Apple Cream Cheese Danishes

After a recent outing to an apple orchard, I found myself with an abundance of apples.  I plan to make a pie, but in the meantime I've been enjoying a modified version of these apple dumplings found on Southern Bite.  I was suspicious of the Sprite used in the recipe, but after searching similar recipes found some used Mt. Dew, others used Sprite, etc., so clearly the carbonation was doing... something... to help with these.  I shrugged and ran with it, and have no regrets.  What I DID change was to sneak some cream cheese and cinnamon sugar inside these ooey gooey dumplings, which I am re-branding as danishes.

Apple Cream Cheese Danishes
Makes 8

Ingredients

• 1 apple, peeled, cored, and sliced into 8 slices
• 1 tube crescent rolls (8 count)
• 2 ounces cream cheese
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon sugar (mixture of ~1 1/2 tablespoons sugar and 1/2 tablespoon cinnamon)
• 1 stick butter, melted
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 1/2 tablespoons flour
• 6 oz Sprite

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a square baking dish with nonstick spray and set aside.
2. Unroll the crescent rolls and separate into triangles.  Spread a bit of cream cheese along the bottom of each triangle.  Place an apple slice on top.  Sprinkle with a little cinnamon sugar.  Roll up in crescent roll dough and pinch seams closed.
3. Place danishes in prepared baking dish, evenly spaced.
4. Mix melted butter, sugar, cinnamon, and flour in a medium bowl until well combined.  Pour over danishes.
5. Pour Sprite down center and sides of baking dish (not over the danishes themselves).
6. Bake at 350 for 35-40 minutes or until tops are golden and danishes are baked all the way through.

I wish you could smell these!

Just your basic white girl, wearing a scarf, loving fall, and baking all things apple and pumpkin.

Rustic Pumpkin Apple Bites

These little guys have been lurking on my Pinterest desserts page for a LONG time, and I finally made them last weekend.  Perfect for fall, with a nice oatmeal crust, these are not too sweet and not too heavy.  They make a nice little treat, and would be perfect for a Halloween party or even packed along for a picnic.  I did adapt my recipe a bit from Zestful Lou's, but appreciate the idea she planted!

Pumpkin Apple Bites

Makes 12 bites


Ingredients

For the crust

• 1 cup oats
• 1/4 chopped walnuts
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 2 1/2 tablespoons butter, melted
• 1 tablespoon milk

For the filling

• 3 tablespoons pureed pumpkin
• 2 tablespoons apple butter (I used caramel apple butter- YUM)
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 egg white
• 1/2 tablespoon corn starch
• 1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a mini muffin tin with nonstick spray.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together filling ingredients.
3. Place dry crust ingredients in a food processor and pulse until combined.  Then, with food processor running, slowly pour in melted butter and then milk.  Process until combined.
4. Scoop a tablespoon of crust dough and press into mini muffin tin.  Press down and up sides of the tin.  Repeat in each spot on the muffin tin.  You will have a bit of crust mixture left over- reserve.
5. Scoop 1-2 teaspoons of filling into each crust.  Sprinkle a little of the remaining crust mixture over each bite.
6. Bake 12-15 minutes or until filling is set.  The filling will be puffed up when you take the bites out of the oven, but will settle as everything cools.
7. Place muffin tin on a drying rack, and allow bites to cool completely before gently removing from tin.

Crust ingredients.  They smell amazing together!

All mixed with the butter and milk.

So rustic and delicious.

Crochet Pyramid Buddy

I have a stack of projects to post, which can only mean that it is FALL!  Time for coziness in the house, making comfort food, and crafting goodies.  First up, we have this little creation that my son requested.  He tasked me with making crochet aliens which was an out there ask, but we designed these little creatures together and had fun doing it.  The last of the set was to be a pyramid.  I couldn't find a good pyramid pattern on Pinterest, but followed this good one for a triangle.  I just took that to make 4 triangles, and a square base (20 rows of 20 SC- same size as the pyramid base).

After attaching the triangles to each other and putting on the eyes, this guy needed some character.  I added hair which went a long way to upping his cute factor, and gave him a fun smile that went around one of his triangle edges.  I adding stuffing and was sewing on the base, when my son said I should leave the tails hanging instead of weaving them in.  He liked the little jellyfish legs.

Lesson at the heart of this: you can make all kinds of crochet nonsense with some basic patterns and letting yourself go with the flow.  It doesn't have to look perfect.  Just enjoy it. :)