Mini Apple Pies

Cooking really just....is amazin'! Infinite possibilities, so many ideas, flavors, textures, colors!!! Oh my gosh!!! Oh...sorry. But no really, when I get stressed...I cook, or clean....or workout....but mainly, I cook! (hence the serious cleaning...and then working out...) But let me tell you folks, this woman knows how to cook,  but not just for myself. Cooking for people gives me much more pleasure then cooking for myself (and my stomach likes it better to). So I cook in large amounts! But remember, you can always half the recipe or just say "screw it" and make the whole thing! I bring y'all 'Mini Apple Pies' cause after all.....you won't feel guilty about just eating one...but you might wanna feel guilty if you ate an entire apple pie o.O

Fixins:

• 8 Cups Apples, cubed
• 12 Tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 Cups sugar
• 4 HEAPING tsp Cinnamon (I'll explain 'heaping' in a bit)
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp Nutmeg (I also explain the difference later)
• 4 Tbsp chilled butter, cut into 24 equal portions (calm down, it's not as hard as you think..)
• 2 Boxes Pillsbury Pie Crust (four chilled, NOT frozen crusts)
• Wide Mouthed Mason Jar Lid

Preheat that glorious oven of yours to 400 F.

Here, my friends, is a play-by-play of a masterpiece (or 24 mini masterpiece)

Start by cutting up 8 cups of apples into small 1/2 inch bits.

Mix the apples with:

• 12 Tbsp flour
• 1 1/2 Cups Sugar
• 4 HEAPING tsp cinnamon
  (because cinnamon is the root of all things good)
• 1/4 - 1/2 tsp Nutmeg
  (depending on how much y'all favor nutmeg..you
  can also leave it out but that would be a crime
  against baking amazingly...)

Stir everything together gettin' all the rough spots, coatin' everything good!!

Unroll your first pie crust and cut several circles out. Continue until you have cut enough circles.
(you can be awesome and use a wide mouth mason jar lid...)

Grease each tin WELL with non-stick cooking spray...Line each cup of your muffin tin with a tiny pie crust.
I found that pinching the edge of the dough around the top edge of the tin and making a hammock of sorts worked really well.  You can then gently fill the crusts with your apple mixture and push the crusts down the rest of the way

Look at those bad boys...mhmm...You should be able to fill them slightly mounded.

Then take your equally divided butter.....

And put a dab on each pie.

Cover as desired with leftover dough. Brush with melted butter and bake at 400 F for 18-22 minutes.
(I start checking in on mine at 10 minutes and checked every 2 minutes until they are perfect)

ENJOY!!!!! You can also be insanely creative and make half of them cherry, lemon, blueberry, rhubarb, blackberry, raspberry,  or even CHOCOLATE (Oh Dear Lord!!!!) instead of just apple. (And by the way, for you folks that pay amazing attention to detail...yes, those are pineapple cut-out pieces of crust on the top of those)

Homemade Twix Bars

Soo...this is my first post! And it's going to be about food ^_^ Because what else is better then food? Other then things that won't be named for young minds to view ;) I bring to you--'Homemade Twix Bars'--yeah that's right, because they are truly better then a store-bought twix bar!! (Yeah, look at those fine things there!!! Mmmm Mmmmm Gooood!)

Fixins for the Shortbread Layer:

• 1 Cup (2 sticks) salted butter, room temperature
  (DON'T you be usin' margarine either, that stuff is nasty!!)
• 1 Cup Sugar
• 2 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract
• 2 Cups Flour

Fixins for the Caramel Layer:

• 2 Cups Kraft Caramel chunks, unwrapped
• 3 Tbsp Heavy Cream

Fixins for the Chocolate Layer:

• 3 Cups Milk (or Dark) Chocolate ships, melted

Directions--
-Preheat oven to 300 °F.

-FOR THE CRUST: Spray a 9" x 13" pan lightly with cooking spray, or line with parchment paper (I prefer parchment paper rather than spray, it turns out less greasy), and set aside.

-In a medium-sized bowl, beat together the butter, sugar and vanilla. Add the flour. At first the mixture may seem dry, but will come together as you continue to beat at medium speed.

- Take the dough (it will be somewhat stiff) and press it evenly into the pan. Lightly flouring your fingertips will help with any sticking.

- Prick the crust all over with a fork. (Just keep stabbing at it like there is no tomorrow! If you can find an area the size of a dime that doesn't have a hole....you haven't stabbed that thing enough!!) The holes will allow steam to escape and the crust will bake evenly with fewer bubbles.

- Bake the crust until it's lightly golden brown on top and the edges are deeper golden brown, about 35 to 45 minutes. Remove from the oven and immediately run a knife around the edges to loosen the crust. Set it aside to cool completely. (If y'all are slightly impatient like I am, cover this bad-boy with tinfoil and put it in your fridge for about 10 minutes and then set it on the counter until it's done)


-FOR THE CARAMEL LAYER: Melt the caramel and cream over low heat in a small saucepan. Pour the caramel over the cooled crust and set in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill and firm up.

- FOR THE CHOCOLATE LAYER: Melt the milk or dark chocolate slowly in a double boiler or over very low heat. If it seems very thick, add a tablespoon of shortening to thin it. Pour evenly over the chilled caramel layer and spread to cover all of the caramel. Return to the fridge until the chocolate is well set. Cut into 2" x 2" squares to serve. It's best to store these bars in the refrigerator.

 ***** These bars can also be cut and dipped in milk chocolate to resemble Twix ® bars. After the caramel layer has chilled firm, cut down the length of the pan, splitting the bars into two long, narrow bars. Then cut each long strip into "fingers". Dip the chilled bars into melted chocolate and place on parchment paper to set for several hours. (There are a bunch of these lil fellas, so you can take a big plate lined with tinfoil or parchment paper, and put them on as you get done dipping them in chocolate. When the plate gets full, pop 'em in the freezer until the chocolate is hard! Place in a container and continue until done!)*****