Apple Cream Cheese Bar

We have been invited to our brother and sister-in-laws home for Thanksgiving dinner and we are tasked with bringing a second dessert, since pumpkin pie will be the star of the show, I decided to make this Apple Cream Cheese Bar. The idea is that this dessert will compliment the pumpkin pie.

This recipe requires multiple steps to prepare it as there are 4 layers in total to makeup this dish. 

                        1. The first layer is a crust at the bottom made of graham crackers and butter 

                               ... bake at 350 degree for 6-7 mins

                                2. The second layer, is a cream cheese mixture. You have to pay attention so it is layered smoothly and evenly. I used the back of a spoon or you could use a plastic knife for this purpose

                                    

                             

                             3. The third  layer is an apple pie filling, Just drop this filling over the cream cheese                                       layer.....

                      

                        ...here is the evenly smoothed 3rd apple filling layer

                  

                         4. The fourth layer is an oatmeal topping, Again tamp it down lightly using the                                              back of a spoon .

                              Bake in the oven for 50 minutes at 350 degrees, 

                              Let it cool completely and then place it in the freezer for 1-2 hours. 

                              Then you can evenly and easily cut your Apple Cream Cheese Bar. 

           

Recipe:

Crust - bottom layer (1st layer )

1 1/2 cup of crushed graham crackers (from a pack of graham crackers )

3 Tbs soften melted butter or oil

2 Tsp sugar

Lined parchment paper on bottom of 8 x 8 pyrex pan dish.

Mix all ingredients and spread evenly on dish, bake for 7 mins at 350 degree.

Cream Cheese Layer

8 oz soften (room temp) cream cheese

1 egg

1/4 cup sugar

Mix all ingredients, with patience, slowly and evenly spread cream cheese mixture using plastic spatula or knife on top of crust layer.

Apple Pie Filling

3 apples peeled and diced into small cubes

2 Tbsp lemon juice (optional)

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 tsp cinnamon

1 Tbs cornstarch

In a sauce pan, over medium heat, cook all ingredients except cornstarch until bubbly.

Add cornstarch as soon as apples are soften/bubbly, stir quickly, turn off stove.

Scoop apple pie filling onto the cream cheese layer.

Again, evenly smoothen apple pie filling topping.

Oatmeal Crumbles layer:

1 cup oatmeal

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 tsp cinnamon

6 Tbsp melted butter

Mix well all ingredients, spread over top of Apple pie filling layer.

Lightly tamp down layer.

Bake at 350 degree for 50 mins.

Cool dish completely.

Place dish in freezer for an hour or 2.

Cut Apple Cream Cheese Bar to desired bite size pieces/bars.

Enjoy!!

 

Chicken Enchilada with homemade sauce

   I have made these chicken enchiladas a few times in the past, and it seems I have made some real improvements with this dish. My husband says this is true and I hope he is right rather than me praising myself. Could it be  both ? ( ha ha ! )

   I decided to write down this new recipe this time just in case I forget what worked really well this time, so here it goes. 

   One really important and helpful ingredient I used in this recipe is buying a nice juicy rotisserie chicken from BJs. They are really delicious and the juices work well during the bake. First, I tear apart the chicken and chop them up into small cubes. I made chicken broth out of the rotisserie chicken bones, which was a wonderful idea... no waste and super tasty ?!

   I needed the chicken broth to made the enchilada sauce... tada! The enchilada sauce recipe is key to this recipe ... hey you can buy the sauce from the store if you choose to do that but as for me I made my own..hee hee !

Here are the ingredients and instructions on both the enchilada sauce and the casserole.

Enchilada sauce:

3 1/2 cups chicken broth

1/2 cup warm water  

1/4 cup flour  (mix flour into the warm water, mix well )

2 tbs cumin

1 tbs chili  ( +/- depending on how spicy you want it to be )

1 tsp oregano

1/2 tsp black pepper

1 tbs paprika

1 tbs garlic powder

15 oz mild salsa ( or you also use tomato sauce, I like salsa )

Pour everything together in a sauce pan and cook, stirring occasionally in medium to low heat until bubbly and thicken, turn off heat and let it come to warm or room temperature.

Casserole:

1 medium size onion - chopped

1 recipe enchilada sauce (or at least one can of 28 oz enchilada sauce)

2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

18 to 20 8-inch flour tortillas

I am using 2 Pyrex baking dish, greased the bottom of the dish with a few drops of vegetable/canola oil. Layer a thin layer of enchilada sauce on the dish. 

In a big bowl, combine chopped onions and chicken together.

Add some enchilada sauce to the mixture just enough so the mixture could come together.

Fill each tortilla with 2 heap tablespoon of chicken and sprinkle with some cheddar cheese and roll up tightly and place roll on the dish. 

Place each roll one after another tightly so they fit snugly together.

After all the rolls are in the dish, cover the entire top of dish with enchilada sauce. 

Bake at preheated 350 degree oven for 35 mins.

As soon as the time is up, sprinkle the top of dish with a layer of cheddar cheese and put the dish back to the oven while the oven is still super hot but turned OFF.

After about 5-15 mins, casserole is ready to be served, enjoy!!!

        We put a big dent on this dish after dinner .... it was real treat for our palettes  and our tummies                   were grateful ;)

Shrimp Chicken Dumplings (Wonton)

 I recently had a fun visit with a hometown girlfriend of mine. She made some wonderful comfort food for us that was quite a feast . Her spread had all the goodies I used to enjoy back home. One of the delicacies she made for us was a recipe for shrimp dumplings. They were really really delicious and I was so happy to find out that she made extras for us to take home. ( Thank you !) She also was generous by giving me the recipe to try at home. And here is the result of her recipe and my efforts.


Thanks Julie !! I hope I made you proud of me :)

Recipe to follow shortly.

Char Siu Bau

I am on a roll here so why not keep on going while I am in the mood to bake and make treats ? My sweet girlfriend, Julie made us "char siu bau" recently and she also gave me some "char siu" (homemade roasted pork ). So here I am trying to recreate what she made for us.

I will provide my recipe here below (soon) and pictures of these steamed rolls.

      Enjoy!

           
      freshly steamed out of the pot

        these are ready to go into the steamer pot.

Apple Sauce Mini Loaf Cake

I recently made from scratch a tasty apple sauce mini loaf cake. It is a semi healthy alternative that has less sugar in the recipe but lots of sweet apple sauce. It is a very light, moist and sweet bread that is perfect  for our coffee fellowship.

I was excited when I took the cake out of the oven but because of my impatience, I iced the cake before the cake cooled down, the icing melted. Note to self; next time please let the bread cool before trying to ice it :) The melted frosting didn't make for a great look in the photo, but no one seemed to notice or care once they tasted it.

                                       

Light Stir Fry Koay Teow

Here is a modified version of Penang's 'Char Koay Teow'. My fellow Penangites may not see the value in a healthy version of this beloved Asian delicacy, but I didn't make it to compete with the original recipe of my childhood. I made it for the enjoyment of me and my husband who both loved it, so you may like it also. What's wrong with being tasty and healthy ??

I really enjoyed making this dish. A  light stir fry like this is a quick recipe that only takes a few minutes to make.Prepping the vegetables was most of the work. With this recipe, I used lots of broccoli and red, yellow and orange peppers. Looks great doesn't it ?

Ingredients and recipe as follows: (To be added)

 
        Stir Fry Koay Teow done and ready to serve ... goes well as is or paired nicely with a piece of                grilled meat or seafood

           Plated portion, with a splash of hot sauce, this light dish quarantees to satisfy your palate... maybe even asking for second helpings ;)

Ham & Cream Cheese Pinwheels / Roll Ups

I needed to make a savory dish for an upcoming fellowship function the men of our church are having soon. I talked with my husband about what the men might like and I came up with a neat little recipe. I think it's a simple dish with simple instructions.

I have a bunch of tortillas in my fridge that need to be used, so I make use of them in this dish. I have decided to make an appetizer called pinwheel roll ups. They are filled with ham and cream cheese. I am using 2 kinds of ham, the regular plain ham and the gourmet black forest ham. ( its what I have in my freezer :)  ... that black forest ham is really good. It will definitely be  Delish ;)

 I was able to prepare and finish about 15 or 16 tortillas. Each tortilla makes 4 pinwheel roll ups. I also did a short video showing how easy it is to make these treats. I would recommend these for a fast and tasty treat for your next party!

See a short video below on how I prepare these pinwheels :)  (after the pictures)

This is my first video, take a look ;)

Ingredients:
1 8oz cream cheese ( room temperature)
3 Tbs sour cream
3 Tbs peppercorn dressings ( you can use Ranch dressings as well or just replace with sour cream if you prefer)
1 1/2 pound of ham ( I used 1/2 regular ham and 1/2 black forest ham)
2 bags of 10" Tortillas ( each bag contains 10 tortillas - I didn't use the entire 2 bags)

Mix the first 3 items together in a bowl.
On a flat dinner plate ( or you can use a cutting board ), lay a piece of tortilla bread on plate.
Spread 2 tsp of cream cheese on tortilla.
Lay ham over cream cheese.
Roll tightly and cut into 4 pieces evenly, leave the ends off.
Store in refrigerator until ready to serve.
Enjoy !