Peanut Butter Granola Bars

I cut the peanut butter granola bars into small pieces, in theory for portion control and storage.

The bars are packed with seeds and nuts and oats, and flavored with white chocolate wonderful peanut butter and honey.  Eating only one peanut butter granola bar, regardless of the size of the bar, may be a challenge!  The bars are delicious and addictive.

After baking, I refrigerated the bars hoping for smooth, straight sides while cutting the bars.  The bars become very soft at room temperature, and cutting large bars may not be the best option.

Packaging the peanut butter granola bars in mini cupcake foils within an egg carton (think recycle!) provides quick access to a snack or offers a grab-and-go travel container.

Peanut Butter Granola Bars

(adapted from Renee at sweetsugarbean)

Ingredients:

• 6 T brown sugar
• 1/3 cup White Chocolate Wonderful peanut butter (from Peanut Butter & Co)**
• 4 T honey
• 4 T butter
• 2 t vanilla
• 1 1/2 cups oats
• 1/4 cup coconut flakes
• 1/4 cup sunflower seeds
• 3 T ground flax
• 1 T sesame seeds
• 2 T cacao nibs
• 2 T chocolate chips

Mixing:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Line 8" x 8" pan with parchment for easy removal of bars after baking
3. Melt brown sugar, peanut butter, honey, and butter in saucepan over low heat.
4. Remove melted mixture from heat and add vanilla; sit aside
5. In large bowl, combine oat, coconut, sunflower seeds, flax, sesame seeds, cacao nibs, and chocolate chips
6. Pour the wet mixture over the dry, and stir to combine well
7. Press mixture into parchment lined pan
8. Bake for 20 minutes (per original recipe).  I would bake longer next time, hoping to achieve a more firm peanut butter granola bar

Hiking, camping, work, play, gift.....

The options are endless; the recipient will be grateful!

**The White Chocolate Wonderful peanut butter from Peanut Butter & Co. (endorsement given freely; no compensation) combines sweet white chocolate and peanut butter.  Peanut Butter & Co. was one of the sponsors at BlogHerFood '11 in Atlanta in May.  If all their products are as good as this one, they have found a new home on my pantry shelves!

17,279

cranberry orange sorbet

The sun will set in about an hour here on the banks of the muddy Mississippi.  It's cooler now....but tomorrow is coming.  We are seeing a daily heat index of 100+ in early June.

feel the freeze

In the fall, I have great plans for the bags of cranberries that line the grocery produce area.  Sadly, the berries find their way to the freezer. But now, in June, they have burst into their full potential.

Cranberry Orange Sorbet

Ingredients:

• 4 cups cold juice from cranberry jam (see recipe below) (this juice, after cooling in refrigerator, was the consistency of chilling jello)
• 2 T honey
• 2 T Grand Marnier
• 1 T superfine sugar

Mixing:

1. Combine all ingredients
2. Pour into ice cream freezer
3. Freeze for 40 minutes; the sorbet will be soft, but frozen.
4. Quickly transfer to freezer container and store in freezer.
5. This scoops easily directly from the freezer.

This sorbet is rich; a couple of small scoops are both brain-freeze refreshing and filling

Cranberry Jam
(recipe adapted from here)

Ingredients:

• 28 ounces cranberries
• 1 orange, juice and zest
• 24 ounces granulated sugar
• 24 fluid ounces water
• pinch of salt

Mixing:

1. Combine all ingredients in a large pan.
2. Place on stove top and bring to a slow simmer.
3. After you hear the first cranberry pop (it really does pop; first experience for me!), set your timer for 12 minutes.
4. After the twelve minutes, remove pan from heat.
5. Pour liquid through strainer (I used a food mill), separating the liquid from the solids.

Yield:

• approximately 6 cups juice
• approximately 3 cups cranberry jam

frost slopes across the edge of the jar as I enjoy the sorbet before it melts

not your Grandmother's version of the Thanksgiving cranberry-orange sauce

16,798

Amish Friendship Bread

Prepare the pans....many, many pans.

I baked Amish Friendship Bread in the mid 80's.  I was a young bride, and AFB was the fad in the rural area I called home.  I have my original hand-written Amish Friendship Bread recipe, given to me by my dear friend's mother, who many  (including non-family members like me) call Grandma Byrn.

The underlying principal in the book, 'friendship bread,' is the linking of people and their community and their lives.

The following is written on the back of my Amish Friendship Bread recipe card from Grandma Byrn:

     "From Sue Morton   Lake Geneva, Wisconsin"

At the time, Grandma Byrn and I lived in Obion County, Tennessee.  My first Amish Friendship Bread  starter traveled many miles. 

Grandma Byrn's handwritten recipe card:

Grandma Byrn (2011) with her granddaughter Bridgid

I no longer have the original starter; however, after reading 'friendship bread,' I decided to remake an old memory.  So, committed I became to 10 days and extensive baking.  I'm currently working through round two and will bake again next weekend.

I must say that the recipes posted on Friendship Bread Kitchen's website yield a better textured bread than the bread of the 80's.

Here's a link to iPhone pictures of my new starter, made using yeast, water, flour, sugar, and milk.

(http://www.blurb.com/mobile/show/016248283)

First baking with the starter - chocolate!!!  Almond Joy Amish Friendship Bread (the batter was very thick, but baked to a moist, delicious bread that I glazed with ganache)

lemon Amish Friendship Bread, glazed with powdered sugar, cream, and Penzey's lemon powder

Seattle Amish Friendship Bread (I used the normal AFB recipe, omitting cinnamon sugar and adding 4 tea bags of orange-cinnamon tea from Seattle's famous Market Spice in Pike Place Market.)

And, then I decided I should bake the original recipe.

(going into the oven)

 just out of the oven

 15 minutes out of the oven; we cut the bread warm; it was delicious!

beautiful visual appeal on top of loaf

Most recipes can be found on Friendship Bread Kitchen web site.

Look quickly, for this is all that remains.  Here's an 'inside look' at the breads.

chocolate:

 lemon:

Seattle

Traditional Cinnamon

I have noticed that the bread crust becomes softer and the inside of the bread becomes more moist on day 2-3 after baked.

I have also found that I can sit (covered) 1-cup portions of starter from day-10 distribution on the counter for two days, and then bake bread with no ill effects. 

16,598

Mexican Wedding Cookies

Memories of Mexican Wedding Cookies begin with my Mother baking these small, round balls of butter and flour (I'm sure Mom used margarine).  Hot out of the oven, Mom would toss the cookies in a small brown paper sack filled with powdered sugar.  I don't remember her tossing the cookies in powdered sugar after they cooled.  I do remember eating her cookies and dribbling powdered sugar over my hands and clothes and the floor.  In a family of five, perhaps the cookies were eaten before Mom had the opportunity to toss the cooled cookies a second time in white dusty sugar.

Mexican Wedding Cookie recipes are somewhat standard, incorporating butter, sugar, and flour.  However, these are the BEST Mexican Wedding Cookies I have ever tasted.

This recipe contains an extra ingredient that elevates the melt-in-your-mouth, buttery cookie to greatness.

Mexican Wedding Cookies

(recipe adapted from King Arthur Flour blog and website)

Ingredients

• 8 ounces Lurpak slightly salted (very soft room temperature) butter
• 2 ounces powdered sugar, sifted
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons (yes, I used this much) vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon almond extract
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 1/2 ounces almond flour/meal (I use Bob's Red Mill)
• 9 1/2 ounces King Arthur Unbleached All-Purpose flour
• 
  
• 6 ounces powdered sugar for coating cookies

Mixing

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.
2. In stand mixer, combine butter, powdered sugar, vanilla extract, almond extract, and salt; mix well
3. Add the almond flour/meal to the butter mixture
4. Stir in the all purpose flour
5. I used a #50 scoop to evenly portion the cookies onto a parchment lined half sheet tray (32 cookies)
6. Hand shape the cookie dough rounds into smooth balls
7. Bake for 18 minutes (your oven may vary)
8. Cool MexicanWedding Cookies 2 minutes on baking tray and then coat with powdered sugar (I swirled cookies and powdered sugar in a small bowl)
9. Place on wire rack to cool completely
10. After cooled, toss in powdered sugar again.

Freezing
Follow Mixing instructions through step #6.  Place sheet tray in freezer.  After cookies are frozen, place in freezer safe container.  I thawed cookies prior to baking, though I don't know that it was necessary.

Perfect in taste, texture, and eye appeal, Mexican Wedding Cookies are simple yet delicious.

...simply...delicious...

16,419

oven roasted strawberry jam

These strawberries have been in the freezer since last summer. The cold storage did not diminish the taste value of the red beauties.

 slow oven roasting turned the frozen strawberries into oven roasted strawberry jam

notice the thick, red - juice-truned-jam

Oven Roasted Strawberry Jam

(recipe adapted from  http://familystylefood.com/2011/04/roasted-strawberry-refrigerator-jam/)
 

Ingredients

• 2 quart bags frozen strawberries, drained of juice after thawing
• 3/4 c granulated sugar
• 2 T chamboard liquor
• 1 vanilla bean, split

Mixing

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees
2. Combine all ingredients into large bowl
3. Stir well to distribute sugar
4. Let sit for 15 minutes
5. Pour mixture into half sheet pan 
6. Bake in slow oven (250 degrees) for two hours
7. I stirred berries and juice a couple of time during baking time.
8. Remove from oven and let cool
9. Store in refrigerator if you plan to consume within a couple of weeks; otherwise, store in freezer.

Oven roasted strawberry jam would be delicious over ice cream or cheesecake or pound cake, ....

or off the end of a spoon.

enjoy!

Olive Oil Brownies

I tried to tell myself that I did not like these brownies.  They seemed to be missing the 'richness' one tastes when eating a brownie baked with butter.

...but the more I sampled a bite now and again, and the longer the brownie bites aged (overnight)...

...I decided that these very moist brownies are chocolate goodness, gooey, and satisfying. Yes, consuming the last brownie, I decided that the olive oil brownies are very, very good.

Cacao nibs top the olive oil brownies rather than nuts.  The nibs add a pure chocolate crunch that compliments the soft, smooth olive oil brownie base.

Olive Oil Brownies
(thank you, http://familystylefood.com/2011/04/olive-oil-cocoa-brownies/
for sharing the recipe)


Ingredients:

• 3 large eggs
• 1 1/2 c raw sugar
• 1/2 c. EVOO (olive oil)
• 2 t. vanilla
• 1 1/2 c flour
• 1/2 c cocoa powder (  I use an Italian cocoa powder; it is sooo rich)
• 1/2 t salt
• 1/4 c cacao nibs

Mixing

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees; I preheat my oven an hour before most baking.
2. Line 8" square pan with parchment for easy removal of the baked brownies.
3. Beat eggs in mixer for one minute
4. Gradually add sugar; continue beating until eggs/sugar mixture is thick
5. (note-raw sugar did not completely dissolve)
6. Decrease mixer speed and s l o w l y add olive oil
7. Add vanilla
8. Sift flour, cocoa, and salt into bowl.  Stir into egg mixture.
9. Pour into prepared pan.
10. Bake 25 minutes
11. Let cool completely in pan; remove and cut into small pieces

These olive oil brownies freeze well.
I think I'll add espresso powder when I bake these again.

16,259

roasted blackberry ice cream

 Roasted blackberry sauce creates the beautiful lavender color.

 spring is here; the wild evening primrose are in bloom and....they are almost the color of the ice cream

 Creamy, smooth, and c o l d enough to freeze your brain and your back.

Though you will want to savor each bite, don't linger too long because this ice cream melts somewhat quickly.

 absolutely delicious!!!
After your first bite, you will know that you have tasted something out of the ordinary.  The rich blackberry sauce escalates the vanilla ice cream base to a spectacular culinary experience.

As I posted on facebook....sorry you missed it...

Roasted Blackberry Ice Cream
(adapted from userealbutter here)

Pour into large bowl and sit aside:
1 1/2 c cold heavy cream

In separate bowl, whisk together
4 large egg yolks

Warm in a saucepan:
1 1/2 c half and half
1 cup granulated sugar

Warm the milk/sugar mixture until small bubbles form around the edge of the pan.   Pour a small amount of the hot mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly (you don't want the eggs to cook).  After the yolks are warm, pour the yolk/milk mixture back into the pan and continue to heat.

Cook and stir until the custard coats the back of a wooden spoon.  Immediately remove from heat and strain this mixture into the bowl of cool heavy cream.

Stir into the ice cream base:
1 1/2 c roasted blackberry sauce (recipe here)

Place in refrigerator for about 4 hours to cool completely.  Afterwards, freeze as per your ice cream maker directions.  If your ice cream freezer is this one, it may not hold all the ice cream mixture.

15,058

roasted blackberry ice cream base

 This is not exactly the 'swirl' that you will find in your Starbucks cup; this is my version, swirled with cream and the juice of roasted blackberries.

Roasted Blackberry Puree
1 gallon bag of frozen blackberries (these have been in freezer since last summer)
2/3 c granulated sugar
2 T brandy
Stir together and let sit until berries have thawed.

Stir in the seeds from one vanilla bean, then toss the bean in with the blackberries.
Pour into baking dish or baking tray and place in preheated 250 degree oven.

I roasted the berries slowly for 3 hours, stirring once each hour.

Remove berries from oven and cool slightly.  Place in strainer for food mill and process to extract the juice and pulp that will flow easily through the holes.

This recipe yields approximately 1 1/2 c puree.

The blackberry puree would be delicious over pancakes, or pound cake, or mixed into a blackberry vinaigrette for your summer salad.  It's also good enough to eat with a spoon as you consume hot fudge sauce!

* * * * * *
The ice cream is freezing.  Pictures and recipe to follow soon.