Monthly Archives: April 2018

Oatmeal Craisins Cookies

I’m on a craisins kick! Why not? Really you could use any dried fruit you prefer. Craisin add a pretty hue. This recipe was inspired by a Bob’s Red Mill Recipe that originally called for nuts, I swapped out the almonds for chocolate chips. I think white chocolate chips would go good here as well

This recipe yields: 32 cookies using a number 40 scoop ( 2 Tablespoons)

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter (aka two full sticks)  (room temperature/softened but not too soft)

1 cup Granulated Sugar

1 cup Raw sugar or brown sugar

2 extra large eggs

2 tsp pure vanilla extract ( I prefer penzeys vanilla)

1 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour  or Graham Flour

1 tsp baking Powder

1 tsp ground Vietnamese cinnamon

1 tsp Kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

3 cups Old fashioned Rolled Oats

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate (pick your favorite)

1 cup dried cranberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees convection (standard oven 350 degrees). Parchment paper line two 1/2 sheet baking pans.  Set aside.

2. In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment cream butter, salt, and sugars together. Add in eggs, one at a time and follow up with vanilla. Mix until combined.

3. In a seperate medium to large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Gradually add to the wet ingredients and stir until combined.

4.  Fold in oats, craisins, and chocolate chips and mix until incorporated.

5. Use ac cookie size 40 scoop to drop cookies onto parchment paper. I only placed 6 cookies to a 1/2 sheet pan.

6. Bake for 16-17 minutes and allow to cool on pan for 1-2 minutes. Remove the cookies to a wire rack to completely cool off.

****Bonus trick….Place the dough in the refrigerator overnight or for a good hour before scooping & baking. This helps them hold their shape.

Honey Lemon Poppyseed Dressing

Spring time is the perfect time to make homemade dressings for salads. This recipe pairs really well with a strawberry, pineapple, yellow sweet pepper, craisins, sunflower seeds, & spinach salad which we made last night for dinner. I’m looking forward to making it again with fresh local strawberries and adding feta cheese next time.

This recipe yields: 1 cup (16 servings of two tablespoons)

Ingredients:

1/3 cup canola oil

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (able one medium lemon)

2 teaspoons of poppyseeds

1/2 teaspoon of kosher salt

2 Tablespoons of apple cider vinegar

Directions:

Place all ingredients in a sealable container and shake well before each use.

Store in the refrigerator after each use.

Kitchen Sink Trail Mix

I know I’ve been on a kick with Trail Mix. There are 1000s of variations. I like it because you can easy put together leftovers of bits and pieces of goodies that you don’t have enough of for a full recipe. For example when that one recipe calls for only a half bag of chocolate chips….

This recipe yields 13 cups of Trail Mix

Ingredients:

1/2 cup peptia seeds

2 cups of chocolate chips ( semi sweet or 60% cacao)

1/2 cup of Dehydrated blueberries

1/2 a cup of Craisins

1 1/4 cup of M&Ms ( 10.7 ounces)

2 cups of peanut butter pretzels

2 cups of Cheerios

2 cups of banana chips

2 cups of roasted peanuts

1/4 cup of roasted & lightly salted sunflower seeds

Directions

1. Throw everything in the largest bowl that you possibly have. Mix thoroughly and place in a sealable container.

Orange Sunshine Muffins

I was in the Strip District a few weeks ago, in my safe haven, and I came across this toasted wheat cereal. I found it very interesting and had to pick it up. It is similar to cream of wheat but with more mouth feel.

On the back was a recipe for orange muffins. I adapted the suggested recipe to incorporate ingredients I had on hand. This is a great way to start the weekend with some sunshine.

Ingredients:

1/2 teaspoon ground Vietnamese cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1 cup all purpose flour

1 cup wheatena

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 medium orange’ zest

1/2 cup fresh orange juice

1/3 cup canola oil

1/2 cup honey

1 egg

1/4 cup raw sugar

2 TB lemon juice

1/4 cup craisins (roughly chopped)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400°. Line 12 muffin tin liner cups with paper liner. In a large bowl combine the Wheatena, flour, baking soda, nutmeg, cinnamon, & salt. Whisk the dry ingredients together.

In a separate smaller bowl combine the honey orange & lemon, juice, sugar, oil, egg and zest. Add liquid ingredients to the dry batter stir until moistened. Fold in the Craisins. Fill Muffins-tins 3/4 full. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean. Let cool on wire racks.

This recipe yields 12 muffins