Thai Crab Rangoon Bites

I made these delicious Thai Crab Rangoon Bites for a party that we attended last weekend. When I saw the recipe in the newest edition of Pampered Chef's "Season's Best", I knew immediately that I would try it. It's a pretty appetizer that is easy to prepare (although it presents like it took more effort to make than it actually does) and it combines the Thai flavors that I love so much with yummy crabmeat. It was definitely a hit at the party! I took home an empty plate and have been answering email requests for the recipe.

I prepared the filling a day in advance and toted it in a cooler to my in-laws house in Indiana where we were spending the weekend. I definitely recommend this make-ahead approach for speedy assembly on the day of a party.

I began by grating a lime with my awesome Microplane Grater.

Then I halved, seeded, and chopped a serrano pepper. These peppers may be tiny, but they can really "pack a punch", hence the removal of the seeds.

I started the filling by combining ingredients in a bowl: the chopped pepper, some chopped green onion, the grated lime, soy sauce, and Thai Red Curry Paste or Thai Red Curry Rub.

Then I added in a can of drained crab meat and a block of softened cream cheese (I used the reduced fat version). Stir until everything is completely blended. If making this ahead, cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

Place 30 frozen prepared mini phyllo shells on a baking sheet and then divide the filling evenly between the tiny, fluted cups.

Bake for 8-10 minutes at 400 degrees and then top with cilantro. You can drizzle with sweet and sour sauce if desired OR serve the sauce on the side for dipping.

So easy and so good!

Oh, and if you're counting calories, 1 Crab Rangoon Bite is just 40 calories! Gotta love that....

Thai Crab Rangoon Bites adapted from The Pampered Chef Spring/Summer 2011 Season's Best recipe collection

Ingredients:
2 green onions with tops, thinly sliced
1 serrano pepper
1 lime, zested
8 oz (250 g) reduced-fat cream cheese (Neufchâtel), softened
1 tbsp (15 mL) Thai Red Curry Rub
1 tsp (5 mL) reduced-sodium soy sauce
1 can (6 oz/175 g) crabmeat (with leg meat), drained and patted dry
2 pkg (1.9 oz/54 g each) frozen prepared mini phyllo shells (30 shells total)
fresh cilantro and Sweet & Sour Sauce (optional), for garnish and drizzle/dipping.

Directions:
Preheat oven to 400°F (200°C). Thinly slice onions using Utility Knife. Finely chop serrano using Food Chopper. Zest lime using Microplane® Grater(Set aside lime for another use.) Combine cream cheese, onions, serrano, zest, curry rub and soy sauce in Classic Batter Bowl; mix well using Small Mix ‘N Scraper®. Gently fold in crabmeat.
Arrange phyllo cups on Large Bar Pan. Divide filling evenly into shells using Adjustable Measuring Spoon (about 2 tsp/10 mL per shell). Bake 8–10 minutes or until filling is hot. Remove pan from oven to a Cooling Rack. Sprinkle cups with finely chopped cilantro and drizzle with sauce, if desired
Yield: 15 servings

Nutrients per serving: (2 appetizers): Calories 80, Total Fat 5 g, Saturated Fat 2 g, Cholesterol 20 mg, Carbohydrate 6 g, Protein 3 g, Sodium 180 mg, Fiber 0 g

Cook’s Tips: Use the smaller Adjustable Measuring Spoon to help portion the crab filling into the phyllo shells.

© 2011 The Pampered Chef used under license.

Miniature Tiramisu Cupcakes

Before I begin writing about these pretty lil' cupcakes....

In this post, you will notice that I provide links to some of the products I used to make this recipe. If you click on the link, it will take you to a detailed view of that item on my personal Pampered Chef website. In February, I became a Pampered Chef consultant. It just made sense. I've happily used their gadgets for years, I love to cook, and I already teach cooking classes. Selling their awesome products just seemed like a natural way to supplement my family's income. The day that my consultant kit arrived, packed with all kinds of wonderful kitchen toys, was a little like Christmas morning for me. I cut open the huge box right inside my front door (mostly because it was too heavy for me to carry into another room and I didn't want to wait until my husband came home) and carefully unwrapped each and every item. But like a kid on Christmas, I didn't want to just look at my new toys, I wanted to use them!

Which now brings me to the cupcakes....

I chose this recipe from the Fall/Winter Pampered Chef catalogue to try out a few of the products. These cute little chocolate-y, coffee flavored cupcakes topped with sweetened marscapone and whipped topping grabbed my attention right away. As much as I wanted to try them right away, I also wanted an audience to test them out. Luckily, I was having a party a couple of days after the kit came in. I was serving appetizers: Crab Wontons, Fondue, Apple Sausage bites, BLT Pinwheels, and homemade snack mix. What I needed was a dessert to round out all of the savory foods. This dessert was perfect: bite-sized, decadent, looked impressive, but was pretty easy to prepare.

Here's how I made them:

The batter is so simple! You start with a Devil's Food cake mix. Now here's the thing to pay attention to: It's a 9 oz. package or a SMALL package of cake mix. As in NOT the regular size. If you can't find a small Devil's Food mix, then just use 1-2/3 cups of cake mix from a standard size box. You'll ignore the box directions and stir in sour cream, eggs, and instant coffee dissolved in a little water. This makes for a thick batter (like brownies) and a wonderful coffee-flavored, fudgey cake.

I used my new Small Mix n' Scraper for combining the mixture. It's a stirring spoon and scraper in one. Perfect for projects like this!

Then, I divided the batter into my Deluxe Mini Muffin Pan. Bake for 8-10 minutes at 350 degrees. Move to a Stackable Cooling Rack.

While the mini-cakes bake, dig out your coffee flavored liqueur, such as Kahlua.

Using a Chef's Silicone Basting Brush, I brushed the Kahlua over the tops of each mini cake. After brushing, I let the liqueur soak in, then I went back through and brushed em' all again. I kept brushing until I used up the recommended amount of Kahlua. Mmmm...dessert AND a shot!

The recipe says to remove the cakes from the pan to the cooling rack before brushing with the liqueur. However, I would leave them in the pan for this step. It will reduce the mess made from the liqueur dripping onto your countertop.

While the mini-cakes finish cooling, mix marscapone cheese or cream cheese together with powdered sugar and vanilla. I put the mixture in a plastic baggie, then cut off the corner and piped it onto the cakes.

Top em' off with some whipped topping piped over the cheese layer and a dusting of cocoa powder.

There you have it, lovely lil' bite-sized desserts in less than an hour!

Mini Chocolate Tiramisu Cakes from The Pampered Chef

Ingredients:

Cakes
1 small pkg (9 oz/250 g) devil's food cake mix
1/4 cup (50 mL) sour cream
1 egg
1 tbsp (15 mL) instant coffee granules
1 tbsp (15 mL) water
1/3 cup (75 mL) coffee liqueur (see Cook's Tip)

Filling & Topping

1 1/2 cups (375 mL) thawed frozen whipped topping
8 oz (250 g) mascarpone or cream cheese, room temperature
1/4 cup (50 mL) powdered sugar
2 tsp (10 mL) vanilla extract
Unsweetened cocoa powder (optional)

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350°F (180°C). Spray cups of Deluxe Mini-Muffin Pan with nonstick cooking spray. For cakes, combine cake mix, sour cream, egg, coffee granules and water in Classic Batter Bowl; mix using Small Mix ‘N Scraper®. Divide batter evenly among cups of pan. Bake 8–10 minutes or until wooden pick inserted in centers comes out clean.
Meanwhile, place whipped topping into large resealable plastic bag; secure and set aside. For filling, combine cheese, sugar and vanilla in clean batter bowl; mix until smooth using clean scraper. Place filling into an additional resealable plastic bag; secure and set aside.
Remove pan from oven to Stackable Cooling Rack. Press tops of cakes with lightly floured Mini-Tart Shaper to make slight indentations; cool 2 minutes. Remove cakes from pan to cooling rack. Brush tops with coffee liqueur using Chef's Silicone Basting Brush; cool completely.
Trim corners of both bags. Pipe filling over cakes. Pipe whipped topping over filling. Sprinkle with cocoa powder, if desired.
Yield: 24 cakes

Nutrients per serving: (1 cake): Calories 120, Total Fat 7 g, Saturated Fat 4 g, Cholesterol 20 mg, Carbohydrate 12 g, Protein 2 g, Sodium 105 mg, Fiber 0 g

My notes: I think that I trimmed off even more calories and fat by using low fat sour cream and cream cheese and fat free whipped topping.

Cook’s Tips: If desired, 1 2/3 cups (400 mL) of devil's food cake mix from an 18.25-oz (510-g) package can be used for this recipe.

To substitute coffee liqueur, combine 1/4 cup (50 mL) water, 1/4 cup (50 mL) sugar, 1 tbsp (15 mL) instant coffee granules and 1 tsp (5 mL) rum extract in (1-cup/250-mL) Prep Bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on HIGH 1–2 minutes or until sugar is dissolved; cool.
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