Cherry Cheese Delight

Made this tonight for Allen's birthday treat...yummmm. Everyone loved it.

See after recipe for alterations I made.

12-15 Servings Prep: 20 min. Bake: 20 min. Chill: 2 hours.

Ingredients
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
FILLING:
2 packages (8 ounces each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 carton (12 ounces) frozen whipped topping, thawed
2 cans (21 ounces each) cherry pie filling

Directions
In a bowl, combine flour, pecans and brown sugar. With a fork, stir
in butter until crumbly. Lightly pat into an ungreased 13-in. x
9-in. baking dish. Bake at 350° for 18-20 minutes or until
golden brown. Cool completely.

For filling, in a bowl, beat the cream cheese, confectioners' sugar
and vanilla until smooth. Fold in whipped topping. Carefully spread
over crust. Top with pie filling. Cover and refrigerate for at least
2 hours. Yield: 12-15 servings.

Nutrition Facts: 1 serving (1 slice) equals 344 calories, 21 g fat (11 g saturated fat), 33 mg cholesterol, 117 mg sodium, 35 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 3 g protein.

MY ALTERATIONS:

I made the dessert using:

- only 1/2 cup chopped pecans in crust

- 2-80z packages of reduced fat cream cheese

- only 1-21oz can cherry pie filling (didn't pick up two) - it was plenty. Also threw a few frozen blueberries on top to make up for lack of pie filling. Was good but not necessary.

Triple-Layer Mud Pie recipe at Kraftfoods.com

We are trying this recipe out so I will let you know it goes. But it looks SO GOOD!!!!

Triple-Layer Mud Pie recipe at Kraftfoods.com

Chicken and Corn Chili - slow cooker

Made this for first time...it was sooo good; especially on a cold night.

I didn't have all ingredients on hand so I made changes. I'll include original recipe first, then note the changes I made at the end.


Ingredients:

4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves

1 16 oz jar salsa

2 tsp garlic powder

1 tsp ground cumin

1 tsp chili powder

salt & black pepper to taste

1-11oz can Mexican-style corn

1-15 oz can pinto beans


Directions:

1 - Place chicken and salsa in slow cooker. Add spices. Cook 6-8 hours on low setting.

2 - About 3-4 hours before serving, shred chicken with 2 forks and add corn and pinto beans.

3 - Simmer until ready to serve.

4 - Top with shredded cheese, sour cream, cilantro, chives, whatever you like


Notes:

- I put chicken in while still frozen

- used 3 large breasts, was more than enough meat

- cooked from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. - chicken got a little dry.

- substituted 12oz enchilada sauce + 1/2 cup salsa for salsa (was amost out of salsa); added some chopped fresh tomatoes.

- added fresh jalapeno peppers

- added pinto and black beans

- shredded chicken and added corn and beans about an hour before serving.


This turned out so good. All 6 of my kids ate it, even the picky ones.

The chili turns out really thick. I gave my children the option of eating it as chili or rolling it in a flour tortilla. Very versatile recipe - sub veg or beans of choice. Add spices or fresh herbs.

Personally, I liked rolling it in a tortilla and topping with a bit of cheese and fresh cilantro. Yum.