Tag Archives: oats

Mint Chocolate No Bake Cookie Bites

I do a lot of reading. For school, for work, for fun, I’ve always liked reading. Sometimes I read a recipe and it bypasses the bookmark function and gets me straight away into the kitchen, particularly when I have all the ingredients on hand and want to eat cookies. I mean really, when I want to eat cookies. I’m a big fan of no bake items particularly those that don’t require chemistry to work and you can kind of “eye-ball” the measurements. When these didn’t come together just as planned with the original recipe I improvised a little with the natural sweetness of maple syrup and a few extra dates. I dare you to eat just one.

  • 1 cup rolled oats
  • 1 cup raw cashews
  • 12-16 medjool pitted dates
  • 3 T dark cocoa powder
  • 2-4 T nondairy milk
  • 1/4-1/2 tsp peppermint extract 
  • 1 tsp maple syrup
Dough should just stick together out of the food processor

Dough should just stick together out of the food processor

IMG_7490

A perfect scoop

A perfect scoop

Use a scoop to portion out the dough

Use a scoop to portion out the dough

Roll into balls after you measure out the dough

Roll into balls after you measure out the dough

Nondairy milk, dates and cocoa powder

Nondairy milk, dates and cocoa powder

In a food processor mix the cashews and oats until they are a powdery consistency. Then add the dates, cocoa powder, 2 T milk and peppermint extract and mix until a dough starts to form. If the dough looks dry, add a bit more milk. Roll into balls and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Set in the fridge to firm up. I got 25 bites out of my batch using a small pampered chef scoop to form the cookie bites.

Adapted from My Whole Food Life

Bitchin’ Pantry Raid Granola

My friend Julie and I are addicted to granola.  Too bad all the store brands are made with crap.  I set off to create a better-for-us-granola.  I concocted this from the combo of several other granola recipes before me, the result was delish.  Now that I have the hang of it…I have lots of flavor combos in mind.  Stay tuned.

Ingredients:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Now prepare yourself…this next part is very complicated…combine all items in a bowl and stir.

Pour out granola onto a baking sheet with sides and bake for about an hour, stirring every 10 minutes, checking that the granola is crisping, not burning.  Remove, let cool totally and enjoy.

This recipe makes 3 1/2 C of granola with each 1/2 C serving costing you 337 well-worth-it calories.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Gluten Free Vegan Banana Oat Cake

I work in a diet-diverse office, mostly omnivores; however, I have one gluten free coworker, a dairy free coworker, a vegan coworker and me, a vegetarian dabbling in the world of veganism.  Every now and again, I find a recipe on  a blog or try to veganize something and can usually hit on most of the dietary restrictions, but this cake hits on ALL!  Even the lady that hates peanut butter, liked this cake, just omitted the “frosting”.  This recipe credit belongs to Oh, She Glows.  Visit her blog for a smattering of vegetarian and vegan deliciousness.

Cake:

  • 2 cups Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free regular oats, processed into a flour (locally these are available at Harvest Health & Horrocks perhaps even Meijer)
  • 1/2 cup Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free regular oats (not processed)
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar, packed firmly
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 1/8th tsp ground nutmeg
  • 1/16th tsp ground cloves (optional)
  • 1/16th tsp ground ginger (optional)
  • 2 tbsp cane sugar (or regular white)
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tbsp coconut oil, melted (or other light tasting oil)
  • 2 medium very ripe bananas, peeled
  • 1/3 cup applesauce (I used sweetened and backed down the white sugar above)
  • 1/4 cup almond milk
  • 1 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • Fold in: 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips; 1/4 cup walnuts (optional), chopped; 1 ripe banana, cut into chunk

Preheat oven to 350F and lightly grease a 8 inch (4 cup) casserole dish or 8” cake pan. Take 2 cups of regular oats and process them in a food processor until flour like in consistency.

In a large bowl, whisk together the dry ingredients (processed oats, regular oats, sugars, spices, baking powder, and salt).

In another bowl, mix together the oil, applesauce, almond milk, and vanilla. Add in the two peeled bananas and smash into the wet ingredients until smooth.

Add the wet mixture to the dry and stir until just combined. Now fold in the chips, optional walnuts, and the chopped banana.

Spread into prepared pan and bake for 36 minutes at 350F or until a toothpick comes out clean. The cake must be cooled for at least 15-20 minutes before attempting to remove.

Once fully cooled, slice and top with PB Banana Glaze. Store in the fridge for up to 3 days.  I found that this also freezes beautifully.

Frosting:

  • 1 ripe banana (but not too ripe, you still want it solid!)
  • 2 tbsp peanut butter (I used Koeze’s crunchy)
  • 1/2 cup icing sugar, sifted
  • Pinch of kosher salt, to taste

Mash banana in a bowl until smooth. Add in peanut butter and mash until combined. Sift in the salt and icing sugar and stir until fully combined. Makes about 2/3 cup glaze. Store in fridge in a sealed contained for 1-2 days.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Saved The Best For Crisp

While making the raspberry jam from the previous post with some of the mushier berries, I couldn’t wait to make this crisp from Ina Garten’s recipe with the perfect berries.  Alas, I opened up the fridge and no butter.  Each of Ina Garten’s and Paula Deen’s recipes begin with butter, so a trip to the store was needed before I could begin, but the outcome was well worth the wait.

You could make this vegan with Earth Balance sticks pretty easily.  I like to over bake the crisp just a little so it’s super crunchy.  It can be baked ahead of time and reheated but who in the world has the willpower to let a hot fruit crisp hangout for future consumption?  Not this girl.

For your immediate consumption, I give you a modified version of Ina’s Peach and Raspberry Crisp, modified for the raspberry lover.

  • 1 orange, zested
  • 1 1/4 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 cup light brown sugar, packed
  • 1 1/2 cups plus 2 to 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 pints raspberries
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup quick-cooking oatmeal
  • 1/2 pound cold unsalted butter, diced

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Butter the inside of a 10 by 15 by 2 1/2-inch oval baking dish.

Combine in a large bowl, add the orange zest, 1/4 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, and 2 tablespoons of flour. Toss well. Gently mix in the raspberries. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes. If there is a lot of liquid, add 1 more tablespoon of flour.   Pour this mixture into the baking dish and smooth the top.

Combine 1 1/2 cups flour, 1 cup granulated sugar, 1/2 cup brown sugar, salt, oatmeal, and the cold, diced butter in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Mix on low speed until the butter is pea-sized and the mixture is crumbly. Sprinkle evenly on top of the raspberries. Bake for 1 hour, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly. Serve immediately, or store in the refrigerator and reheat in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 20 to 30 minutes, until warm.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Lentil. Loaf. Love.

I have pounds upon pounds of lentils lining the shelves of my kitchen.  No time like the present to cook up a lovely lentil loaf.  I searched high and low for a loaf that didn’t look like meat so much as it did a healthier version, grainy and textured.  Finally, after much loaf searching, I stumbled upon the blog:  eat me, delicious which really is clever and has a ton of really great recipes.  This week I will be cooking from that blog beginning with this loaf.

Lovely Lentil Loaf
Makes 4-6 servings

  • 3/4 cup dry red split lentils rinsed well (until no longer cloudy), cooked in 1 3/4 cups of veggie broth or water until just tender, not mushy
  • 1 cup oats-not quick cooking (or leftover rice, millet or bulgur) I went for Bob’s Red Mill brand, it was on sale at Meijer tonight.
  • 1 cup grated sharp white cheddar cheese
  • 1/2 cup barbecue sauce (tomato sauce or salsa-I used Tastefully Simple’s Bayou Bourbon Sauce)
  • 2 eggs, lightly beaten
  • 1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro
  • 1/3 cup chopped scallions
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
  • 2 teaspoons soy sauce or Tamari
  • 3 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 teaspoon dried oregano

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Pour mixture into a loaf pan or casserole dish, lined with foil and lightly oiled.
Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes. Let cool for 5 minutes before cutting and serving.

As you can see with this formula the possibilities of add ins, etc are basically endless.

Your final product will be a firm, yet not heavy loaf that tastes delicious over smashed sweet potatoes…just sayin’.

Now get out there and love on some lentils!  This is Walter The Wonderdog approved.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.