dough into 1/4 inch slices, flatten between hands and place on top of filling covering as much as possible (some spaces between the dough is okay).

Bake until golden brown (30-35 min).  Cool completely, add powdered sugar to garnish and cut.  Keep refrigerated.

*NOTE: these bars are best after refrigeration, it helps the cheesecake part to set properly with the cookie dough.

I think I need to go get another giant tub of cookie dough from Costco now so I can make another batch of these...

Enchilada Chicken Casserole

I used to make enchiladas all the time, but every time I would inevitably over make the filling.  One day I finally decided to try making a "casserole" with layers so I could use all that extra filling.  The casserole turned out quite delicious and this recipe has now been made more times than I can count.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

• 2 chicken breasts
• 1 medium onion
• 1 medium green bell pepper
• 1 bunch cilantro, finely chopped
• 1 - 12 oz. can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 cups frozen yellow corn, thawed
• 2 cup salsa
• corn or flour tortillas (depending on your preference)
• 18 oz. enchilada sauce
• 3 cups shredded cheese (I use colby jack or mexican blends)

Boil the chicken until cooked through.  Make sure to not overcook! (I've done that a lot).  Let cool until you are able to handle it and then cube chicken.  Add to large mixing bowl.

Medium to large dice the onion and green bell pepper.  Saute in fry pan with small amount of butter or non-stick cooking spray.  Salt & Pepper to taste.  I usually cook these until they look 'fajita style' (there were NO green bell peppers at the grocery story yesterday - it was pretty amazing).  Add to mixing bowl.

Rinse the black beans with cold water until water runs clear.  Thaw corn by running under warm/hot water (takes only 2 minutes or so).  Add black beans and corn to bowl and mix.

Add 1 cups salsa to bowl and mix thoroughly.  Add 1/2 cup increments and continue to mix thoroughly until mixture is held together by the salsa, but before it becomes too wet.  Add and mix in cilantro.

Spread 1/2 of the enchilada sauce in the bottom of a 9x13 pan.  Layer tortilla shells on top of enchilada sauce.  Cut the tortillas as needed to get a completely covered bottom.  Add 1/2 chicken mixture on top of the tortillas.  Sprinkle 1 cup cheese on top of this mixture.

Repeat layers of tortillas, remaining chicken mixture and 1 cup cheese.  Add another layer tortillas to top.  Spread rest of enchilada sauce on top and then sprinkle on last cup of cheese.

Cover with tin foil and bake for 30 minutes or until sauce starts bubbling.  Remove tin foil and bake for an additional 5 minutes to brown up cheese.

Remove from oven and let set for 5 min before serving.  Serve with tortilla chips, salsa, guacamole and/or sour cream (whatever you usually like on an enchilada).

Oatmeal Cherry Chocolate Chip Cookies

Yep, try saying that 5 times fast. ;)  This is a favorite recipe of ours and I end up making double batches multiple times throughout the winter months.  It's very tasty and I convince myself that the oatmeal and cherries makes them healthy (don't even try to burst my bubble on that either).

1/2 cup stick butter (cold from the fridge turns out best)
1/2 cup shortening
2/3 cup packed brown sugar
2/3 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. baking soda
1/2  tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup all purpose flour (plus)

3 cups old fashioned or quick-cooking oats
1 cup chocolate chips
1/2 - 1 cup dried cherries

Heat oven to 375

Mix wet ingredients in order listed.  Sift dry ingredients together and add to wet ingredients.  Add oats and then hand mix in chocolate chips and cherries to personal taste. 

*I always need to add additional flour to thicken up the mixture.  Depending on how the batch looks it's usually an extra cup to cup and a half of flour, but I add this in by hand before the chocolate chips and cherries.

Bake 9-11 minutes or until light golden brown (centers may still look under done but are usually ready).

Immediately remove from cookie sheet and cool on wire rack.  You can also make cookie bars with them in a 8x8x2 pan that is ungreased (bake approx 25 min).

Makes approx 3 dozen cookies

How I Make Applesauce

As far back as I remember my cousins, sisters, and I were helping my grandma and mom make applesauce every year (not too surprising considering I'm from a family of apple farmers). Now that I am a mom, I too have started making applesauce every fall and when I do I inevitably get at least one person asking me how I make my applesauce or what my recipe is.  I finally decided I would just post about it and tell anyone who wants to know.

Disclaimer: I don't use a recipe.  Never have, never will.  Apples are so varied in size, taste, etc. that I would find it harder to make an applesauce that I liked the taste of if I was working within the confines of a recipe.  Instead I will tell you how I make my applesauce and some tips to help you make some for yourself.

Tip #1: get yourself an apple peeler/corer/slicer like the one pictured below if you're going to make a big batch of applesauce.  It's quick, easy to use, and the clean up is a breeze.  With this handy little tool I was able to prep 10 pounds of apples in about 1 hour. 

Tip #2: I like to use Gala apples for my sauce right now.  Galas are so naturally sweet that I don't have to use any sugar in my applesauce for the girls.  I also recommend using a 2-3 different varieties of apples to make sauce with if you want a more complex flavor.  If you're unsure of what varieties to use for making applesauce check out the Michigan Apples website to see what uses are good for any specific variety you enjoy.  For example, Honeycrisp apples are great fresh, but when cooked or baked they don't work as well.

Here's how the apple/peeler/corer works...

You just stick the apple on the prongs...

and start turning the handle to peel, slice and core the apple all at once.

Here you can see where all the slices are.  It resembles an apple 'slinky' once you are done.

Just pull off the apple slices and you're left with the core...

which you then remove from the prongs to start the process all over again.

  There is a giant suction cup on the base to hold the peeler/corer/slicer in place so you don't have to worry about slicing yourself. 

After I remove the peeled apples I cut them in half and check for any remaining pieces of core, pits, or peel.  I then cut out or off any of these remaining unwanted pieces with a paring knife before putting the sliced apples in a pot to cook.

This is an 8 quart pan.  I left about 3 inches of space at the top to keep from spilling over the edges when cooking.  Depending on how many apples you're making up you can use a much smaller pan. When I was in college and didn't have room to store any applesauce long term so I would make up half a dozen apples as sauce at once in a very small pan... you get the idea.

To cook you just add 1-2 inches of water to the pan and start cooking the apples on medium to medium high heat.  As they start to cook you will want to use a potato masher to break the apple slices down and mix the apples around in the pot for even cooking.  If you want very smooth applesauce, I would suggest using a hand blender or food processor on the applesauce once it's done cooking and cooled a bit.

If your water boils away before the apples break down enough to supply the natural apple juices for cooking just add another cup or so of water.  Remember, the more water you add the more you have to boil away before you're finished.  Continue regular mashing and stirring of the apples until they are thoroughly cooked and are to your desired 'chunkiness'. 

 Once it's all done cooking, remove from heat and add any spices (I like cinnamon and ground cloves) to your desired taste.  You can also add any desired sugar at this time to make the applesauce as sweet as you may want it.

My 10 pound bag of apples made up about 1 gallon of cooked applesauce, which I put into plastic containers, labeled and froze.  They'll keep in the freezer for about a year and we will have homemade applesauce until next fall when I start the whole process all over again. :)

If you have any questions, just leave me a comment and I'll do my best to answer you or point you in the right direction.