Coconut Spice Cheesecake Bars

Happy Thanksgiving!

Dave and I are so happy that his parents are visiting for the holiday! We wanted to try out a new dessert, so I made these tasty bars.  I've tweaked some of the amounts from the original recipe, which I updated below.

Ingredients
1 box spice cake mix (we used Duncan Hines)
1/2 cup butter (1 stick), softened
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract + 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon water, optional if necessary
3/4 cup shredded unsweetened coconut flakes
3/4 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup white chocolate chips
1 can (14-ounces) sweetened condensed milk
3/4 cup cream cheese, softened (I used whipped cream cheese. Add more if it tastes too sweet)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350F and prepare a 9-by-13 inch pan by lining it with aluminum foil and then placing a piece of parchment cut to the size of the bottom of the pan. Spray with cooking spray.  
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the cake mix, butter, egg, 1 teaspoon vanilla and mix. The batter will be extremely thick and will be difficult to combine, but keep stirring or use your fingers and knead it together, adding the water if necessary. 
3. Press the dough it into the prepared pan. It will be tacky, sticky, and a bit tricky to work with, but keep pressing, spreading, and finessing it. 
4. Sprinkle the coconut evenly over the dough, then sprinkle the chocolate chips and white chocolate chips evenly over the dough.
5. In a mixing bowl (the same one from the cake mix is fine), combine the sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese, 1 teaspoon vanilla and stir until well combined, and pour mixture evenly over dough, using a spatula to even it if necessary. 
6. Bake for 28 to 31 minutes, or until edges of bars begin to brown and pull away slightly from the sides of the pan, taking care not to overbake. Note that the middle will not seem very well set and will be jiggly upon removing from oven and that is okay, you want to keep these gooey. They will continue to set up more after they have cooled. 
7. Allow bars to cool well before slicing and serving. Store in the refrigerator for up to a week or freeze for up to three months.

Here's what they looked like before I poured on the cheesecake mixture, and another shot of them on our new buffet table :)

Recipe adapted from Averie Cooks

Pumpkin Frappuchino

Sorry, no pic for this one!  (at least not yet)

This is a really simple recipe for a delicious smoothie.  The only thing- you need to make the frozen pumpkin cubes ahead of time, so make sure to plan for that!

Ingredients
1 c cold brew coffee (We used instant coffee)
1 c milk (we used almond milk)
1/4 c pumpkin butter
2 Tbsp agave nectar
1 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Instructions

1. To prepare cold brew coffee, place 2 cup ground coffee – the bolder the better – into a bowl, top it with 4 cups of water and place it in the refrigerator overnight. Strain in the morning and reserve the leftover in the fridge. (since we used instant coffee, I dissolved it in a small bit of hot water, then added enough cold water to make 1 cup of coffee)
2.  Prepare milk ice cubes in advance by pouring your milk of choice into a bowl and mixing in pumpkin butter, agave nectar and pumpkin pie spice. Whisk to ensure even distribution.
3. Pour mixture into an ice cube tray, covering lightly with saran wrap, and freezing overnight. (we froze ours for a few hours, and that was good enough!)
4. Place 1 cup coffee and 8-10 pumpkin ice cubes in a blender and blend until smooth. Taste and add extra agave if you prefer a sweeter beverage (This was not needed). Additionally, add more pumpkin pie spice or pumpkin butter if you prefer a spicier flavor.

Recipe from Minimalist Baker

Jalapeno Popper Grilled Cheese

Umm...these are totally spicy.  As in, too hot for Dave and me to handle (and I have a fairly high tolerance for heat!)

I'll certainly be making these again, since they were delicious, but with a lot less jalapeno :)

Ingredients:
5 jalapeno peppers (this is too many peppers. See above)
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened (we accidentally used salted)
3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened (we used low fat)
1/3 cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese
4 slices bread

Directions:

1. Char jalapeno skins by placing them over a low open flame, and rotating them until blackened all around.  You can also place jalapenos under the broiler and toast until blackened on all sides.  (see photos below) 
2. Remove from the flame (or oven), and allow the peppers to steam.  I placed my hot and blackened peppers in a small pot with the lid on.  You can also loosely wrap the peppers in foil.    
3. After peppers have steamed for about 10 minutes, place on a clean work surface.  Use the sharp edge of a knife to scrape the skin off the peppers.  Once clean of skin, chop and set aside. *note: It’s best to touch the peppers as little as possible, or wear plastic gloves.
4. For each sandwich, butter one side of each slice of bread.  Flip the bread so the butter is facing down.  Spread half of the cream cheese on one of the bread slices.  Sprinkle diced jalapenos atop the cream cheese.  Place half of the shredded cheese atop the jalapenos and cream cheese.  Top with remaining bread slice, butter side up. Repeat for second sandwich.
5. Grill sandwiches in a non-stick saute pan over medium heat.  Flip and cook until golden brown on each side.  Slice in half and serve immediately.

....and one more shot of the sandwich (I know- I broke every food photography "rule" in this shot- I was too close to the food, the angle was off, and there were stray crumbs left on the plate. I was just too hungry to care at the time!)

Recipe from Joy the Baker

Healthier Cinnamon Buns (in Pancake form!)

It's a pancake that satisfies the craving for a cinnamon bun. (Well, if you are in the mood for those flavors. If you are in the mood for something heavy, sugary, and buttery, this likely won't do it for ya)

I was inspired by THIS recipe, but was shocked when I saw how much butter and sugar she put in those things.  As delicious as they look, I edited a bunch of things from the original recipe to come up with my own version.

(please note- when I made this, I was home alone, so these amounts are for 3 medium sized pancakes!  In the end, they were so decadent I could only finish one and a half. If you want to make more pancakes, double or triple the amounts)

Ingredients:
CINNAMON FILLING:
1 tbs butter, melted
1 tbs coconut sugar (use any sweetener you would like)
1/2 tbs ground cinnamon

PANCAKES:
I used Aunt Jemima complete pancake mix, but you can use any pancake recipe you'd like

TOPPING:
cream cheese (I used lowfat)

Directions:

1. Prepare the cinnamon filling: In a small bowl microwave the butter until melted.  Stir in the cinnamon and coconut sugar until well combined.  Pour the filling into a zip baggie and set it aside 
2. Prepare the pancake batter (again, I used a mix so this step was easy!)
3. Cook the pancakes: Heat a large, nonstick skillet over medium-heat and spray with nonstick spray. Add batter to the pan, and reduce the heat to medium low. 
4. Snip the corner of your baggie of cinnamon filling and squeeze the filling into the open corner. When your pancake begins to form bubbles, add the filling in a swirl (see photo below)
5. Cook the pancake until golden brown on the bottom. Flip, and cook until the other side is golden as well.  
6. Wipe out the pan with a paper towel, and repeat with the remaining pancake batter and cinnamon filling.
7. Serve with a thin coating of cream cheese

Note:  When I swirled my cinnamon filling, it was kind of drippy. The original recipe recommends waiting until it has cooled a bit so that it is thicker when you add it to the pancake.  Good idea!

Recipe adapted from Recipe Girl