Upside Down Apple Caramel Cake

So this recipe was from a magazine and it is delicious!  It is like a light cheesecake with an apple and caramel topping.  Imagine a cross between a cheesecake and an apple upside down cake... YUMM!!
You can also use pears and peaches if one of those are better for you.  I used Granny Smith apples again because I like the tart with the sweet, but use whatever makes you happy.

Caramel topping:
3/4 cup of sugar
1/2 cup water
2 tsp of lemon juice

 Cake:
3 cups (3 apples, approximately) sliced into thin strips
3 eggs
3/4 cup of sugar
1 cup, melted butter
4 oz. softened cream cheese
1 cup flour

Spring form pan is easiest, but I imagine you can use a regular round pan, just grease it well!

I put tinfoil in the bottom of my spring form pan and then grease the foil, just to make it easier to get out.  Place the prepared pan on a cookie sheet so if the caramel sauce leaks you don't have a mess in your oven.

Add the first two ingredients, the 3/4 c. sugar and 1/2 c. water together and put on medium heat.  DO NOT STIR!  Let cook for about 20 minutes or so, until it just BARELY starts to turn golden.  Trust me, it seems like it takes forever, but so worth it.  You will see little tiny bubbles, then as it gets hotter, bigger bubbles and then finally it will start to turn light brown. 
At light brown, turn off the stove, and add the 2 tsp of lemon juice.  BE CAREFUL, IT WILL BUBBLE AND SPIT, but just keep stirring, it is worth it!
Pour this mixture, while hot into the springform pan.
Carefully place the apples into the caramel sauce, don't burn your fingers and use a pretty design. 
Meanwhile, while I wait for the sugar to cook,  I make the cake.

Add the 3/4 c. sugar and eggs to a pan and cream them until light and fluffy. 
Add the melted butter, (turn the mixer down since the cake is pretty liquidy at this point) and mix the butter, eggs and sugar together.
Turn the mixer back up and add the cream cheese and flour and beat until fluffy and light white. 
Once the caramel and apples are in the pan, pour the cake batter over the apples. 
Place in a 350 degree oven for 35 minutes or until the top is slightly brown.

Let the cake rest for 5 to 10 minutes and then flip over onto a plate and serve... ENJOY!!

Crustless Chicken Pot Pie

Chicken Pot Pie is a favorite of mine, but sometimes I want something that tastes the same without the work of making crust, putting it into a pie shell and baking it.  Crockpot to the rescue!  I made this chicken pot pie on a cold fall day and it made the whole house smell amazing!
 Here is the recipe:
6 chicken thighs (I used these because they were on sale and they hold up to the longer cooking time)
1 package small potatoes (also on sale and didn't require much work, but you could use regular potatoes, just cut them in half)
half a bag of frozen corn
half a bag of frozen peas
Carrots (peeled and cut into chunks)
1 onion cut into pieces (large chunks or small depending on your preference)
whatever other vegetables you want to add
26 oz (one box) Chicken stock
quarter of a tsp salt
 half tsp of pepper
4 bay leaves
1 tbsp rotisserie chicken seasoning
1 tsp onion powder
5 pieces of garlic, minced
flour

Add the potatoes, carrots, corn, onion, stock, other vegetables (not peas), salt, pepper, garlic, bay leaves and seasoning to the crockpot.  Lay the chicken thighs on tops of the vegetables and cover.  Let cook on low for 5 hours or on high for 2 or until chicken thighs are done. Remove the bay leaves.  Take out the thighs and bones and shred the chicken.  Before adding the chicken back in, take out as much liquid as possible and add it to a pan on the stovetop.  Turn the stove on medium and slowly whisk in flour, creating gravy.  Taste and seaon with more salt, pepper or whatever is needed.  Add the chicken back to the vegetables, add the frozen peas and the gravy and stir everything together.  Serve with warm bread or rolls or alone.  Delicious and so simple! 
Enjoy!

Warm Mini Apple Pies

So with the approach of fall, I immediately think apples and I become incredibly happy!  I loooove apples! My friends were also having a get together and I was in charge of dessert.... what could be better?  So I found an amazing dough recipes at http://rainydaygal.com/2010/04/07/mini-strawberry-pies/ .  This was honestly the best and tastiest dough recipe!  I am awful at rolling dough, normally mine has holes in it and looks awful, but this came out PERFECT! 
Dough recipe:
  I used 2 cups of regular flour and it turned out fine (instead of the cake flour)
 butter
eggs
So make the dough following the recipe from rainydaygal and let it sit in the fridge for 20 or so minutes. 
In the mean time you will need:
2 cups diced Granny Smith Apples (I like the tartness)
3/4 cup brown sugar
1tsp of cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
pinch of cayenne (gives the filling a little bit of heat, so they taste warm, even when they are cold!)
1 to 1.5 tablespoons of flour (depending on how much water is in your apples.  I would use 1 tablespoon first, mix it all together and then see if you need to add more.  I like my filling thick, so I normally add 1.5)
2 Tablespoons of lemon juice

Peel and dice 2 Granny Smith apples
Put them in lemon juice so they don't turn brown.
Toss them around in the lemon juice and then add the brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, cayenne, and flour. 
Let that sit.

In the meantime, roll out the dough, about a quarter of an inch thick.  Take a cupcake pan and spray each of the circles with Pam.   Then, take a 3 inch wide mug and cut circles out of the dough.  Push the dough into the cupcake tins, creating a mini pie shell.  Try to make sure that you push the dough as far up the cupcake as you can, this makes a deeper pie and holds more filling.  YUM!  Then fill the pie shells with the apple pie filling.

Cover lightly with foil (so the edges don't burn) and bake for 30 - 40 minutes or until very bubble at 400 degrees. 
If you want to get super creative you could make tops for the apple pie and make a covered mini apple pie or make a crumb topped apple pie or even a caramel topped apple pie!  Variations may be coming at some point! 

Hot Chocolate Cupcakes

So a few weeks ago I made White Hot Chocolate Cupcakes  (http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/white-hot-chocolate-cupcakes/d714aa0c-013b-4910-866d-02f217702cd7) and posted them to my facebook wall. I had a request for regular Hot Chocolate Cupcakes and so I decided to make them for my friend Jamie's birthday this week.  They taste amazing!!! 
Here is the recipe:
1 Betty Crocker Devil's food cake mix
eggs and oil as called for on the package
brewed coffee (I add this instead of water to the cake because it makes it more chocolately)
cayenne a small pinch
Chocolate Chips
Marshmellows
Corn Syrup  1 Tablespoon
Milk or half and half  1 or 2 tablespoons

So make the Devil's Food cake following the directions on the box, substituting the water for coffee.  ( If you don't like coffee, don't worry, you won't taste it, but the chocolate will be WAY better).
Mix according to package directions and add the pinch of cayenne. (It gives the cupcakes a warm feeling without them being warm)
In the meantime, heat 4oz or so of the chocolate chips in the microwave until smooth and add to the cake mixture.
Ladle into cupcake paper liners in cupcake pans. 
Bake following the time on the cake box about 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
Let cool! 
In a small bowl, heat about a cup and a half of the chocolate chips, corn syrup and half and half in the microwave for 30 second intervals until it it smooth enough to spread on the cupcakes
Dip the top of the cooled cupcakes in the chocolate and make sure the top is covered.
Put into the refrigerator and let cool for ten minutes.
On a sheet pan, spray PAM on it well!!!
Cut marshmellows in half (I like to make it so they are cut in half and round, looks better) and place on the sheet tray.
Turn the oven on broil and make sure that the rack is in the uppermost slot. 
Place the sheet tray of marshmellows under the broil for 2 minutes, MAKE SURE TO WATCH THEM!!
Take the cupcakes out of the fridge and place them close to the oven.
Remove the marshmellows and using a metal spatula place them on top of the cupcakes, work quickly!
Dust with cocoa power and Enjoy!!!