The Quest For a Cereal Bar

Right now, one of the most highly prized snacks in our house is the Kashi TLC Cereal Bar. My boys would eat them all day, every day, if I let them! As much as that would not suffice nutritionally, it would also not work financially. Being that those sweet little treats run anywhere between $3-$4.50 a box, it works out to be about $.50-$.75 a bar! That habit can get expensive quick! So I did what any mom with internet access would do. I Googled it. And so began my quest for a cereal bar recipe.

While these bars are not anywhere CLOSE to the beloved cereal bar, they really were good! They sort of boasted a little bit of shortbread, which paired deliciously with the preserves! So while I was a little bummed that they seemed to lead me astray, I guess you gotta start somewhere...and there's not a one left!

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter {softened}
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups oats
1 teaspoon almond extract
16oz. preserves of choice

DIRECTIONS:
Cream margarine and sugar. Add dry ingredients. Mix well. Add almond extract. Press 3/4 of crumb mixture into greased 9 x 13 pan. Spread with preserves. (*Use Strawberry, raspberry, peach or other favorite). Sprinkle with remaining crumb mixture. Bake at 350* for 20-25 min. Cool and cut into bars.

Molten Lava Cakes

It seems like a long, long time ago that Jeremiah and I lived on the little island of Molokai. We rented a house on the west end of the island, about 30 minutes from town. There was a little town, Maunaloa, not too far from the house. The Lodge was in Maunaloa. Oh how I loved The Lodge. It had a little restaurant that overlooked the prairie (yep, a prairie on a tropical island, weird, right?) and you could see the island of Oahu in the distance. About once a week Jeremiah would take me to The Lodge for dessert at sunset. We would share coffee and a lava cake with mac nut ice cream while we watched the sunset. Sigh, what sweet, sweet days those were. To this day lava cakes are our favorite dessert. This is our favorite recipe, and believe me, I've tried a lot of them!

Ingredients:

4oz semi-sweet baking chocolate

1/2 cups butter

1 cup powdered sugar

2 whole eggs

2 egg yolks

6 T flour

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 425. Spray 4 custard cups with Pam and set on a cookie sheet. Melt chocolate and butter - you can do this on the stove, in the microwave, whatever. Stir in the sugar. Whisk in the eggs and egg yolks (make sure the butter/chocolate mixture isn't too hot!). Stir in the flour. Divide the mixture between the cups. Bake for 13-14 minutes until the sides are firm and the center is soft. Let stand 1 minute. Invert the cakes onto a plate and serve with your choice of toppings. Whipped cream, ice cream, chocolate or caramel syrup. Yum!

Sweet Soy Marinated Chicken

This is one of the meals I froze before Sarah was born. The first time I served it with edamame and I think that is best. Regardless of which veggie you choose, pair it with brown rice and it is almost as good as a Teriyaki Chicken Bowl! AND Moses will eat the chicken - that's a big deal around here!

Ingredients:

2 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken pieces (breasts and/or thighs)

Marinade:

1 cup honey

3/4 cup soy sauce

2 T crushed garlic

1 teaspoon ground ginger

Warm marinade ingredients in the microwave until honey is melted, about 1 1/2 minutes. Pour over chicken in freezer bag, label and freeze. When thawed, pour into baking dish, cover with foil, and bake for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Uncover, turn chicken and bake an additional 30 minutes.

Freeze in: 1-gallon freezer bag

Makes 4 servings

From Once a Month cooking by Mimi Wilson and Mary Beth Lagerborg

Baking tip: How to have homemade cookies in a snap!

I love feeding my family homemade treats. If they're eating sugar, I'd like to know it's from my own kitchen and not some high fructose corn syrup concoction. I don't, however, need a few dozen cookies laying around my house at any given time! So when I make cookies I will bake up a few and then scoop out the rest, using a miniature ice cream scoop, and pop the whole tray in the freezer for a couple of hours. Then I just put the cookies in a freezer bag, label them, and stick them in the freezer for future use! In just a few minutes we can have a yummy, warm, homemade cookie!

Happy baking!

Summer Orzo Antipasto Salad

Now that it's officially BBQ Season it's time to break out the fresh, light side dishes. This salad combines all of my favorite antipasto ingredients in an easy to eat pasta salad that goes great alongside a juicy burger or brat! It is easy to make, can be served chilled or room temperature and tastes just as good (if not better) the second day! I think olives, red onion and garbanzo beans would be good additions to this recipe as well.

Summer Orzo Antipasto Salad:

2 cups Orzo prepared according to package instructions then chilled (makes about 5 cups cooked pasta)

1 (8.5 oz.) can artichoke hearts, drained and sliced

1 stick pepperoni or salami, diced
1 c. Monterey Jack or Provolone cheese, diced
1 pt. cherry or grape tomatoes cut in half
1 red bell pepper, diced

½ cup toasted pine nuts

Toss all ingredients (except dressing) in a large bowl. Add dressing and toss. Transfer all to a large bowl. Refrigerate for at least one hour

ANTIPASTO DRESSING:

3 med. cloves garlic, crushed or grated
3 tbsp. chopped fresh basil
1/2 tsp. oregano
1 tbsp. fresh parsley
1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
pepper to taste
1/4 c. balsamic vinegar
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
1 c. olive oil

*image from: nowsonexitmusic.wordpress.com/2008/12/

Strawberry Chicken Salad

I am a huge fan when it comes to serving something grilled over a bed of greens. Don't believe me? Check out here, here, or here! Told ya! Really, though, I think it's one of the easiest things to do for dinner. Not to mention, there's minimal mess, it's healthy, and it doesn't heat up the kitchen on already warm days. This salad is no exception! It's a simple combination of ingredients so make sure they are all fresh! We like to pair it with a slice of french bread and a glass of Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc.

INGREDIENTS:
Chicken breasts (pounded out to uniform thickness, salted and peppered)
Spring mix
Strawberries (sliced)
Crumbled feta cheese
Sliced almonds
Raspberry Vinaigrette (We like Annie's Naturals)

DIRECTIONS:

Pound out chicken breasts between two pieces of wax paper until uniform thickness is achieved. Salt and pepper and then grill until cooked through. Allow chicken to rest for 10 minutes before slicing. While chicken is resting assemble spring mix, sliced strawberries, cheese and almonds. Top with sliced chicken and dressing.

It's Grillin' Season

What's your go-to marinade?

Aussie Burger

Now that my mom lives in Colorado with her husband and my dad has retired with his wife in Chama, my house has sort of become a hub for my all our family get-togethers. At least one Saturday night a month is filled with dinner with my siblings too. It's always a wonderful time; laughing and eating and just generally enjoying our time together! This last Saturday, when we all met here for dinner, my sister and bro-in-law graciously offered to bring the fixings for what they referred to as, "one AMAZING burger." Always up for trying something new, the rest of us agreed and started dividing up the cooking chores. And while this Aussie Burger took a lot more prep than the usual pickles and lettuce, the end result was shockingly mouthwatering and left us all with very full bellies and the ability to say that we have indeed tried a burger the Aussie way. The ingredients didn't quite leave us short for dinner conversation, either!

INGREDIENTS:

1 lb. 85/15 hamburger meat (shaped into 4 quarter lb. burgers and grilled to liking)
Hamburger buns (toasted)
1 can pickled beets
1 yellow onion, sliced into rings and grilled
4 eggs, cooked to over-hard
1 can of sliced pineapple (grilled)
4 slices of soft cheese (we liked Gouda)
BBQ sauce of choice
8 slices cooked Bacon

DIRECTIONS:

Grill hamburger patties to liking. Move to back of grill and top with slices of cheese, onions, and cooked over-hard egg. Once heated through, remove from grill and top with pineapple, beets, and bacon. Serve over toasted bun spread with BBQ sauce. Try not to laugh when you take your first bite :)