I'm coming to terms with the fact that kneading is just not my thing. I think I get the hang out if it, and the next thing you know my hands (and entire kitchen for that matter) are covered in sticky dough and flour. So, as you can imagine, it frustrates me that most of the best foods in life require this skill. I have yet to figure out the extent to which a dough hook can work for kneading. Anyone know?

But oh...this bread. It looked so incredible I had to give it a try. After making this four times I finally got the hang of kneading. The dough failed before I even got to roll it out the first time, the next two I finished but weren't quite perfect, and the last one was great. This recipe only has one minute of kneading, so I realize a 25 percent success rate is somewhat pathetic. Oh well. None of mine rose as much as the bread on 'Top with Cinnamon' where I got the recipe from, but it's so darn amazing I don't even mind. First of all, pull apart bread is fun. Everyone loves fun food. Secondly, every piece is like the inside of a cinnamon roll. Sometimes I feel like the outside of cinnamon rolls are wasted bites. I just want the inside, and I'm trying to quickly get the other part over with. Other examples of this: pecan pinwheels, grilled cheese sandwiches, pop tarts. It's amazing the extent to which I analyze food.

It seems like there are many steps to this recipe, and don't get me wrong, there are. However, if you aren't a terrible kneader like myself, this recipe is relatively simple and made from things you probably already have on hand. By the third loaf I felt like a pro! Enjoy!

Cinnamon Roll Pull Apart Bread
Recipe from Top With Cinnamon
and Inspired by Joy the Baker's Cinnamon-Sugar Pull apart bread

2 3/4 cups all purpose flour
2 tbsp cornstarch
3/4 tsp salt
2 1/4 tsp dried active yeast
1/4 cup sugar
1/3 cup milk
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup water
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

For the filling
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
2 tbsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp cornstarch

1/4 cup butter, melted

For the Glaze
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
hot water

**I found the pictures of the process extremely helpful, but unfortunately I made this at night all three times, so phone pictures will have to do for now!

In the bowl of a stand mixer with the paddle attached, place the cornstarch, sugar, yeast, salt and 2 cups of flour.

Heat the milk and butter together in a small saucepan until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat and add the water. Let this cool for about a minute, then add the vanilla, and pour all the liquid into the bowl with the flour. Stir this all together until all the dry ingredients are moistened.

Start the mixer on a low speed as you add the eggs one at a time until they're just incorporated. Stop the mixer and add 1/2 cup more flour to the bowl. Mix again at low speed for about half a minute. Add 2 more tbsp of flour and mix in on medium speed until you get a smooth, slightly sticky dough (about 45 seconds).

On a work surface sprinkled with 2 tbsp of flour, knead the dough until it's not sticky (about 1 minute). Place the dough in a large, oiled bowl and cover it with cling film. Leave the dough to rise in a warm place until it's doubled in size which should take about an hour.


While the dough rises, make the filling by combining the dark brown sugar, cinnamon and cornstarch in a small bowl.

Once the dough is ready, lightly flour your work surface and gently tip the dough onto it, sprinkling a little more flour on top of the dough. Roll the dough out into roughly a 40 x 40 cm square, then brush about 2/3 of the butter over the entire surface of the dough.

         

Sprinkle 3/4 of the filling mixture evenly on top of the butter on the dough, then roll the dough tightly into a log.

Place the log horizontally on your work surface. Take a piece of thread and place it vertically on your work surface. With the thread still vertical, place one end of the log on top of the middle of the thread. Move the thread to the left or right, so it is still under the dough, and is 1 cm in from the end of the log. Take the ends of the thread and hold them above the log. Cross them over each other once and pull them away from each other until the thread has cut through the dough completely.
**This description confused me. You are basically tying a knot over the dough and pulling it tight until it cuts through. Then you tie another knot...and another. Repeat until you've cut all the dough into 1 cm thick slices.

 

On a piece of baking paper, use a rolling pin to flatten each slice to 3-4 mm thick *** I used the lazy method which I like to call steam rolling. Flattened them all at once! Brush the top of each flattened slice with a little of the remaining melted butter, ans sprinkle on about 3/4 tsp of filling mixture. Place them on top of each other so you have 4-5 stacks each containing about 5 slices.

Grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan and preheat your oven to 350 degrees F. Place your stacks of dough into the greased loaf pan, cover loosely with clingfilm, and leave to rise in a warm place for about 30 minutes (I preheat the oven for a few minutes, turn it off, and then put the bowl in there with the door cracked..pictures show my before and after).

Bake the bread for 25-35 minutes when it should be golden brown on top. Let it cool in the pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Meanwhile make the glaze by stirring the vanilla then the hot water, a little at a time into the powdered sugar in a small bowl until you get a slightly runny icing.

Run a butter knife around the edge of the pan and gently tip the loaf out onto the wire rack. Put the bread the right way round again and then brush with the glaze.

I'll keep this short and sweet: this is one of my all time favorite recipes. If there is one crockpot recipe you need in your repertoire, this is it. But truthfully, after making it once you won't even need the recipe because it's just so darn easy.

Three ingredients and almost zero work. The result is a juicy, flavorful shredded chicken that makes some killer tacos. I like to load up my tacos, so they look a bit messy in the pictures. They were like that in real life, too. Messy and delicious. I've been told before I have a knack for ordering the messiest foods on any menu. Why? Because the messiest foods are the best foods. It's a fact.

You can easily put together a great tortilla soup with the leftovers from the chicken. I've included the recipe at the bottom of this post. If you read through the comments you'll also see a number of great reader suggestions for ways to adapt the recipe. My favorite twist is to add a block of cream cheese about 15 minutes before the chicken is served. I didn't think this recipe could get any better until I made them and tried this out. Amazing. I've also seen that adding a can of cream of mushroom soup when you throw in the ingredients is delicious. I'll be trying that next time!

**As a side note, I am SO grateful to everyone who has made this recipe and/or commented on the post. I may not be able to respond to all of the comments, but I read every one, and I absolutely love them! I can't tell you how happy it makes me that people are enjoying the recipe so much. Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Crockpot Chicken Tacos
Recipe from Tasty Kitchen
Serves: ~12 people

1 1oz Envelope Taco Seasoning*
6 Boneless, Skinless Chicken Breasts, thawed
1 16oz jar Salsa*

Dump all ingredients into a crockpot and give it a little stir to blend the seasoning with the salsa. You do not need to add any water to the taco seasoning. Cook on high for 4 to 6 hours or on low for 6 to 8 hours. When done, the chicken should shred easily when stirred with a fork.

For tacos, serve the chicken with soft flour tortillas, guacamole, lettuce, shredded cheese and/or sour cream. This is very versatile and can be used for enchiladas, nachos, tostadas, quesadillas, etc. Any leftover chicken can then be used for tortilla soup (make it the next day or freeze the chicken to use at a later time).

When I don't want quite as much food I cut the recipe in half. You don't have to get too exact about the measurements. I use three or four chicken breasts--whatever comes in the smaller package at the grocery store--and use between half and 3/4 of the amount of salsa and taco seasoning called for in the full recipe. The only result of using too much salsa for the amount of chicken you use is that it will have more liquid when it's done. The flavor will be the same. Pour out a little of the liquid when the chicken is cooked and you're good to go!

*I use Old El Paso Reduced Sodium for the seasoning. For the salsa I switch between brands, but Newman's Own and Pace are my favorites. Trader Joe's Mango Salsa and other kinds with mango and peach flavors are delicious in this recipe as well.  If you want to avoid using processed ingredients you can make this recipe using homemade salsa and homemade taco seasoning and achieve the same results with the added bonus of skipping out on the preservatives and such in pre-packaged ingredients.

Here is the tortilla soup recipe from one of the readers. Thanks, Cissy!

2 cups of the shredded chicken
One 32oz box of chicken broth
One can corn(drain)
2 handfuls chopped cilantro
One squeezed lime
One can diced tomatoes (reg size)
One can diced tomatoes w/ chiles (if you can't find the can get another can of diced tomatoes and a can of diced chiles)
1/2 large yellow onion
One can black beans
2-3 table spoons of tomato paste
2 teaspoons of cumin
2 teaspoons of chile powder
2 teaspoons of garlic powder

Dump everything in a pot and simmer for ~30 minutes. Garnish with cheese and crispy tortilla strips!

I'd usually say I don't like shortbread. In fact, under most circumstances I really, truly do not like it. I like warm, gooey cookies. Shortbread is crumbly and dry. I feel the same way about biscotti. Why on earth would you want something that looked like a delicious breadstick, but in reality is hard as a rock? Maybe my taste just isn't refined enough to drink coffee and eat biscotti. Who knows. However, this is the most gawked recipe of all time on FoodGawker, and surely the 200,000+ people who have looked at the post weren't completely out of their minds. 

Though these are unmistakably shortbread, each bite seems to melt in your mouth (versus crumbling down your shirt when you take a bite). I guess maybe the shortbread I've ruled out for so long was not based off of recipes like this. I also love that these are cut into squares. I chose not to measure out the squares or cut them all that carefully, but next time I make these I think I will spend the extra 2 minutes doing that so that I can make them more uniform. A slight confession, I actually accidentally made these last night with only one stick of butter and I still liked the taste. I had one with my breakfast this morning. If cookies can still be good with an entire stick of butter missing, that says something. Enjoy!

Espresso Chocolate Chip Shortbread
from Use Real Butter

1 tbsp instant espresso powder
1 tbsp boiling water
8 oz. unsalted butter, room temperature
2/3 cup confectioners’ sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped OR 3/4 cup store-bought mini chocolate chips
confectioners’ sugar, for dusting (optional)

Dissolve espresso powder in boiling water. Set aside to cool to tepid. Beat butter and confectioners’ sugar together on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until the mixture is very smooth. Beat in vanilla and espresso, then reduce mixer speed to low and add flour, mixing only until it disappears into the dough. Don’t work the dough much once the flour is incorporated. Fold in the chopped chocolate or chips with a sturdy rubber spatula. Using the spatula, transfer dough to a gallon-size zip-loc bag. Put bag on a flat surface, leaving the top open, and roll the dough into a 9 x 10 1/2 inch rectangle that’s 1/4 inch thick. As you roll, turn the bag occasionally and lift the plastic from the dough so it doesn’t cause creases. When you get the right size and thickness, seal the bag, pressing out as much air as possible, and refrigerate the dough for at least 2 hours, or for up to 2 days. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Put the plastic bag on a cutting board and slit it open. Turn the firm dough out onto the board (discard the bag) and, using a ruler as a guide and a sharp knife, cut the dough into 1 1/2-inch squares. Transfer the squares to the baking sheets and carefully prick each one twice with a fork, gently pushing the tines through the cookies until they hit the sheet (okay, I didn’t poke the cookies and they’re fine). Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, rotating the sheets from top to bottom and front to back at the midway point (I didn’t do that either – I bake one sheet at a time). The shortbreads will be very pale–they shouldn’t take on much color. Transfer the cookies to a rack. If you’d like, dust the cookies with confectioners’ sugar while they are still hot. Cool the cookies to room temperature before serving. Makes about 3 dozen.

I had no doubt this recipe would be delicious. Just look at the ingredients: crescents, cream cheese, sugar and cinnamon. Crescent rolls are one of those mysteriously amazing and versatile foods. Pillsbury seems to have mastered canned dough that works for everything from breakfast food to dessert. No complaints here. The other wonderful thing about this recipe is that it is ridiculously easy. You might think you're a terrible baker, but I promise you can pull these off like a pro.

These remind me of a cream cheese pastry that you might find at a bakery (sorry for ruining your New Year's resolutions). I always try to get to the cream cheese pastries in a breakfast buffet before they're all gone and you're only left with the questionable fruit ones. With these you have a whole pan of delicious cream cheese pastry! Problem solving 101. We ate them for breakfast, snack and dessert. I don't really think they taste all that much like a dessert, but my mom seems to think otherwise (we had them with ice cream, and I didn't object). When I lived in France for a summer I remember going and getting pastries at 4am after the clubs closed. Who doesn't love a good croissant at 4am? Who doesn't love sopapilla cheesecake with ice cream for dessert? Sometimes you have to just go with things like that.

Enjoy!

Sopapilla Cheesecake
Recipe from My Yellow Umbrella

Ingredients:
-2 cans pillsbury butter crescent rolls (buy the seamless version if you can find them!)
-2 (8oz) packages cream cheese (softened)
-1 cup sugar
-1 teaspoon vanilla
-1/4 cup butter (melted)
-Cinnamon and sugar (I used about 1/4 cup sugar and 1 tbs cinnamon)

Instructions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If you are using a glass pan, adjust the temperature to 325 degrees. Unroll and spread one can of crescent rolls on bottom of ungreased 9x13 inch pan.  If you aren't using the seamless crescents, be sure to smooth out the seams before adding the filling. Combine softened cream cheese, sugar, and vanilla in a bowl. Spread mixture over crescent rolls. Unroll and spread remaining crescent rolls over mixture, being sure to press together any seams. Spread melted butter over the top and sprinkle with cinnamon and sugar. Bake for 20-30 minutes.

**see comments for suggestions on other delicious variations of the recipe!

It's time to get serious here. This coconut cake is the BEST coconut cake that there is.

You may say, "Well it's not a real coconut cake recipe because it uses boxed cake mix." To that I respond: any cake that takes 48+ hours to make from beginning to end is homemade to me!

You also may think, "No thanks, coconut isn't for me." That means you fall into the category of the rest of my family. I made a coconut cake that I posted on here one other time and declared it amazing or something of the sort. Now I feel I just might as well delete that post. This is the one and only coconut cake recipe you will ever need. I have made it twice and served it to over 30 different people without having one person who didn't end up gushing over it.

I wouldn't have found the recipe if it weren't for my granddad. He likes to find recipes he thinks would be good and mark them for me. I must admit that I usually don't get around to them, especially when they are various sorts of fruitcakes. Sorry, granddad. But this one I thought I would give a try. It took me about two months to get around to it, but I made it a month or so ago to give my grandparents a little pick-me-up during a rough week for them. He ate two slices in the hour I visited. I think it made his month. Just one of the countless reasons baking is wonderful.

One more anecdote before I leave you to this amazing cake. My great aunt is 80+ years old. I made this cake for Christmas dessert as well, and after cleaning her plate she told me how her mom used to make coconut cake every Christmas for their family. Then she went on to say that, as good as that cake always was, she can't remember ever having a coconut cake that was this good.

Enjoy!

Coconut Cake
Recipe from Our State magazine

Filling
2 (8-ounce) cartons sour cream
2 cups sugar
1 (6-ounce) package frozen coconut, thawed

Mix above ingredients. Cover, and store in refrigerator for 24 hours

Cake
Prepare 2 layers using Duncan Hines Yellow Cake mix. When cool, divide the layers, making 4 layers. Stack, spreading filling on top of each later, including the top layer.

Frosting
1 pint heavy cream or heavy whipping cream
2 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
1 (6-ounce) package frozen coconut, thawed

In a small bowl (preferably a glass bowl that has been slightly chilled), beat the cream until it begins to thicken. Add confectioner's sugar and beat until soft peaks form.

Frost sides and top with sweetened whipped cream. You may have extra, but there are a worse things than having extra whipped cream around the house. Sprinkle cake with coconut. Cover finished cake with foil, and refrigerate for 24 hours before serving. The filling will be liquidy, but that's ok. Once the cake has set in the fridge the filling will seep into the cake creating an incredibly moist yellow cake.

It had been awhile since I made cupcakes, so the other day I sifted through my bookmarks and found this delicious recipe. There's no time an Oreo cupcake won't do the trick. It's different than a plain old chocolate or vanilla cupcake, and pleases a crowd like no other. If I had my kit of Wilton tips I'm sure these could've also come out looking really classy with the oreo on top (at least that's what I'm telling myself). 

I actually made these twice in one week. Once to try for myself and then I made a tray for my family's annual holiday party. The icing is more time-consuming than a standard buttercream, but it's worth every second. It tastes to me like cookies and cream ice cream in icing form. As I was first making it I was contemplating all of the ways I could've made a better icing and spent a quarter of the time on it. Do you ever do that? I was muttering to myself how I wish I had just picked another recipe, but I hadn't even seen or tasted the final product. 


When it was finished I had to pry myself away from the bowl to avoid eating it by the spoonful (something I shockingly never do with icings). It's light and airy, not too sweet, and a great complement to the cupcake itself. To me, that's the perfect cupcake. You're not trying to get a bite that's mostly icing or mostly cupcake -- you want a great big bite of both. Enjoy!

Oreo Cupcakes 

Recipe from Confection Ink

For the cupcakes:

2 cups sugar

2 cups flour

3/4 cups cocoa

1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 package instant chocolate pudding

3 eggs

1cup sour cream

1/2 cup oil

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup boiling water (or strong brewed coffee – I would have used this but my coffee maker isn’t working!)

24 Oreo cookies, with one side twisted off and reserved for the frosting.

Preheat oven to 350. Line cupcake pans.

In a large bowl whisk together sugar, flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt and pudding mix. Add oil, eggs sour cream and vanilla. Beat on medium speed until well blended (about 2 minutes) Continue beating while slowly adding in the boiling water. Beat about 30 seconds after adding the water.

Put the Oreo with one side twisted off cream side up and fill cupcake liners about 1/2 way. Bake 15-20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out mostly clean. Let them cool completely on cooling rack.

* I had extra batter after 24 cup cakes. I made cup cake bites using mini Oreos. I also used some mini Oreos as a garnish.

For the icing:

1 cup milk

3/4 cup flour

1/2 cup butter -at room temperature

1/2 cup Crisco

3/4 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla

24 Oreo cookie tops -crushed

 Place milk in a small saucepan.  Sprinkle the flour over the milk, 1/4 cup at a time and whisk until smooth.  Place the saucepan over low heat and stir constantly until the mixture becomes thick pulls into a ball.  Remove from the heat and put ball into a bowl. Place plastic wrap directly on the surface of the mixture and tuck around it to make sure there is no exposed parts.  Refrigerate until cooled to room temperature or colder (at least 30 minutes). In a large bowl, cream the butter and Crisco.  Add the cooled flour milk mixture and beat until well blended.  Mix in the vanilla.  With the mixer on medium speed, gradually add the sugar and then continue to beat the icing a

fter adding the sugar for an additional 10-12 minutes until noticeably whiter and creamy. Add Oreo crumbs and mix until just blended.

Hold on to your pants, folks. This is a healthy...yes, healthy...cookie pie. I am skeptical of any delicious food that's not completely terrible for me. I have long stood by my theory that to possibly be deemed an amazing food, something has to forfeit its healthful qualifications. It's just a sad truth. Sure, some healthy foods are good, but we all know that at the end of the day cream, butter, sugar, or whatever fits with the dish would bring it up a notch.

My second bit of skepticism towards this recipe was its secret ingredient: beans. I don't want beans in my cookies. That's just that. Alas, I decided I would give it a try because a healthy cookie recipe could be life-changing for me. Results? Bean Cookies-1. Sarah-0. It was great. If I had the metabolism of a 10 year old boy I would still choose a regular cookie any day of the week, but that's not the case.

My roommates thought this was just about the most groundbreaking thing I'd ever made. When college girls can justify a dessert you better watch out. I chose not to mention that there is still a good portion of brown sugar and chocolate chips in here. "Everything in moderation." It's not like we're eating celery, here. It lasted all of 24 hours (which I realize is kind of disturbing considering the blog I found it on said she got 20 servings out of it). My roommate and I decided that you could slightly taste the texture of the beans, but not enough that it was a deterrent. I probably should have processed them up a bit more before throwing them in. Anywho, if you get around to making this let me know your thoughts!

Healthy Deep Dish Cookie Pie
Recipe from Chocolate Covered Katie

• 2 cans white beans or garbanzos (drained and rinsed) (500g total, once drained)
• 1 cup quick oats
• 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 3 T canola oil
• 2 tsp pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 and 1/2 cups brown sugar (Seems like a lot, but this makes a big pie. I think we got like 20 servings from it! You can try adding less, if you’re used to healthy desserts; I chose to use this much because the people to whom I served it are used to “normal” desserts. Also, white sugar will work if you don’t have brown.)
• 1 cup chocolate chips

Blend everything (except the chips) very well in a food processor. Mix in chips, and pour into an oiled pan (I used a 10-inch springform pan, but you can use a smaller pan if you want a really deep-dish pie.) Cook at 350F for around 35 minutes. Let stand at least 10 minutes before removing from the pan.

75 percent of the time I'm a very decisive person. I like to call the shots when no one else will, and I almost always have some sort of opinion (bearing in mind that those opinions are not correct all the time). The other 25 percent, I'm exactly the opposite. For example, I will ponder what to order from a restaurant for as long as humanly possible. No, I'm not one of those people who sits and waits to look at a menu until the waitress' third go around. I look at it...and then look at it more...and then pick about four things I'd be happy with. This even happens at restaurants with only a few options (or really at any restaurant that includes mushrooms, feta and avocados on the same menu). I usually just open my mouth and see what comes out to the waiter or waitress. I figure that's probably what I wanted the most anyways. 

This pie is for the indecisive people out there, but it doesn't require you to choose one. Hooray! The bottom layer is cheesecake. The middle layer is pumpkin pie. The top layer is pecan pie. I made this for Thanksgiving dinner #2 with my family. Like with my Thanksgiving dessert #1, I took a shortcut. I used store bought pie crust. My food processor was in Chapel Hill, so I like to say that's why I didn't go through the trouble of making the homemade crust. Truthfully, my family isn't picky when it comes to desserts, so I didn't see a need to spend the extra time (though I'm sure it would be well worth it).

All-in-all this pie came together relatively painlessly. The layers themselves are much simpler than if you made a real cheesecake, pumpkin pie or pecan pie. The best part is that people are beyond impressed with a three layer pie. 

Enjoy!

Cheesecake Pumpkin Pecan Pie

Recipe from Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives

Flaky Pie Crust
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, chilled
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2 inch chunks and frozen
1/4 cup lard or vegetable shortening, frozen
6 to 8 tablespoons ice-cold water

Cheesecake Layer
8 oz cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1 egg

Pumpkin Pie Layer
2 cups unsweetened fresh cooked or canned pumpkin (If using canned, strain in a fine mesh sieve for several hours to overnight, covered, in the fridge)
1 1/4 cups heavy cream (you can use evaporated milk, if you prefer)
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
2 eggs, lightly beaten

Pecan Pie Crunch Topping
1 1/4 cup mix of whole and coarsely chopped pecans
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons light or dark corn syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons melted butter

MAKE AND PARBAKE PIE SHELL:
1. Place the flour and salt in a food processor fitted with the metal chopping blade and pulse on and off until combined. Scatter the butter pieces and the shortening, in large chunks, over the flour mixture. Pulse the machine on and off until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add 6 tablespoons of the ice water and process until the mixture just starts to come together. If the dough seems dry, add the remaining 2 tablespoons water as necessary. Do not allow the dough to form a ball on the blade, or the resulting crust will be tough!  You want a raggedy mess of crumbly dough, with lumps of butter showing.

2. Turn the dough out onto a work surface, divide it in half, and shape each half into a disk – gently pressing each raggedy mess together, (DO NOT press into each disk or try to squeeze it together so the dough is uniform – it will come together in the refrigerator). Wrap the disks separately in plastic wrap and chill for at least 2 hours. You will only need one disk for this recipe, so you can freeze the other disk for later use.

3. Lightly flour a large work surface. Allow the dough to soften at room temperature just until it is pliable (about 10 minutes). Place 1 disk on the floured surface and sprinkle some flour over it. Roll the dough from the center out in every direction, flouring the work surface as necessary to prevent sticking. You want a round of dough that’s about 1/4 to 1/8 inch and about 3 inches greater in diameter than the pie pan/plate you are using.

4. Transfer the crust to a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan (if you don’t use a deep-dish pan, there will be some filling left over) by rolling it loosely around the rolling pin and unrolling it carefully over the pan. Press the dough first into the bottom of the pan and then against the sides. Patch any holes or cracks with dough scraps. Trim the edges of the dough with scissors, leaving about 3/4 inch of overhang. Fold overhang over and crimp as you please.  Place shell in the freezer and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

5. When oven temperature is at 400 F, remove the pie shell from the freezer and line the pie crust with a large sheet of lightly buttered aluminum foil, buttered side down, covering the edge of the crust so that it doesn’t get too brown. Fill the lined crust with pie weights, dried beans, or raw rice. Bake the pie crust for 15 minutes. Remove the weights and foil. Prick the bottom of the crust well with a fork and bake the crust for another 7 minutes, or until the edges are just beginning to turn golden, but the crust is not fully baked. Cool the pie crust on a wire rack while you make the filling. Reduce the oven temperature to 350 degrees F.

DIRECTIONS FOR PIE:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  In a medium bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Beat in 1/4 cup sugar, then add vanilla and 1 egg. Beat mixture until smooth.

2. Pour the cream cheese mixture into the bottom of the par baked pie shell, spread evenly, then freeze for about 15 -20 minutes.

3. In the mean time, in a large bowl, combine pumpkin puree, heavy cream, 2 lightly beaten eggs, brown sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice and salt. Mix thoroughly until uniform.

4. Remove the pie shell with cream cheese from the freezer and pour the pumpkin mixture on top of it. Cover edges of crust with aluminum foil to prevent excess browning.

5. Bake in 350 degree F oven for about 60 to 75 minutes (It really depends on your oven.  In one oven I used, it took 75 minutes, in another, 60 – so keep checking for it to be sturdy, but still a tad jiggly).

6. When pie is in the oven for about 40-45 minutes, combine all the ingredients for the pecan pie topping.  Set aside.

7. After pie has been in oven for 50 – 60 minutes, remove from the oven and remove silver foil around edges of crust. Sprinkle pecan pie topping evenly over top – the pumpkin pie layer will sink a bit because the pecan goo is heavy, do not worry!  Place back in the oven and bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean and the pecan pie topping is bubbly.  Let cool at room temperature, then refrigerate for several hours before serving.

8.  Drizzle with melted chocolate or chocolate ganache for extra decadence!

Have you ever made a recipe, tried it, and thought, "Wow, I think I will be using this recipe for the rest of my life." No? Then make these. I've had them bookmarked for over a year. I have absolutely no idea why I hadn't gotten around to making them sooner. This past weekend was the UNC-Duke football game and we had a tailgate in my front yard. I put out a tray of the sandwiches that was quickly devoured (even with pork tenderloin sandwiches, wings, dips, etc. all around). I would have taken more pictures, but it is incredibly uncomfortable to force people to wait to eat tailgate food because you have to take pictures of the food first.

My only initial issue with these little sammies was the mayo. I like to think I hate mayonnaise. I don't actually hate it, but in my mind I dislike it unless it is on a menu as aioli. Do I love me some aioli? Yes. Do I love me some mayonnaise? Absolutely not. I read something online that said garlic was the only difference between the two. Somehow that is enough for me. So, it pained me to spread mayonnaise on every one of these sliders. Not only that, a mixture of mayonnaise and miracle whip! Being an advertising junkie, I'm used to thinking of those as two completely separate entities after the "Pick a side" campaign.  Well, they work in perfect harmony here.

I made these on Saturday. I made them on Tuesday. I doubt I'll be able to wait much longer before making them again.  Enjoy!

Ham and Cheese Sliders

Recipe from The Girl Who Ate Everything

24 good white dinner rolls (I recommend King's Hawaiian, 24 ct.)

24 pieces good honey ham
24 small slices Swiss cheese (I used Havarti)
1/3 cup mayonnaise
1/3 cup miracle whip

Poppy seed sauce 
1 Tablespoon poppyseeds
1 1/2 Tablespoons yellow mustard
1/2 cup butter, melted
1 Tablespoon minced onion
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce

In a small bowl, mix together mayonnaise and miracle whip. Spread onto both sides of the center of each roll. Place a slice of ham and a slice of Swiss inside of each roll. Close rolls and place them into a large baking dish or heavy cookie sheet. Place very close together.

In a medium bowl, whisk together all of the poppy seed sauce ingredients. Pour evenly over all of the sandwiches. Let sit 10 minutes or until butter sets slightly. Cover with foil and bake at 350 degrees for 12-15 minutes or until cheese is melted. Uncover and cook for 2 additional minutes. Serve warm.

** sandwiches can be assembled a day ahead and kept in the fridge ready to bake.
(I did this the second time I made them and they turned out just as good.)

I'll go ahead and admit that I picked the easiest Thanksgiving day dessert possible. My family was coming at 1pm, and I headed to the grocery store to pick up ingredients at noon. Not bad, eh? Of course, there are a few roadblocks that one might run into when procrastinating this much. For instance, every grocery store within 10 minutes was out of heavy whipping cream. I bought Reddi-Whip, and no one noticed. My easy dessert, therefore, became even easier. 

I made a few changes to the recipe--mainly increasing the measurements for all of the unhealthy ingredients. Sorry. I've never been a huge pumpkin pie fan, so this is my solution. I make variations of it every year simply because I feel obligated to on Thanksgiving, but I've realized they are all just less healthy versions of the regular: pumpkin pie cheesecake, pumpkin pie parfaits, pecan cheesecake pumpkin pie, etc. 

This recipe says it makes four servings, but I served seven without a problem. It's incredibly rich, so even though you'll feel like the servings look a bit shallow, it'll be the right amount. Just layer on the whipped cream and gingersnaps to gain some extra height. If you're serving more than seven I'd suggest making extra. Hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Pumpkin Gingersnap Parfaits
Recipe adapted from The Gourmand Mom

Ingredients

• 1 15-ounce can Pure Pumpkin
• 8 ounces Cream Cheese, softened
• 1/4 cup Brown Sugar
• 1 tsp Cinnamon
• 1/8 tsp Ginger
• 1/8 tsp Nutmeg
• 1 cup Heavy Cream
• 2 Tbsp Sugar
• 20 Crushed Gingersnap Cookies + a few extra whole cookies for garnishing

Directions

Crush the gingersnap cookies. Beat together the pumpkin, cream cheese, brown sugar, and spices until evenly combined. In a separate bowl, beat together the heavy cream and sugar until thickened.

To assemble the parfaits, divide half of the pumpkin mixture into four (or in my case seven) cups. Sprinkle half of the gingersnap crumbs over the pumpkin. Spoon about half of the whipped cream over the gingersnaps in the four cups. Sprinkle with the remaining gingersnap crumbs. Spoon the remaining pumpkin over the gingersnap crumbs. Top with the remaining whipped cream. Garnish each parfait with a gingersnap cookie.

Serves 4-6