Mint Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes

So I had a pack of chopped up Andes mints in my freezer. Do you have things like that? Things you forget you have that someone sent you in a package? Or maybe you've been hoarding it. Christmas is the perfect time to use up your chocolate stash, right? I decided to use some of those Andes mint bits to top a last minute variation of my easy, cheater cheesecake in a bite size for a party. They turned great and my kids loved them. The mint and the green were perfect for Christmas! Maybe you have a party you can take these to?

Mint Chocolate Mini Cheesecakes

2 8oz packages cream cheese (450g), softened
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar

3/4-1 tsp mint extract

green food coloring (opt)1 recipe chocolate pie crust*

Chopped Andes Mints (or mini chocolate chips?)

Press the Oreo crust into a 9 inch pie plate or into 12 regular sized muffin cups or about 36 mini muffin cups (I love making these smaller sized!). In a large bowl, cream together cream cheese, sugar, and eggs. Add mint extract and the green food color to make the batter a nice minty green. Pour mixture over Oreo crust. Bake at 325F (160C) for 30 to 35 minutes until set (less time for muffin sized). Remove from oven to cool. Sprinkle on chopped candy bits or chocolate chips when still slightly warm--press in slightly. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

*I probably used about 20 Oreos and maybe only 2-3 Tbs of butter for my crust. 

Variation--If you are making regular sized muffin cups, why crush Oreos and melt butter at all?? Just put a whole Oreo in the bottom of each muffin liner. It makes a perfect little crust on the bottom without all the fuss! 

**FYI packs of Andes mints are found easily and cheaply on Taobao, China people. Just search "Andes." 

Old-Fashioned Apple Pie

Do you like to be fairly traditional at Thanksgiving and make pies? Or do you like changing it up a bit? I can go either way. I love all things dessert and am certainly not going to discriminate on Thanksgiving! I don't really care for pecan pie and my husband doesn't really like pumpkin pie though, so we're usually looking to chocolate chip pie and apple pie for our fix. This is a great, simple, classic apple pie that I've adapted out of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. We like it both with a pastry topping or a crumb topping. There are links at the bottom of the post for pie crust recipes.

Old-Fashioned Apple Pie

1 double crust pie pastry (or single with crumb topping)

6 cups peeled and sliced apples

1 Tbs lemon juice

3/4 cup sugar

2 Tbs flour

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/8 tsp nutmeg

1/8 tsp cloves

Crumb Topping:

1/3 cup flour

1/3 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp cinnamon

2-3 Tbs cold butter

If topping the pie with crumble, mix flour, brown sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl. Cut in the butter with pastry blender until it looks like course crumbs. Set aside. Alternatively, you can top the pie with a second pastry layer. 

To begin the pie, prepare a pie plate with a single, unbaked pastry crust. Prepare apples and place in a mixing bowl. Toss with lemon juice. Add sugar, flour, and spices and toss together. 

Place all the apples into the prepared pie crust. It will look really full, but put it all in. 

Sprinkle evenly with all the crumb topping if you want a crumb topped apple pie. 

If you are topping with a second pastry, roll out the dough to slightly larger than your pie. Gently cover the apples, without stretching the dough. Pinch together the edges and slit a few holes in the top in a pretty way--4-5 one inch slits in a circular pattern or something like that. 

Bake at 375F (195C) for about 50-55 minutes, until the edges and top are golden. If you use a small oven especially, you might want to cover the top lightly with foil for the first half of the cooking to prevent over browning at the end. Even in a larger oven that regulates heat better, this still may be necessary for a pastry topped pie.

Need a pie pastry recipe?
All Butter Pie Crust
Shortening Crust
Oil Crust

All Butter Pie Crust

My mom really drilled it into me through the years that a good pie crust is made with Crisco. So much so that I make sure I keep Crisco on hand mostly just for when I make pie crust. I love a good shortening crust and when you use low gluten pastry flour it can be even more amazing. When I have tried crusts with oil or butter in the past they have always been "tough" to me. Especially an oil crust. Now if this is all you have available, you just have to go with it and the oil crust recipe in the above pie crust post is a decent option. Recently I got a new cookbook called Homemade Pantry. It has a basic pie crust that is made with butter that I decided to try. It has actually been quite good to us in the ways I've used it. If you can't get or don't have Crisco, this is a very good all butter pie crust recipe that I have slightly adapted from this cookbook (mostly just simplifying the method--I'm all about cutting corners when I can!). Hope this helps in this holiday season!

All Butter Pie Crust
Makes 2 pie crusts

1 cup cold, unsalted butter, cubed
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
2 tsp vinegar
1/2 tsp salt
1/3 cup cold water

Begin by placing the water and vinegar in a freezer safe container. Mix together and put in the freezer for about 15 minutes. Meanwhile, place flour and salt in a mixing bowl and mix well. Cut in the cubed butter with a pastry blender or two knives until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs--like clumpy sand almost. You can also do this in a stand mixer with a paddle attachment or in a food processor and save yourself the arm workout! (Careful not to over do it in a food processor!)

If your mixture has warmed significantly, or if you live in a warm, humid place, you may want to put the whole bowl in the freezer for 5-10 minutes. Remove water/vinegar mixture from freezer and add it to the flour/butter mixture. Mix together just until it comes into a ball.

Split the ball as evenly as you can into two smaller balls. Shape into discs and flatten slightly. Wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour, or up to several days (you can also freeze these for much later use).

Remove dough discs from fridge about 10-15 minutes before you want to roll them out. Lightly dust your counter with flour and unwrap dough.

Roll out with even strokes from the center of the ball, pushing and pulling with your rolling pin in a uniform way. This will keep the dough as circular as possible. Roll out until the dough is about 1 inch bigger around than your pie plate--you can test it by placing it over top of the rolled out dough.

Carefully fold the dough in half and transfer it over to your pie plate.

Gently reopen and adjust the dough to fit--do not stretch it. It may not be picture perfect! Readjust, overlap, and press in as needed.

Fold under the edges of the dough around the edge of the pie plate. This will create a thicker edge up on the top, which is the best part, if you ask me! You can also trim them if its too much dough.

Using your fingers you can make a pinched edge on the lip of the pie. You can also press it with a fork if you like that look. If you plan to use the second dough disc on top, you would wait until your filling is put in and it is rolled out and placed on top to fix up your edges.

Use as needed for recipes calling for an unbaked pie shell. If you need a pre-baked crust, I typically bake crust at 425F (220C) for about 10-14 minutes--it should look dried and be slightly browning. You'll want to prick it a little with a fork first.

*If you use both discs on one double crust pie, you may have some extra dough! My mom used to always roll this out, sprinkle with cinnamon sugar, and bake on a cookie sheet. Then us girls had little cinnamon pie crust cracker type pieces for a treat! 

Fun Fall Recipes

I've loved the cooler weather here where I live. I have not loved the rain that has brought it, but I've had a few moments in the past couple weeks where I've enjoyed that fall is in the air. There are so many great dishes and desserts that can be made again now that its not crazy hot! Thought I'd share a quick rundown of some of the fall-ish recipes already here on Market2Meal. Try a few!

Soups
Baked Potato Soup
BBQ Chicken Pizza Soup
Black Bean Quinoa Veggie Soup
Broccoli Cheese Soup
Cabbage Soup
Cream of Tomato Soup
Coconut Curry Soup
Corn, Sausage, and Potato Chowder
Italian Chicken Chowder
Italian Sausage Soup
Leftover Beef Vegetable Soup
Potato Leek Soup
Tortilla Soup
Vegetarian Chili
White Chicken Chili

Breads and Breakfast
Apple Fritter Poppers
Apple Streusel Muffins
Beer Bread
Bread Bowls (for soup!)
Brown Sugar Cinnamon Coffee Cake
Caramel Apple Granola
Chai-spiced Granola 
Cheese and Herb Biscuits
Cinnamon Apple Swirled Breakfast Bread
Cornbread
Flavored Instant Oatmeal
Peasant Bread
Pumpkin Bread
Pumpkin Doughnuts
Pumpkin Spiced Doughnut Muffins
Pumpkin Spice Granola
Spiced Doughnut Muffins
Sweet Potato Yeast Rolls

Desserts and Sweet Treats
Almond and Oat Apple Crisp
Apple Pie Bars
Baby Food Spice Cake
Caramel Pumpkin Pie
Fresh Apple Cake
Candy Corn
Caramel Popcorn
Jack-o-Lantern Cookies
Kettle Corn
Pumpkin Creme Caramel
Salted Caramel Apple Crumb Bars
White Chocolate Gingerbread Blondies
Whole Grain Apple Pizza Pie
Whole Wheat Pumpkin Bars

Other Odds and Ends
Apple Butter
Chai
Pumpkin Butter
Pumpkin Spice Syrup (for Pumpkin Spice Lattes!)
Spiced Apple Cider

Spinach and Cheese Quiche

A fun guest post from my baby sister, Cat, who owns and runs The Doctor's House in Sarajevo. Why don't you hop over for a visit? I hear she's been on a cooking streak lately and the in-house guests benefit nicely! 

This quiche is my fiancé's favorite thing I cook. I'm including a simple crust recipe. Despite our mom trying to instill in us a Crisco-only pie crust mentality, I use this for all my savory pie crust needs--like quiche or chicken pot pie! Its so easy to just press it in the pan and not worry about rolling it out. Enjoy!

Spinach & Cheese Quiche

Easy Pie Crust:
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup ice water
1/2 tsp + salt

Mix ingredients, dump into pie plate, and press evenly around a 9" pie plate.

Filling:

6 medium eggs

1.5 cups whole milk - or cream if you like it rich!

Dash of salt *dash carefully if you are using a salty cheese!

Ingredients of your choice. *I like lightly sautéed spinach and crumbled feta cheese, as pictured, but really the sky is the limit here. Think bacon, sausage, leeks, peppers, zucchini, or any variety of cheese. Basically just look in the fridge and pull out what's leftover and looks tasty. 

Blend the eggs, milk, and salt for 3 minutes with a blender or whisk until fluffy. Pour half of the mixture into uncooked prepared pie crust. Layer in your ingredients of choice. Pour the remaining egg mixture on top to cover the fillings.

Bake at 375°F / 170°C for 35-45 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean and it looses it's middle jiggle when shaken.

Eat with a smile. Serves 6-8.

Note: This is a great one to make ahead. Simply refrigerate after baking and then warm up in the oven 20 mins or so before you are ready to serve it.

Salted Caramel Apple Crumb Bars

Oh my. Yum. That's about all there is to say about this dessert. Please believe me when I say you NEED to make these salted caramel apple bars. You'll be so glad you did. They would be a wonderful variation on Apple Pie for a Thanksgiving celebration later this month. Or they are good just because, too. There are only a few variations below to the original recipe.

Salted Caramel Apple Crumb Bars

You will need one recipe of this Caramel Sauce, following the variation for making it salted. If you don't have sea salt or don't like salted caramel, these bars are good with plain caramel sauce as well. 

Apple Filling:
5 cups peeled and diced apples (I try to find tart ones)
1 Tbs lemon juice
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves or allspice
1/4 tsp salt

Toss apples with lemon juice. Mix together sugar, flour, salt, and spices and add onto apples, tossing gently to coat. Set aside.

Pastry Crust: 
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup quick-cooking oats (or you can use all flour)
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup butter, cut into pieces
1 egg
1/2 tsp vanilla (opt)

Stir together flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, salt and cinnamon. Using a pastry blender, two knives, or your hands, cut the cold butter into the flour mixture until it is small and course. Mix in the egg and vanilla. In a greased 9x13 casserole dish, press down half the pastry mixture. Pour the apples and any juice they have made on top of the pastry dough and spread evenly. Drizzle about half of your salted caramel sauce over the apples (~1/2 cup). Crumble the other half of your dough over the top and lightly press down. Bake at 375F (195C) for about 45 minutes. It is done when the pastry top is golden brown.  Allow to cool before cutting into squares. Serve at room temperature or slightly warmed with more of the salted caramel sauce drizzled over the top. 

Pumpkin Creme Caramel

Who's ready for Thanksgiving?!? Me! Me! Me! I LOVE Thanksgiving. I'm actually feeling a little out of it this year because I'm not hosting it in my own home as we have for the past 7 years. Brian and I have really loved the traditions we've made for our family and friends for this holiday. We're thankful to be with family in the US this year but it will look different than what we've grown used to. And that's okay too. I tested this recipe recently after seeing it on another blog and thinking it was easily done with local ingredients. I had never made a creme caramel or flan or a custard type pie before. It was super easy and I absolutely loved it. Its a nice variation on a favorite pumpkin pie at a holiday when there are lots of other yummy pie options. Consider adding it to your Thanksgiving menu!

Pumpkin Creme Caramel
1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 can (14oz) sweetened condensed milk
1 can (12 oz) evaporated milk
1 cup pumpkin puree
4 oz (114g) cream cheese
5 eggs
1/2 + 1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp vanilla extract

Stir together 1 cup sugar and water in a small saucepan until slightly dissolved. Cook over a medium-high heat for about 8-10 minutes. Only shake the pan a little every once in awhile in the first minute or two. Allow to just boil until the sugar water becomes a light brown/amber color.

Remove from heat immediately and pour into a 9-inch round cake pan. Swirl the caramelized sugar around in the bottom of the pan and up onto the sides. It will be cooling as you do this and start to stick a bit to the pan. Set the cake pan in a large baking pan (one that will fit in your oven!). Place all remaining ingredients in a blender and puree together until smooth. Pour into the cake pan, over your caramelized and slightly hardened sugar.

Add water to the baking pan that your creme caramel is sitting in. The water should come about halfway up the outside of the cake pan. Bake the entire thing at 350F (180C) for 45-50 minutes. Test for doneness by inserting a knife in the center--it should come out clean. Remove pans from oven and cool slightly.

Carefully remove cake pan from water bath and allow to cool completely. Refrigerate for for several hours at least.

To remove from pan, run a knife around the edges to loosen. Place a plate overtop and flip to have the dessert come out on the plate. Serve cold and enjoy!

Notes: The original recipe called for 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice. I didn't have any. I didn't have all the spices to mix my own either. So I just put in the above spice mix and it tasted great. Just do what you want with that though! I buy my sweetened condensed milk and evaporated milk in the local wet market from a spice/soy/vinegar seller. I don't think there is any reason this wouldn't work with a homemade cream cheese or yogurt strained to that consistency, but I haven't actually tried it. Also on the baking time, the original recipe said 40-45 minutes but I baked mine nearly an hour before it was done. I'm not convinced my oven isn't off on temperature though!

Whole Grain Apple Pizza Pie

It finally feels like fall where we're at. Seriously, it was still in the 80's until like 2 days ago. So the first day of cooler weather meant I was quick to make one of the recipes I've been eyeing that included apples and cinnamon. I liked the idea of all the whole wheat flour and oats in this recipe. I hoped it would be just as good as a regular apple pie or crumble even though it had lots of healthier grains. It TOTALLY was. I wished I was at home with my grain grinder and some things like buckwheat and oat groats to play around with this recipe even more. The original recipe called for a whole wheat pastry flour in the crust. I couldn't find any at the store, so I used a combination of whole wheat flour and all purpose (low-gluten would be even better)--but I think the all purpose could likely be replaced with buckwheat or oat flour or maybe even be totally whole wheat. I've never used a whole wheat pastry flour so I'm not sure how it behaves in baking. Anyway, if you follow this as is, its GREAT! See a couple notes at the bottom on pan choice!

Whole Grain Apple Pizza Pie
Crust
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup + 2 Tbs all purpose flour

Apple Filling
5 medium apples, peeled and chopped (~3 cups)
1/4 cup sugar
3 Tbs whole wheat flour
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp nutmeg

Crumble Topping
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 cup oats
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon

Begin by mixing together the butter and sugar for the crust. Beat in vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Gradually add in flours. It will be dry and crumbly.

Press into a large round pizza pan, a 9x13, or 2 pie plates or round cake pans and build up the crust on the edges. Set aside. Peel and chop apples (I used a food processor). Mix together with sugar, whole wheat flour, cinnamon and nutmeg.

Spread over crust and set aside again. For the topping, stir together whole wheat flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter with a pastry blender, food processor, or 2 knives. Stir in cinnamon and oats. Grab by the handful and squeeze before crumbling over the top of the apple layer of the pizza pie.

Bake at 350F (180C) for about 30-35 minutes, until the edges are browned and crisp.

Drizzle with caramel sauce to serve. Vanilla ice cream is good to! Or maybe both!

Notes: The original recipe said to make this in a 12-inch pizza pan. I didn't have that. I used two 8-inch pie plates so we called it deep dish pizza pie! For me it resembled a pie more than a pizza but I think I'd love to have it thinner like a pizza. I think it could also be made in a 9x13 or maybe 2 9-inch cake pans that would allow for a little thinner.

You could also drizzle this with a simple powdered sugar glaze (1 cup powdered sugar, dash of vanilla and milk to make a drizzling consistency).

Don't judge my horrible photos off my phone! Ha! It was terrible lighting in my kitchen but I was in a hurry! 

China Baking/Shopping Tip: California Cookies

Recently I went to a baby shower. My friend Liz had made a really yummy cheesecake with spiced apples on top of it. I thought the crust was especially yummy for China and asked if she'd actually used real Graham Crackers for it. She laughed that she hadn't but had used a local substitute. Several of us asked which cracker! She and her husband had asked a local restaurant near their office what they used for their cheesecake crust and she had found the same cookie for hers.

They are by a brand called Khong Guan and are called California Cookies in English. They come in a large box. I found them at even a small HongQi grocery store near my house. I have used them in a graham crust for cheesecake and I used them today in an upcoming apple bar recipe. They've worked great! I wouldn't say they are that different than some other cookie substitutes I've used, but they are certainly near the top of the list.

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie

This stuff is GOOD. It is a recipe out of the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook. If you can get all these ingredients, you should make this soon! I make a chocolate pie crust using Oreos for this. It works great! Using just a regular sized pie plate, you can still get about 10 servings of this--its really rich. SO good!

Chocolate Peanut Butter Pie
1 chocolate pie crust
8oz cream cheese, softened
3/4 cup creamy peanut butter
1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbs milk
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup whipping cream
2 Tbs powdered sugar
Chocolate shavings, chocolate chips, or mini chocolate chips for garnish

In a small bowl, beat together whipping cream with 2 Tbs powdered sugar. Once soft peaks form, stop beating and set aside. In a separate bowl, beat together the cream cheese and peanut butter until smooth. Add in the powdered sugar and vanilla and beat until combined. Gently beat in or fold in the whipped cream. Pour into a prepared chocolate cookie pie crust. Garnish the top with chocolate shavings or chocolate chips. To shave chocolate, take a plain chocolate bar (milk or dark) and a vegetable peeler and shave off bits!

Caramel Pumpkin Pie

I hadn't planned to post another recipe this week. I imagine you've already baked most of your desserts and such for Thanksgiving--if you live in my corner of the globe at least! But I made this pie today (off this site) and it begs to be shared. Its SO good. Let me tell you how good--my husband doesn't like pumpkin pie. But I made him taste this. His words--"That's the best pumpkin pie I've ever tasted. I might actually eat a piece of that tomorrow." If you're planning to make pumpkin pie anyway, do what you can to make THIS pumpkin pie!

Caramel Pumpkin Pie
1 unbaked pie crust*
8 oz cream cheese, softened
2 cups pumpkin puree*
1 cup sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup caramel sauce
1/2 cup half and half (I used 1/4 cup milk and 1/4 cup whipping cream)
2 eggs

Roll pastry dough out and place in a 9-inch pie plate. Line with foil and fill with pie weights or dry beans. Bake at 350F (180C) for about 10 minutes. Remove weights and foil and bake about 5 minutes more until it looks a little dry.

Meanwhile, beat softened cream cheese with a hand mixer until creamy (it wouldn't hurt to zap it in the microwave for 30 seconds before this to make sure its really soft). Add the pumpkin, sugar, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg and cloves--mix really well. Add in caramel sauce and vanilla. Mix until smooth. In a smaller bowl, whisk together half and half and eggs. Slowly add to pumpkin mixture--beating as you pour. Mix well. Pour filling into the barely baked pie crust and bake for 45-55 minutes. When filling is more or less set and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean, you can take it out. If you don't want your crust to get too brown, you might shield it with foil the first half of the baking time. Cool completely.

Notes:
Crust--I used a 9-inch pyrex pie plate. It really could have been a deep dish. I had more filling than I could use. Luckily, I had made a double crust of pastry and quickly lined a small pan with some. I didn't pre-bake this crust. I just poured the filling into the unbaked crust and it worked okay. What I really needed were some mini-pie plates!

Pumpkin--If you've made your own pumpkin and its on the runnier side or you've had it frozen, you'll want to line a strainer with paper towels or cover a bowl with a cheese cloth and strain it until its thick. This will take 4-6 hours. So plan ahead. 

Strawberry Pie

Strawberries officially hit the fruit sellers in abundance this week! And the price finally came down a bit, too. It will be short-lived I know. Strawberries are never available as long as I'd like them to be here. So we are eating lots of strawberries right now. So many, in fact, that the fruit seller commented to my husband, "Your family must really like strawberries. You buy them nearly every day." Yes, yes we do. And I'll buy them nearly every day until they are gone. And I will use them to make this strawberry pie at least once a week until then, because it is only good with FRESH strawberries! This is my mom's recipe. She makes it best! I know this calls for strawberry jello, and I know that is an import item. Here where I live the import stores and import section of large grocery stores carry strawberry jello for about Y16. If you think about it, that's a whole lot less than cream cheese or chocolate that many desserts call for! So, make it if you can. And love it.

Strawberry Pie
2 cups sugar
2 cups water
4 Tbs cornstarch
1 small pkg strawberry jello (the 4 serving kind)
~1 kg strawberries
2 regular sized pre-baked pie crusts (not big deep dish ones)

Put sugar and cornstarch in a small saucepan. Stir together. Add water and cook over medium low heat, stirring regularly. Once sugar is dissolved, cook until thick and clear. When you think its cooked enough, it probably isn't, so cook it a little longer! Should be pretty thick. Remove from heat and stir in package of strawberry jello powder. While it cools, clean strawberries, remove caps, and slice.

You can also be baking your pie crusts if you haven't already. When crusts are ready and cool, layer in the sliced strawberries. Load them in! Lots is good!

Pour mostly cooled (it can be slightly warm, but not hot--believe me, I try to rush mine too often!) jello sauce over strawberries. Strawberries will stay freshest if they all get covered, but you'll barely have enough sauce for both pies, so make sure to share it evenly! Refrigerate at least 2 hours prior to serving. Slice, top with cool whip if desired, and serve!

Notes: You can make just one pie, too. Cut measurements in half. I just find it hard to use only half the pack of jello. So even if making half a recipe, you can still just put a whole pack of jello and it won't really change anything. In fact, if you have a deep dish pie plate, that will make a good amount for a single larger pie. Again, I can't stress enough that you make sure the sauce cools before pouring over berries. It doesn't have to be room temperature, but it can't be steaming or the pie won't set up--it will be runny. I have made far too many runny strawberry pies because my recipe doesn't remind me to cool the sauce and I rush it!

Apple Pie Bars

I got the idea for this recipe out of the September Family Fun magazine. A great magazine for those of you with kids! I've made these a couple times now and we've really enjoyed them. We've eaten them for snack, dessert and breakfast! They are a really family-friendly, hand-held version of apple pie.

Apple Pie Bars


Crust: 
One recipe for a double-crust pie pastry

Filling:
1 cup cornflakes
6 cups peeled and sliced apples (about 6 apples)
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Toppings:
1 1/2 Tbs sugar
1/4 tsp cinnamon, heaping
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 1/2 Tbs milk
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix together the ingredients for a double-crust pie pastry.

Set dough aside. Peel and thinly slice cored apples into bite-size pieces. (If you don't have one of these fun Apple Peeler Corer Slicer deals, you should! Makes snack time fun for kids and whipping up this recipe is super quick!)

Mix together sugar, cinnamon, and nutmeg for filling and set aside. Slightly crush cornflakes in a bag using a rolling pin or the bottom of a glass. Set aside. Take half of the pie crust dough and roll out into a rectangle slightly larger than a 9x13 cookie sheet or baking dish. Transfer into baking pan, allowing sides to stay as they are for now.

Sprinkle the cornflakes over top of the bottom pie crust layer. Add sugar mixture into prepared apples and mix.

Layer on top of the cornflakes, keeping as flat as possible.

Roll out 2nd half of pie pastry into another rectangle and place over top of apples. Use your fingers to press edges down together and slightly seal.

Mix together cinnamon and sugar for topping. Sprinkle over top of the pie pastry. Bake at 350F (180C) for 50-60 minutes. Should be browned, but not over crisp. You can loosely cover with foil if browning too quickly. Remove from oven and cool. Mix together powdered sugar, milk, and vanilla for topping. Drizzle over top and serve!

Notes: I totally was skeptical about the cornflakes, but I crushed a few in there anyway the first time I made it. Then forgot about them. You don't even realize they are in there when you eat these. Then the 2nd time I made this I accidentally forgot the cornflakes. That was when I realized their purpose! They kind of soak up juice as the apples cook down and keep the bottom crust from getting soggy! Thereby making these something you can eat with your hands rather than needing a fork! I won't forget them again, but if you do, they still taste great!!