Pumpkin Pie Cheesecake Bars

I really like math. So, I have an equation for you:

Pumpkin Pie + Cheesecake = ?

The correct answer is heaven. Pure heaven with a touch of graham cracker crust.

This is a great, easy recipe for the holidays. My favorite holiday flavor is pumpkin. Pumpkin anything, from pumpkin pie to pumpkin bread. It's great for Thanksgiving, but it's great for Christmas, too. When you need to whip up something quick, these cheesecake bars are perfect. The only downside is the refrigeration time. Otherwise they're great!

 Preheat the oven to 325. Add the graham cracker crumbs to the bowl. I had some larger pieces, but I broke them up more before adding the next ingredients. 

Mix in the sugar with the graham cracker crumbs, then melt the butter in the microwave. Pour it over the graham cracker mixture, and stir until it comes together. Press it in the bottom of a 9" square pan and bake it for 10 minutes. 

Whip up the cream cheese, sour cream (pssst! If you have it, use greek yogurt! It's a lot healthier!), vanilla, and sugar. After that's whipped, beat in an egg. 

Add 1/2 cup of the cream cheese mixture to canned pumpkin, brown sugar, and pumpkin pie spice. 

Spread the plain cream cheese mixture on top of the graham cracker crust, then the pumpkin mix. You can leave it plain, or you can swirl it, like I did. Bake for 20-25 minutes, then cool in the pan on a wire rack for 1 hour. Refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight.

Recipe: 

Crust: 

1 1/4 cup graham cracker crumbs

2 TBSP Sugar

4 TBSP butter

Filling: 

11 oz. cream cheese

1/3 c. sour cream

1 tsp. vanilla

1 egg

1/3 c. sugar

Pumpkin Filling:

1/2 c. cream cheese mixture

1/2 c. canned pumpkin

1 TBSP brown sugar

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

Follow the directions above. Enjoy! 

Crispy BBQ Roasted Chickpeas

The Finished Chickpeas

Roasted chickpeas are a favorite at my house, and we've tried many different flavors. However, after tasting these delicious, crispy BBQ-flavored bites, I don't think I will ever go back to Garlic Parmesan! With two main ingredients and several spices, these chickpeas are hard to stay away from! 

The only problem with these little guys is that the inside, soft part tends to dry out overnight, whereas the crispy shell gets soft. . 

You can adapt this simple recipe. Just use the same process but experiment with different spices. 

Now for the recipe:

Ingredients

For the recipe, you will need chickpeas, salt, black pepper, chili powder, cumin, onion powder, garlic powder, olive oil, and brown sugar. 

Step 1

After several experimentation batches, I found out that the best way to get the beans crispy was to let them dry for a few hours. Open up the can, thoroughly rinse the chickpeas, and lay them in a single layer to dry. Let them dry for 1.5-2 hours. This lets the moisture out of the peas.  

Step 2

 Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Mix up the spices and set them aside. 

Step 3

Place the chickpeas in a small bowl and pour the olive oil over them. You can reduce the oil amount by half, but they won't be as crispy. 

Lay the chickpeas out in a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake in the preheated oven for 10 minutes. Then shake the chickpeas or stir them on the sheet.  

Repeat twice. They should bake for a total of 30 minutes. When they're done, they will be golden brown and crispy. 

Sprinkle on the spices quickly. Stir the chickpeas to coat. Let cool slightly, but they're served best when warm!!

Okay, so now for the actual recipe amounts. 

Crispy BBQ Chickpeas

1 15 oz. can chickpeas, a.k.a garbanzo beans

1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil

2 tsp. packed light brown sugar

1/4 tsp of the following: garlic powder, onion powder, black pepper, salt, cumin, chili powder

Follow the steps above to create this yummilicious masterpiece!!

Welcome to Creative Confections By Audrey!!

Got a sweet tooth?

Good.

Welcome to my blog, Creative Confections by Audrey. If you're a person who likes to cook (or even if you're not) you can follow the recipes that I use for making some creative confections. And then make them. And taste them. For yourself. Because the ones that I make?

Yummy.

And mine. 

Yummy.

Delicious.

Did I mention that they are yummy?