Super Nutty Granola Bars

I made this without a recipe - just threw a bunch of stuff I wanted in a bowl with a few ingredients to hold it together and voila! I didn't put any salt in mine and they would have been much better with, but when I melted the chocolate I added some salt.

Recipe
Yields: 24
Ingredients:

2 Tbsp Butter softened
1/4 Cup + 2 Tbsp honey
1 ripe banana smashed
1 egg
2 Cups old fashioned oats
1/2 Cup unsalted peanuts (cut in half)
1/2 Cup raw almonds (cut in half)
1/2 Cup raw pecans (cut in half - quartered if they are big)
2 Tbsp wheat germ
1 Tbsp flax seed
1/2 tsp salt
Enough chocolate to cover the bars


Preheat oven to 325. Butter a


Whisk together butter, honey, banana and egg until well blended. Fold in oats, nuts, wheat germ, salt and flax seed. Press into pan and bake for 17-19 minutes or until golden brown.

Invert onto cutting board and let cool. Do not cut.

Over a double boiler melt the chocolate until smooth. Pour over the bars and spread evenly. Cut into bars. Refrigerate to harden chocolate

Chocolate Lava Cake

YUM! This was the perfect recipe because I was able to size it down to make enough for just Dac and I. It was D-E-L-I-C-I-O-U-S! Of course I will alter it a bit next time to make it even better, but it was great as is. And semi-healthy for you. I made it with spelt flour and agave. I actually might reduce the butter by about 1 Tbsp next time.

Such a simple recipe. Total time to make was about 20 minutes.

Next time I will probably add either a tsp of vanilla or amaretto. I will also make it with dark chocolate. I will also make either a strawberry or raspberry sauce to drizzle on top. Would be perfect with like a bite of vanilla ice cream to eat after wards to wash it all down with.


Recipe

Ingredients

3 ounces semi-sweet chocolate (Next time I will do dark chocolate)
6 Tbsp butter (next time I will do 5 T)
2 Tbsp Agave nectar
1 1/2 eggs
2 Tbsp + 1/2 tsp spelt flour

In a double boiler melt the chocolate and butter. Meanwhile whisk together the agave and eggs. Beat quickly until frothy and almost white in color (about 5 minutes). Slowly drizzle the melted chocolate into the egg mixture. Do not add all at once or you will scramble the eggs. Add the flour and mix only until incorporated. Butter the bottom and sides of ramekins. Pour mixture a little more than halfway up. Bake for 10-12 minutes (depends on your oven - mine took 12 minutes). Tops will look uncooked and the center will be gooey. If you do not want a super gooey center bake a little longer.

Orange Genoise with Chocolate Buttercream Icing

I had been craving a chocolate/orange combination dessert for a couple days now. Ever since I saw the Barefoot Contessa make orange/chocolate fondue.

We were going to a friends for dinner and I decided to make this cake. A genoise is similar to a sponge cake. It is able to absorb liquids very well without falling apart.

The cake came out very yummy. The only thing I would do different next time is bake it about 5 minutes less. It wasn't over cooked by any means - it just would have been a little lighter.

This will be a great cake made a bunch of different ways. Raspberries - strawberries - peaches - any combination of those too.

I think I would like to find a different icing. This one hardened after being applied to the cake and refrigerated. Even after bringing to room temp it was still somewhat hard (but not gross hard).

Recipe

Ingredients:

Genoise Cake
4 Tbsp unsalted butter
4 large eggs (Room temperature)
1/2 cup sifted cake flour
1/2 cup sifted all purpose flour
1/8 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 orange

Melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium hear. Skim the foam off the surface and continue to cook until the butter turns light brown. Sieve the butter into a medium bowl and let cool. (If butter is hot it will deflate the batter)

Preheat the oven 350. Line the botton of the pan with parchment paper and butter and dust with AP flour. Set aside. (Important to do this step since the batter will be immediately poured in when done mixing)

Resift the flours with the salt and set aside.

Beat the eggs, vanilla and sugar on med-high for 3 minutes. Add the orange zest and increase to high and beat for 2 minutes until they are pale and thick and form a ribbon when beaters are lifted. Sift about half of the flour mixture over the eggs and fold in rapidy and gently until almost all of it is incorporated. Sift on the remaining flour and fold rapidly byt genly until almost incorporated. Immediately transfer about 1 cup of the mixture to the butter and fold rapidly to combine well, then fold the butter mixture into the egg-flour mixture. Immediately scrape the batter into the pan and carefully spread it level.

Bake for 20-25 minutes (I did 25 minutes - I will do 20 next time) until golden brown, springs back when gently pressed and slightly shrinks at the edges of the pan. Immediately run a knife aroudn the edges and carefully invert on cooling rack. Then invert again on another cooling rack so it cools right side up. Let cool completely before icing/filling.

Grand Marnier Syrup

In a small bown mix together:
1/2 Cup sugar
1/2 Cup hot water (I boiled water in a tea pot)
2 Tbsp Grand Marnier

Buttercream
2 Tbsp unsalted butter
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate - chopped
1 ounce semisweet chocolate - chopped
1/4 Cup heavy cream + 2 Tbsp
2 tsp vanilla
2 Cups confectioners sugar
1 tsp orange zest

Melt the butter, chocolates and cream in a medium saucepan and heat over low heat, stirring occasionally until very smooth. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla and confectioners sugar. Let cool to room temperature, stirring occasionaly. (A skin will form as it cools) The buttercream is ready to use when it is firm enough to hold a soft shape. Beat in the skin before use. Refrigerate if not using within 6 hours, but bring to room temp before icing the cake.

To assemble - cut the cake in 2 layers. Put the bottom layer cut side up and brush half of the syrup on. Ice with about 3/4 cup of the buttercream. For the top layer put the cake of a piece of plastic wrap on the counter top - or if firm enough - hold on your hand. Brush the cut side with the remaining syrup. Carefully put the syrup side down on the other half of the cake. Ice the rest of the cake. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour (or up to one day) Let stand at room temp for 15 minutes before serving.

Chocolate Chip, Oatmeal, Cherry, Almond, Spelt Cookies

Yes another weird concoction. I love baking with spelt flour. Its easier to digest and has a decent amount of protein. It also has a slightly nutty flavor to it which adds something to whatever I bake with it. I usually use dried cranberries but I tried it this time with dried cherries. They were good, but a little on the sour side. I might try to find better cherries next time. I think any dried sweet fruit would work well in this. This recipe was inspired by a similar cookie that Matt makes. Every time I make them everyone loves them and they are gone in no time.

Recipe

Yields 2 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

1/2 Cup spelt flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/16 tsp salt

5 Tbsp unsalted butter softened

Almost 1/4 cup agave

1/4 Cup brown sugar

1/2 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1/2 Cup old fashioned oats

1 Tbsp Wheat Germ

1/4 Cup chocolate chips

1/4 Cup chopped almonds (or any other nuts you like)

1/4 Cup dried cherries (or another dried fruit - or combination)

1 tsp. flax seeds (optional - very good for you and will give it a nutty flavor)

Preheat oven to 350. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in medium bowl. Set aside.

Beat together the agave, brown sugar and butter until smooth. Beat in egg and vanilla until blended. Add oats, wheat germ (flax if adding) and flour mixture and mix on low until blended. Fold in chocolate chips, nuts and dried fruit.

Drop onto prepared sheets by the teaspoon. (Not heaping) Be sure to place 2 inches apart because the cookies will spread when they bake. Bake only one sheet at a time for 10-12 minutes or until the edges are slightly brown. Let cool on sheet for 5 minutes and then cool on rack.

Buckwheat Chocolate Chip Cookies

I know what you're thinking - gross and weird. Well Dac wanted me to make a healthy version of his favorite cookie - chocolate chip. Buckwheat is made from the buckwheat berry. It is gluten free. I would have used dark chocolate - since it is better for you than milk chocolate - but it was 10pm and I only had milk chocolate kisses. I also used agave instead of white sugar. Agave has a lower glycemic index so it doesn't spike your blood sugar as high as white sugar. The cookies actually came out pretty yummy. Dac ate 4 of them and would have kept going....

Recipe

Ingredients:

4 T Butter softened

1/3 Cup Agave

1 egg

1/2 T vanilla

1/2 Cup + 4 Tbsp Buckwheat Flour

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/4 tsp salt

Handful of chocolate chips

Handful of chopped almonds

Preheat oven to 325. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Blend butter and agave until fluffy (2 minutes). Add the egg and vanilla and beat until combined.

In separate bowl combine the flour, baking soda and salt. Add to the butter mixture and combine. Fold in the chips and nuts.

Drop by the teaspoon onto the cookie sheets and press to flatten a bit. Bake for 10 minutes. Let cool on baking sheet for a few minutes and then move to cooling racks.

Idea

I had a great idea today while baking with Matt today. I was inspired and I'm going to get started on it today!! I'm really excited about this idea. :) I'm sure you're thinking what is it? But I want to keep it to myself for the time being......

Lime Squares

I have made this recipe before using lemon zest and lemon juice so I decided to try it using Lime zest and juice. I also didn't have any white flour so I substituted pastry flour for the crust. I only cooked them 25 minutes (after baking the crust 20min) and they were a little over cooked. Next time I don't think I will use limes or I will think of a way to change the recipe to have more of a lime flavor. The crust with the pastry flour was good with the pastry flour. The recipe overall was a 6 - it wasn't what I wanted but was still good. Lacked good flavor. Maybe use orange zest next time? hmmm...and slice up almonds...

Recipe:

Crust:

1 Cup Flour

1/4 Cup confectioners sugar

1/2 Cup butter softened

Mix crust ingredients and press into an 8x8 inch pan. Bake at 350 for 15-20 mins until almost golden brown.

Filling:

1 Cup sugar

2 eggs

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

2 Tbsp. lime zest

2 Tbsp. lime juice

Mix all ingredients together until light and fluffy about 3 minutes. Pour over hot crust and bake 20 minutes or until center springs back when lightly touched. Let cool. Cut into squares and dust with powdered sugar.

Mango - Banana Protein Smoothie

Ok - this is the simplest recipe but oh my god was is delicious!! I was in the mood for something sweet (what else is new) but wanted something healthy (of course!) Shakes are the one of the best things for you. So much nutrition in a glass! I like whey protein. I use Jay Robb Whey Protein Powder - Vanilla. It calls to use and entire scoop - but I don't need that much protein - especially at 8 o'clock at night...Ok - heres the recipe

5 ice cubes

1 banana

1/2 fresh ripe mango

1/2 scoop vanilla protein powder

1/2 Cup skim milk

Pulse in a blender until smooth.

Raspberry Granita

A friend of mine, Johnny, went on a hike and brought back about a pint of fresh wild raspberries. I decided to make a couple desserts with them. The first was a raspberry granita. It was a little too sweet so next time I will leave out the agave and reduce the honey to 1/4 Cup.

Ingredients:

2 1/2 cups fresh raspberries

1 Cup Peach raspberry ice tea (I brewed the day before and sweetened with honey)

1/2 Cup honey

2 T. Agave Syrup

3/4 Cup water

Combine everything in blender and puree until smooth. Sieve to remove the seeds. Pour into a 13x9 inch baking dish. Freeze 1 1/2 hours and mix edges into slushy center. Continue to freeze until solid. Stirring every 45 minutes or so. Takes about 4-5 hours to freeze completely. Scrape into corner of dish and use an ice cream scoop to serve. Can serve with a couple of fresh raspberries on top.