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Posts Tagged ‘oats’

choc full of goodies; health-food cookies

30 May

 

While on a mission to bake some filling and healthy snacks for my 12 year old son to take to school, I’ve made an awesome discovery.  You see, I got distracted while making these cookies and it wasn’t until they were baked that I realized that I had left out the sugar – with delicious results.  These cookies are so full of everything good, that the omission of sugar turned it into a salty, savory confection instead of a sweet one.  The recipe is from Maida Heatter’s Book of Great Desserts, where she writes that she made these cookies for a health-food store in Miami Beach until the demand become more than she could handle.  I will give you the recipe as it was originally written.

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 cup unsifted all-purpose whole-wheat flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • 3/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon powdered ginger
  • 7 1/2 ounces (1 1/2 cups) currants or (soft) raisins (I used chocolate chips instead)
  • 4 ounces (1 generous cup) walnuts, coarsely broken or cut
  • 4 ounces (1 generous cup) pecans, coarsely broken or cut
  • 3 ounces (1/2 generous cup) pignolias (pine nuts)
  • 4 ounces (1 cup) peanuts, may be salted or not
  • 2 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) sunflower seeds
  • 2 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) sesame seeds
  • 1/2 cup wheat germ
  • 1 cup rolled oats or quick-cooking (not instant) oatmeal
  • 1/2 lb (1 cup) butter or margarine
  • 1/2 cup peanut butter (or other nut butter)
  • 1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/4 cup milk

DIRECTIONS

  1. Adjust rack to top position in the oven.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cut aluminum foil to fit cookies sheets.  Do not grease.
  2. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and ginger and use a strainer to strain into a very large bowl.  Add the raisins, and toss till they are coated with flour.  Add the walnuts, pecans, pignolias, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, wheat germ and rolled oats or oatmeal.  Mix together and set aside.
  3. In a mixing bowl, cream together the butter and peanut butter.  Add the sugar and beat well.  Beat in the eggs and the milk, scraping the bowl with a rubber spatula as necessary.
  4. Pour over the flour-nut mixture.  Stir with a heavy wooden spoon or spatula or mix with your hand, until the dry ingredients are completely absorbed.
  5. Make these large.  Place by 1/4 cupfuls 2 1/2- 3 inches apart on the foil.  With the back of a spoon, flatten the cookies to about 3/4 inch thickness.
  6. Bake 18 minutes or until cookies are lightly browned and semi-firm to the touch.  If necessary, reverse position of cookie sheet during baking to insure even browning.
  7. Use a wide metal spatula to transfer cookies to racks to cool.

photo credit: www.vegansisters.com

     
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    Posted in baking recipes, cookies, recipes, sugar free

     

    homemade granola

    14 Mar

    My good friend, Sarah Lasry of Tastebuds’ fame, introduced me to homemade granola as I know it today.  Before she opened her cafe in 2003, she had an intimate gathering around her dining room table for the purpose of tasting the dishes to be served at the restaurant.  I was one of a select few people chosen, whose criticism and approval she sought.  One of the items Sarah served us was this homemade granola with just enough plain yogurt on top to moisten and hold the ingredients together.  In the restaurant, it was taken to a new level with fresh sliced strawberries, fresh blueberries and perhaps a few slices of banana on top.  The granola was always in high demand in the store and was sometimes sold in gourmet bags to go.  Here is the original recipe as printed in Sarah Chases Nantucket Open House Cookbook.  Sarah Lasry printed it with a variation in her Dairy Gourmet Cookbook.

    Granola is one of those things that are easy to make and a treat to have on hand for those occasions that you need a little extra something on hand.  It’ll dress up a breakfast, a shalosh seudos and even an impromptu visit by a friend for coffee.  I usually do not add the dried fruit to the granola.  I like to decide what I want to add with regard to dried or fresh fruit when I am serving it.  This recipe makes a large amount but freezes well.  I have given this for mishloach manos once or twice and received great feedback! 

    HOMEMADE GRANOLA

    Ingredients

    • 9 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
    • 4 cups shredded coconut
    • 1 1/2 cups whole hazelnuts
    • 1 1/2 cups slivered or sliced almonds
    • 3/4 cup honey
    • 1 1/2 cups vegetable oil
    • 1 cup golden raisins
    • 1 cup dark raisins
    • 1/2 cup chopped dates, optional
    • Other diced fruit like apricots, figs, prunes can be added or substituted.

    Directions

    Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

    Toss oats, coconut, and nuts in a large roaster pan or cookie sheet.  Whisk honey & oil in a small bowl.  Pour over oats and mix till coated.  Bake 25-35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, till golden.

    Remove from oven and aerate by mixing several times while it’s cooling.  Add dried fruit, if desired.

    Note: I’m not sure if you want this information, but at one point, I figured out the calorie content of this recipe.  I included 1 cup of raisins and 1/2 cup of dates in the nutritional facts.  The results were as follows: there are 770 calories per cup of granola which translates to 48 calories per tablespoon.  The total fat per cup is 41g, sat fat 11g, carbs 90g, fiber 12g, sugars 33g, protein 17g

     

    Ina Garten has a granola recipe which was inspired by the one above.  It is equally delicious and of a lesser quantity.  I also prefer the dried cherries and cranberries to the raisins, which you can switch in the above recipe as well. You can see it here http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/homemade-granola-recipe/index.html

    Ingredients

    • 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
    • 2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
    • 2 cups sliced almonds
    • 3/4 cup vegetable oil
    • 1/2 cup good honey
    • 1 1/2 cups small diced dried apricots
    • 1 cup small diced dried figs
    • 1 cup dried cherries
    • 1 cup dried cranberries
    • 1 cup roasted, unsalted cashews

    Directions

    Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

    Toss the oats, coconut, and almonds together in a large bowl. Whisk together the oil and honey in a small bowl. Pour the liquids over the oat mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until all the oats and nuts are coated. Pour onto a 13 by 18 by 1-inch sheet pan. Bake, stirring occasionally with a spatula, until the mixture turns a nice, even, golden brown, about 45 minutes.

    Remove the granola from the oven and allow to cool, stirring occasionally. Add the apricots, figs, cherries, cranberries, and cashews. Store the cooled granola in an airtight container.

     
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    Posted in recipes