Whipped Pumpkin Cheesecake Cups

My family is a big fan of anything containing Cool Whip, cream cheese, and a crumby crust. So here it is, a recipe that I actually have no idea where I found it. BUT, it contains all these things, plus pumpkin. YUM?

I also love Biscoff Cookies. You know...the little cookies you usually get on an airplane with your shot of pop? The ones you think are going to taste like cardboard, but end up being surprisingly delicious? Those are the ones...and also the base of these dessert cups. YUM again.

I thought these trifles would make a great alternative choice to the usual Thanksgiving desserts (pie) and my usual go-to desserts for any occasion (cupcakes). 

This recipe yields about 6-7 cups...so I doubled it and made 12. Below is the recipe for the single batch.

Ingredients:

• 12 Biscoff Cookies, crushed into crumbs
• 1 tbsp. unsalted butter, melted
• 8 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 c. pure pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1/2 c. sugar
• 2 tsp. pumpkin pie spice
• 1 large tub (12 oz.) Cool Whip, thawed (divided)
• 6-7 plastic cocktail cups

Directions:

1. In bowl, combine Biscoff Cookie crumbs and melted butter. Divide crumbs into cocktail cups. Use extra cocktail cup to press crumbs evenly into the bottom of each cup.
2. In separate bowl, beat cream cheese until smooth. Add pumpkin, vanilla, sugar, and pumpkin pie spice. Beat until well combined and creamy.
3. Gently fold in half of the tub of Cool Whip, 
4. Divide pumpkin mixture into cocktail cups.
5. Pipe or spoon remaining Cool Whip on top of the pumpkin layer. 
6. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

[Easy as the Can] Cranberry Sauce

Okay, I love cranberry sauce from the can just as much as the next person...but this recipe is just as delicious and almost as easy as the jello-y can in all its deliciousness (I'm serious...I actually DO love the canned kind.) Three ingredients. Easy.

My dad still insists on having the canned stuff...next to the real stuff.  And he eats both. Whatta guy. 

Ingredients:

• 12 oz. bag of cranberries
• 1/4 c. + 2 tbsp. orange juice
• 1 c. + 2 tbsp. sugar

Directions

1. Microwave cranberries and juice (covered) for 6-8 minutes, stopping to stir about once or twice. 
2. Add sugar and mix. 
3. Recover and let stand. 
4. Cool and then refrigerate. 

Secret Stuffing

So, I don't have a picture up yet for this recipe, since I'm only done with part one, but believe you me... I've made this stuffing before and it is the bees knees. I kid you not, I loved stuffing before the recipe came along, but this is stuffing on a whole new level. YES, you probably think I am over-exaggerating, but I'm telling you...this will be the best stuffing you've ever tasted.

Curtis's mom's Aunt Carolyn makes this for the holidays and Curtis was always raaaving about this stuff. I think the first time I had a holiday meal with the Ryan family, Curtis immediately took me to the stuffing pan, that's how good it is. Consider yourself luck that I am sharing this recipe with you. 

So you need to start this a day in advance, and I'm hoping someone reads this in time to make it for their Thanksgiving meal tomorrow. You can mess with your fancy-pants stuffing recipes all you want, but I'm gonna enjoy the good stuff.

I can't even tell you how excited I am to eat this in 24 hours.

Ingredients:

• 12 chicken legs
• 1 medium onion (chopped)
• 2-3 stalks celery (chopped)
• 3 bags Brownberry Onion/Sage Dry Bread Mix
• 1 tsp. poultry seasoning
• 3 cans cream of chicken (I buy reduced fat/sodium)
• Salt & pepper to taste

Directions:

1. DAY BEFORE: boil chicken legs in pot of water to cover. Add onion and celery and simmer until chicken is tender and falls off the bone (about 3 hours).
2. Remove chicken meat from legs and return to stock (should be about 8 c. total - if you are short some liquid, add some chicken broth to the mix). Refrigerate stock overnight.
3. DAY OF: reheat stock, add poultry seasoning and add salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add cream of chicken and stir until mixed in. Pour over bread mix in extra large foil pan.
5. Cover with tin foil and bake at 350 degrees for 1 hour.

Coconut Chicken Curry & Naan

When I was in Paris a few summers ago, one of my favorite things I had there was Indian food. Weird right? Well, I really had never, ever had the stuff before and I found it suuuper tasty, especially the naan. So when I was thinking about something to occupy my time in the kitchen this weekend, I thought about a chicken dish...and realized that no one real makes Indian food all that often, so why not give it a try.

Well both of these recipes had a ton of great reviews on Allrecipes.com, so with a few minor modifications based on positive reviews, I share with you the recipes I used to make this pretty delicious dish. Serve over any kind of rice and enjoy!

Now, I was pretty pleased with this meal, but it wasn't my absolute favorite. I could have done with a bit more spice and little less sweetness. I think coconut chicken curry is a pretty sweet dish in general though, so maybe next time I will try a different Indian recipe to get the flavor I want. Maybe what I am looking for is more along the lines of chicken tandoori? I'm not sure, but either way I'd definitely try more Indian recipes now that I have tried this out. While this wasn't my favorite meal I've made, I still enjoyed it...and Curtis said he really liked it a lot.

The nice thing about this recipe was that it was fairly easy and involved minimal ingredients for such a flavorful meal. With the time the curry needs to simmer and the naan needs to rise, it does involve a bit of time, but the good news is, if you time everything out you can move smoothly between each and have everything warm and ready all at once. I prepared the dough for the naan first and while I was waiting for it to rise the first time around, I prepared what I needed for the chicken dish. After preparing the naan for it's second rise, I started to cook the chicken. Once the chicken dish was simmering, I had time to get the rice boiling and cook the naan, keeping the naan warm in the oven at 200 degrees. 

Coconut Chicken Curry

Ingredients: 

• 2 lbs. boneless, skinless, chicken breasts
• salt and pepper to taste
• 2 tbsp. vegetable oil
• 2 tbsp. curry powder
• 1/2 onion, sliced thinly
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 (14 oz.) can stewed, diced tomatoes
• 1 (8 oz.) can tomato sauce
• 1 (14 oz.) can coconut milk
• 3 tbsp. sugar

Directions:

1. Season chicken pieces with salt and pepper, as desired.
2. On medium-high heat, heat oil and curry powder in large skillet for 5 minutes. 
3. Stir in onions and garlic, continue to cook for 2 more minutes.
4. Add chicken, tossing to evenly coat with curry oil. Reduce heat to  medium, and continue to cook for about 8 more minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. 
5. Pour tomatoes, tomato sauce, coconut milk, and sugar into the pan. Stir thoroughly and cover. Allow to simmer for approximately 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Naan

Ingredients:

• 2-1/4 tsp. active dry yeast (or one .25 oz. packet)
• 1 c. warm water
• 1 tbsp. + 2 tbsp. sugar
• 3 tbsp. milk
• 1 egg, beaten
• 2 tsp. salt
• 4 c. flour
• 2 tsp. minced garlic
• 1/4 c. butter, melted

Directions:

1. In stand mixer, combine yeast, water, and 1 tablespoon of sugar. Let sit for 10 minutes or until mixture is frothy.
2. Stir in 2 tablespoons sugar, milk, egg, and salt. Gradually add flour until dough comes together (this may not take all 4 cups).
3. Knead on lightly floured surface for 6 to 8 minutes or until dough is smooth. 
4. Place dough in oiled bowl, cover with damp cloth, and allow to rise for about 1 hour, or until dough has doubled in size.
5. Punch dough down and pinch golf ball sized handfuls of dough and place on a tray. Cover with damp towel and allow to rise for about 30 minutes.
6. Melt butter and mix with minced garlic.
7. Roll dough into thin circles, brush tops with garlic butter.
8. On medium to medium-high heat, heat iron skillet. Place naan, buttered side down on hot surface for approximately 30 to 60 seconds. Flip and allow to cook for an additional 30 to 60 seconds.

* Note: The original directions ask for the naan to be cooked on a grill at medium-high heat for about 2 minutes a side; however, the grill we have is pretty unpredictable (and it was cold), so I opted for the iron skillet option. My guess is that they would taste even better on the grill, but they still tasted great this way as well.