Gluten Free Pie Crust

 

I've made this gluten free crust several times now, and it's really delicious!  I've used it for quiches as well as pumpkin pies.  I got the original recipe on King Arthur's website.  I used Bob's Red Mill gluten free all purpose flour, and it works well.  I have read that not all gluten free flours work as well as others.  The first time I didn't add any water, and my crust fell apart.  The next few times I added 1 Tbsp of water and that seemed to work very well.  I might try adding 2 Tbsp of water and see if it holds even better next time.  It should be smooth like a regular crust and not crumbly. The original recipe does call for clearjel, but it's optional, so I haven't tried using it.

Ingredients

1 1/4 cups gluten free flour (I chose Bob's Red Mill)

1 Tbsp sugar

1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1/2 tsp salt

6 Tbsp butter, cold

1 large egg

2 tsp lemon juice

*For an egg free crust, the recipe states using 4 Tbsp cold water in place of the egg and lemon juice.

Directions

Spray/grease as 9" pie plate (I used deep dish).  Whisk together the flour, sugar, xanthan gum, and salt.  Cut the butter into several pats and work it into the flour mixture until it's crumbly (I use my stand mixer with a whisk for this but you can also use a pastry cutter or forks).  Whisk together the egg and lemon juice until frothy and mix into flour/butter mixture.  Mix until the crust holds together well and is smooth but not wet.  Add cold water if necessary, 1 Tbsp at a time.  Shape into a ball, wrap in saran wrap, and chill in the fridge for one hour or up to overnight.  Let dough rest on counter 10-15 minutes before rolling.  Roll out on saran wrap or a silicone mat that is sprinkled with gluten free flour.  Invert dough into pie plate.  Pinch edges in design if you like.  Fill with whatever fillings you desire and bake.

Green Chile Spinach Quiche with a Hash Brown Crust

 

I wanted to make my Green Chile Spinach Quiche with a gluten free crust, and I've made a crust, but I wanted to try something different, and I'm so glad I did.  I brought these to a ladies retreat, and they got rant and raved over.  Several people wanted the recipe, and all of it got devoured.  You can use regular all purpose flour if you do not need it to be gluten free.  This made a thick hash brown crust, so if you prefer your crust to be thinner and crispier, use only 1 bag of shredded hash browns.  You may need to reduce the cooking time of the crust, but let me know how it turns out!

Ingredients

2 - 26oz bags frozen shredded hash browns, thawed

1 stick butter, melted

1/2 cup all purpose flour (gluten free if needed)

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

12 eggs

8oz Mexican blend cheese, shredded

2 cups cottage cheese

10-12oz frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed out

7oz can diced green chiles

Directions

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Mix together the butter and hash browns, and then press into bottom and sides of 2 deep dish pie plates. Bake in oven for 20-25 minutes until the edges are light brown.  Reduce heat to 400 degrees.  Mix together remaining ingredients (I use my stand mixer for this) until well blended.  Pour into crusts evenly between the pies.   Bake for 15 minutes, and then reduce the oven temp to 350, and bake an additional 35 minutes.  Store any leftovers in the fridge, or you can cover the them and freeze the quiches, and let thaw in fridge the night before you want to serve it.

Gluten Free Pumpkin Muffins

 

Super moist, delicious, & gluten free pumpkin muffins!  My girls even commented they enjoyed the gluten free ones better than the ones with regular flour.  I made these into mini muffins but you can make them into a bundt loaf or a loaf pan if you prefer.  A bundt pan takes about 45 minutes, and a loaf pan takes 60 minutes.  This is my Mom's pumpkin bread recipe except modified some and made with gluten free flour.

Ingredients

1 1/3 cup sugar

1/2 cup applesauce, unsweetened

1 1/2 cups canned pumpkin

2 eggs  (use my note for using flaxseed for egg-free)

1 2/3 cups gluten free flour (I used Bob's Red Mill brand)

1 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp baking powder

3/4 tsp salt

1/2 rounded tsp cinnamon

1/2 rounded tsp cloves

1/4 rounded tsp ginger

dash allspice (optional)

dash nutmeg (optional)

Directions

Mix sugar, applesauce, pumpkin, and eggs in a large bowl.  In a separate container combine flour, baking soda, salt, baking powder, and spices.  Add all dry ingredients to the batter and blend well.  Spray mini muffin tin and divide batter evenly among the tin.  Bake 350 degrees for 20-22 minutes.  Allow to cool about 5-10 minutes before removing from pan.

Pudding Yogurt

I started experimenting with different pudding mixes and yogurt.  I love how creamy it comes out and with a higher protein content, they are more filling than a regular pudding made with milk.  I have tried pistachio, white chocolate, and cheesecake so far, and they are all yummy!  This picture is of the white chocolate pudding yogurt.

Ingredients
2 cups nonfat plain yogurt (I like Dannon all natural)
1 box sugar free, fat free pudding mix (so far I like white chocolate, cheesecake, and pistachio)

Directions
Using a whisk, mix yogurt and pudding mix together very well until blended.  Divide into 5 individual containers evenly.

Weight Watcher Points: only 1 point each!

Pineapple Pistachio Pudding

My mom came up with this recipe and it reminds of a watergate salad, or as my family always called it, "Green Junk."  :-)  It is a healthier, creamy option.  It is yummy and satifying.

Ingredients
2 cups nonfat plain yogurt (I like Dannon all natural)
1 package sugar free, fat free, pistachio pudding
1 can crushed pineapple in juice, drained

Directions
Combine all ingredients well.  Divide into 5 containers equally and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Weight Watcher Points: 2 points each serving!

Cherry Pie Pudding

This is so yummy and creamy and delicious!  I came up with it from the original Cherry Pie Fluff recipe, just using yogurt instead of cool whip.  I like this this is thick and has a higher protein level to keep you feeling full longer. 

Ingredients
1 can lite cherry pie filling (could use sugar free if you want)
2 cups nonfat plain yogurt (I like Dannon all natural)
1 box sugar free, fat free, cheesecake (or white chocolate) pudding mix

Directions
Combine all ingredients and mix very well until all blended together.  Divide into 7 different containers and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Weight Watchers Points: 2 points per serving!

Homemade Yogurt

My sister originally shared this recipe with me from a website on making homemade yogurt. I use the oven style recipe, but my oven doesn't go that low in degrees so I don't incubate it like that. I watched my sister make it and thought it was rather complicated, but after doing it a few times now, it's really not that bad. I also looked up a youtube video from Alton Brown about making yogurt and watching that gave me the idea of using the heating pad and it gave me a few more helpful tips too.

Ingredients
1/2 gallon of milk (I use 1%)
2 cups instant dry milk powder
1 cup sugar
1 tbsp vanilla (suggest using good vanilla but I use whatever)
6-8oz yogurt (make sure it says it contains live cultures)

you will also need:
thermometer (candy preferably or meat works too)
very large pot (I use 2)
heating pad (don't have to have this but it makes it a lot easier)
3 glass quart jars with lids
large towel

Directions
Place milk and dry milk in a pot over high heat. Stir constantly (easily burns I find). Heat to 180 degrees. Fill sink with ice water and place pot in the ice bath. Add sugar and stir well. Cool milk to 110-115 degrees and stir in vanilla and yogurt. Fill quart jars evenly (won't fill them all the way to the top) with the milk mixture. Now, in a very large, tall pot, put jars in and fill with hot water (110-115 degrees). I find I have to add a small pot of boiling water to get it this hot since we keep our water heater not so hot. Fill the water to just below the lids. Put the lid on the pot and put the pot on top of your heating pad. Wrap a towel around the pot and turn the heating pad on high or medium heat. Your yogurt can be ready in as little as 4-6 hours, but you can keep it in there up to 12 hours. The longer you let it sit, the thicker and tangier it gets (more like Greek yogurt) and the more beneficial bacteria it has. The yogurt in my picture was done for 13 hours and it was very thick. I made it again and left it for 10 hours and it was not nearly as thick. Check your water temperature as it incubates every few hours to make sure it stays at 110-115 degrees. I have found it best to start early in the morning, let it incubate all day and then refrigerate it overnight. If you see watery substance on the top after making it or after it's in the fridge, that is the whey. It's good for you and full of protein. You can either pour it off if you want your yogurt thicker or you can stir it in, but be aware the more you stir your yogurt around, the thinner it becomes. Be aware of that if you add fruit or granola to your yogurt as well.

WW points: If you use 1% or fat free milk, 1/2 cup = 2 points

Banana pineapple mango smoothie

This has become my new favorite breakfast.  I drink it every morning, and it is very satifying, delicious, and only 4 WW points!

Ingredients
1 ripe banana
1 cup diced frozen pineapple and mangos (I found a huge bag at Sam's, by Dole)
1 cup almond milk
1 packet stevia or spenda

Directions
Blend all ingredients well in a blender and enjoy!  So yummy and good for you!

Weight Watcher Points: 4 points for the whole thing!

Two ingredient banana muffins

A while back I made Banana Spice Muffins with overripe bananas and spice cake mix.  My mom recently started making muffins a lot for my nephews (with a lot of major allergies) with vanilla cake mix and bananas.  The kids all love them, and they are so easy.  I made these with strawberry cake mix and bananas.  I also made chocolate cake mix with bananas for my church one Sunday (mostly because we have a child who had a lot of allergies), and they were a big hit!  Use any cake mix you think would go well with bananas and enjoy.  Just watch for allergens in your cake mixes if you need to be aware of them.  One tip, if you don't have enough bananas, you can add in a little applesauce if your cake mix it too dry.

Ingredients
4 overripe bananas, mashed
1 cake mix (vanilla, chocolate, strawberry, spice cake... or another kind if you want)

Directions
Mix bananas and cake mix together well.  No oil, no eggs, no water.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees, fill sprayed muffin tins about 2/3 cup full, and bake muffins according to cupcake directions on back.  Remove from muffin tins, cool, and enjoy!  Makes 24 muffins.

Weight Watcher Points: 2 points a muffin

Banana Sour Cream Bread

Ok, don't get freaked out the name.....  my husband hates sour cream and had no idea it was in there, and I bet you won't either.  You don't taste sour cream at all.  This is moist and delicious and honestly, probably the best banana bread I've ever had!  It got gobbled all up at our church for breakfast and my kids loved it!  I found this on the top banana bread recipes on allrecipes and modified it for one bundt pan.

Ingredients
2 Tbsp white sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup butter, softened*
1 1/2 cups white sugar
1 egg + 1 egg yolk**
3 very ripe bananas
8oz sour cream***
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp baking soda
2 1/4 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray large bundt pan.  In a small bowl, stir together 2 tbsp white sugar and 1/2 tsp cinnamon and then sprinkle all over bottom and sides of pan.  Cream together butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar.  Mix in eggs, mashed bananas, sour cream, vanilla, and cinnamon.  Mix in salt, baking soda, and flour.  Stir in nuts.  Pour into prepared pan.  Bake for 50-55 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Lower fat version: 4 weight watcher points per 1/12th of the loaf (vs 6 per slice without nuts).  This also reduced the calorie content about 100 calories per slice!
Substitute:
1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce*
1 egg + 1 egg white**
8oz light sour cream***

Pineapple Mango Smoothie

I love smoothies!  My husband and my kids also love smoothies.  This one reminds of a virgin pina colata, and I've made it with and without 1-2 Tbsp shredded coconut.  It was good either way, but unless you have a really good blender, it does have a different texture with the coconut.  I think this would be really good with coconut milk instead of almond milk as well.

Ingredients
1 cup frozen diced pineapples and mangos (I got a big bag by Dole)
1 cup almond milk
1/2 cup vanilla yogurt (I like Dannon)
1 packet of splenda or Stevia

Directions
Put all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.

Weight Watcher points: Ony 4 points for the whole thing!

Crustless Green Chile Spinach Quiche

This is pretty much a gluten/wheat free version of my Green Chile Spinach Quiche which I absolutely love!  I wasn't sure how this would turn out since I love the crust so much in quiche, but this turned out really delicious!  This is also a great low carb option.  This makes 2 pies, but I couldn't find one of my pie plates, so I used 2 2-quart glass bowls.  I also only used 1 Tbsp of butter and I didn't miss the extra butter at all.

Ingredients
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
12 eggs
8oz Colby-Monterey Jack cheese, shredded (I like to use reduced fat if I can)
2 cups 2% low fat cottage cheese
10oz fresh or frozen spinach (if frozen, thaw and drain)
7oz can chopped green chilies
1 Tbsp butter

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Melt butter in a large skillet and sautee spinach until wilted.  Set aside.  Beat eggs in a large bowl until smooth.  Slowly add salt and baking powder and mix until no lumps remain.  Stir in shredded cheese, cottage cheese, spinach, and green chilies until blended.  Divide between 2 sprayed pie plates or 2-quart dishes.  Bake 35-40 minutes until the quiches are lightly browned and the center comes out clean when you insert a knife.

Berry Green Smoothie

We love smoothies around here.  We really like them with peanut butter, but it really adds up in calories for me.  I love adding spinach to my smoothies because it so good for you, but you can't even taste it in a smoothie.  This one is packed full of nutrition and antioxidants, and it's not loaded with calories like many smoothies can be.

Ingredients
3/4 cup frozen sliced strawberries
1/4 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 cup vanilla low fat yogurt
1/2 cup almond milk (or you can use soy or cow's milk)
1 cup fresh spinach
1 packet of stevia or splenda

Directions
Add all ingredients to a blender and puree until smooth. 

Weight Watcher Points: 4 points for the whole thing, a nice tall glass

Cinnamon Biscuits

I wanted to make something simple and sweet for breakfast at our church one morning, and I came up with this.  It all got eaten up.  :-)  I actually meant to buy crescent rolls to sprinkle the cinnamon and sugar in and roll up and cut into cinnamon rolls, but I accidentally bought the biscuits, but everyone loved it anyway, and it was even easier to put together.

Ingredients
1/2 cup sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
2 Tbsp melted butter
4 - 7oz cans small refrigerated biscuit dough
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1-2 Tbsp milk

Directions
Spray a 9x13 pan and heat oven to 375 degrees.  Lay half of the biscuits on the bottom of the pan.  Mix the sugar and cinnamon together well in a small bowl.  Brush half of the melted butter on top of the biscuits.  Sprinkle half of the cinnamon and sugar mixture over top.  Repeat layering.  Bake for 20-30 minutes or until biscuits are light golden brown.  Mix confectioners sugar and milk together until icing forms and then drizzle over top of biscuits.

Banana and Peanut Butter

This is a fun post for me!  :-)  I grew up eating peanut butter and banana, my kids eat it all the time, and it's an all time family favorite for much of my family.  My grandfather eats this every day for lunch, and my oldest son eats this almost every morning for breakfast and now my almost 2 year old does too.  :-)  I am surprised how many people do not know about this amazing combination.  Eat it for breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snack.  Use crunchy or creamy peanut butter.  I love this meal because it's fruit and protein.  It's filling and satifying.  When my 8 year old was little, he called it "Nonny Butter"  :-)

Ingredients
Banana
Peanut Butter (I like natural for heart healthy)

Directions
Cut up your banana and apply a small amount of peanut butter on each bite.... or if you want it to look more like an "adult" meal, just hold your banana and use a knife to put a small amount of peanut butter on the end, bite it off, and put more peanut butter on your next bite. :-)  Eat with a glass of milk if you like.  :-)

Crustless Spinach Quiche

I made this for church breakfast a couple Sundays ago.  I made it specifically since I can't have gluten and also since a few of my friends are on Adkins.  I found the original recipe online, but I changed it up a bit.  Everyone loved it and my friends asked for the recipe and have made it since.  :-)

Ingredients
1 Tbsp canola oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 tsp garlic, minced
10oz spinach, roughly chopped (or you can use frozen, thawed and drained)
5 eggs, beaten
2 cups Monterey and Colby Jack Cheese, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded (or use 3 cups of one kind of cheese that you prefer instead the Monterey and Cheddar cheeses)
1/4 tsp salt
1/8 tsp pepper

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a 9" pie plate.  Saute your onion on medium in the oil.  Add the garlic and the fresh spinach and cook until spinach wilts and most liquid evaporates.  Combine all ingredients and mix well.  Pour into prepared pie plate.  Bake 30 minutes.  You can also prepare this the night before, cover and then bake in the morning 35-40 minutes. 

Only 2 net carbs per 1/8th of the pie  :-)

Zucchini Bread

So I had never had zucchini bread before, but I am totally addicted now.  Now wait before you freak out after hearing "zucchini."  If you've never had zucchini bread, it's not what you might think.  No one in my family likes zucchini except me.  But, everyone loves this bread!  I honestly do not even taste the zucchini in it, as zucchini.  It's very similar to a friendship bread or banana bread type of taste.  I found the original recipe as one of the top recipes on allrecipes, but I modified a few things to make it healthier.  I reduced 1 cup of oil down to 2 Tbsp and replaced the rest with unsweetened applesauce.  I tried totally eliminating the oil once, and it was still delicious, but I feel the little bit of oil helps it be more moist.  I reduced the sugar by a little bit.  I add in 2 medium zucchinis, instead of just 2 cups, which is about 3-4 cups.  I also reduced the walnuts from 1 cup down to 2/3 cup, mainly to reduce the calorie content some.  I made these in bundt pans the first few times I made it (yes, I've had to make it a few times already), but I made them into muffins last night.  I honestly don't know if I would make this in loaf pans, only because with me adding all the zucchini in, it might overflow in loaf pans.  Two of my children like this without nuts, but the rest of us like it with nuts.

Ingredients
3 eggs***
1 cup unsweetened applesauce
2 Tbsp canola oil***
2 cups sugar
1 Tbsp vanilla extract
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 Tbsp cinnamon
2 medium zucchinis, grated
2/3 cup walnuts (leave out for nut free or children who don't like nuts)

Directions
Spray either 2 bundt pans (I only have one, so I used an angel food cake pan for my 2nd one) or spray muffin tins.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Beat eggs, applesauce, oil, sugar, and vanilla together in large bowl.  Mix together flour, salt, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon together and then add to wet ingredients and mix well.  Stir in zucchini and nuts and combine well.  Pour into prepared pans.  If using bundt pans, bake for 1 hour.  If making muffins, bake for 22 minutes.  Makes 2 loaves or 36 muffins.

Weight Watcher points: only 2 points or 99 calories per muffin!  (without nuts)

***OR.....  I played around with the recipe and made it even lower in points, calories, and fat
sub 3 eggs for 1 egg and 3 egg whites
sub 2 Tbsp oil for 2 Tbsp melted light smart balance or Olivio
makes the muffins only 1.5 points per muffin or 90 calories per muffin! (this also cuts the fat by over half!)

Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Loaf

I found this recipe on pinterest and it looked absolutely delicious by the picture.  Now her pictures do this recipe a whole lot more justice than mine.  The big mistake I made was that I put the blueberries in frozen and not thawed, like she said, so when I thought the cake should be done, it wasn't, so when I tried to dump it out, it fell apart, so I had to scoop it back up and put it back in the pan.  Then it just took forever to cook.  I didn't think the frozen blueberries would make that much difference, but it did, apparently.  I did make a couple small changes in the recipe.  I exchanged the oil for unsweetened applesauce.  I also used low fat vanilla yogurt instead of plain, so I didn't add the vanilla extract.  I also reduced the sugar a little bit due to the yogurt not being plain.  So I made this for breakfast at church, and it was very yummy.  It has a very strong lemon flavor, but I love lemon flavored cakes.

Ingredients
for the loaf:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour + 1 Tbsp, divided
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup vanilla non fat or low fat yogurt
1 cup sugar
3 large eggs
2 tsp grated lemon zest (about 2 lemons)
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 cups blueberries, fresh or frozen, thawed and rinsed
for the lemon syrup:
1/3 cup lemon juice
1/3 cup sugar
for the lemon glaze:
1 cup confectioners' sugar
2-3 Tbsp lemon juice

Directions
1.Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray bottom and sides of one 9 x 5-inch loaf pan or a bundt pan.
2.In a medium bowl, mix together flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.

3.In a large bowl, whisk together the yogurt, sugar, eggs, lemon zest, and applesauce. Slowly whisk the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. In a separate bowl, mix the blueberries with the remaining tablespoon of flour, and fold them very gently into the batter.

4.Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake 50 to 55 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 10 minutes before removing loaf to a wire rack on top of a baking sheet.

5.While the loaf is cooling, make the lemon syrup in a small saucepan over medium heat. Stir together the lemon juice and sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved. Once dissolved, continue to cook for 3 more minutes. Remove from the heat; set aside.

6.Use a toothpick to poke holes in the tops and sides of the warm loaf. Brush the top and sides of the loaf with the lemon syrup. Let the syrup soak into the cake and brush again. Let the cake cool completely.

7.To make the lemon glaze, in a small bowl, whisk together the confectioners’ sugar and 2-3 tablespoons of the lemon juice. The mixture should be thick but pourable. Add up to another tablespoon of lemon juice if the mixture is too stiff. Pour the lemon glaze over the top of each loaf and let it drip down the sides. Let the lemon glaze harden, about 15 minutes, before serving.

Cinnamon Craisin Granola

 I love granola and I love craisins.  Granola is so expensive though, so I set out to find a recipe I could make myself for cheaper and I know exactly what's going into it.  I found this recipe on allrecipes but I modifed it a little bit, using craisins instead of raisins, and I always use canola oil and not vegetable because it's better for you. It's wonderful over yogurt or even served as a cereal with milk.  I did read you could leave out the coconut if you don't like it.  I'm not sure if you would need to add more oats if you did that though.

Ingredients
4 cups rolled oats
1 cup shredded coconut
1/4 -1/3* cup brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 - 1/3* cup honey
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup craisins (or raisins)

Directions
In a large bowl, combine oats and coconut.  In a saucepan, combine brown sugar, oil, honey, and cinnamon.  Bring to a boil.  Remove from heat and stir in vanilla.  Pour over oat mixture and stir to coat well.  Spread in a shallow baking dish.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 to 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Cool completely.  Add craisins.  Store in an airtight container.

*Updated 6/16/12: So after reading a couple comments on this recipe on the website I found it on, I decided to make a couple of changes the next time I made it.  I really like it either way, but the way I made it this time, it ends up with more of the few chunks stuck together and less flakey, if that makes sense.  Just up your brown sugar and honey to 1/3 cup each.  It does it make it sweeter as well.  Try it either way!  It's yummy!

Gorilla Bread

I made this a few weeks ago for church breakfast.  It is a Paula Deen recipe, so really can it go wrong?  It was devoured and everyone absolutely loved it!  In fact, a few people said that I could make it every week and they wouldn't mind.  :-)  It's very much like monkey bread but on steroids, as someone put it.  Or as someone else said, I basically took everything that is so sinful and delicious and put it into one dish.  :-)  It's not for those on a diet.  :-)  I did modify it a little bit, but mostly just on how to put it together, based on someone's review.

Ingredients
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla (optional)
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
1 cup packed brown sugar
8oz cream cheese, softened
4 small 7oz cans refrigerated biscuit dough (originally called for 2 12oz cans, but I couldn't find that)
1 1/2 cups chopped walnuts

Directions
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spray a bundt pan.  Mix the granulated sugar and cinnamon together.  In a small sauce pan, melt butter and then add brown sugar and allow that to melt, stirring constantly.  Set aside.  Cream together cream cheese, vanilla, and 3 Tbsp of the sugar/cinnamon mix.  Press the biscuits out with your fingers and spread a little of the cream cheese mixture in the middle of each of the biscuits.  Fold the biscuits over and seal.  Sprinkle 1/2 cup of nuts in bottom of bundt pan.  Layer with half of the cream cheese filled biscuits.  Sprinkle with 1/2 of the remaining cinnamon/sugar mixture.  Pour half of the brown sugar and butter over the top.  Layer with another 1/2 cup nuts, rest of the biscuits, cinnamon/sugar, and brown sugar and butter.  Sprinkle with remaining 1/2 cup nuts.  Bake for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven and cool for 5 minutes.  Place a plate on top and invert.

You can put this together the night before and refrigerate.  Bake in the morning for 45 minutes since it will be cold from the fridge. 

Optional: you can make into a monkey bread and leave the cream cheese and vanilla out.  I made it like that another Sunday and it was still rant and raved about and totally eaten.  It does make it a little easier to prep.  Chop the biscuits into quarts before layering if you do it this way.  You could also use a dairy free spread instead of butter and make it dairy free.