Camping Granola Bars

I love when a new family tradition blossoms.  One of those for my family has been an annual cabin camping trip to Hanging Rock State Park.  A tradition within a tradition has been to have these yummy granola bars as part of that trip.  When the trip gets calendared the next thing out my kids' mouths is "You have to make those granola bars, Mom!"

Ingredients:
8 cups oats (we use old fashioned)
1 cup butter, melted
2 tsp. vanilla
2 cups brown sugar
1 cup corn syrup or honey
2 tsp. salt

Optional ingredients:
1 cup peanut butter
chocolate chips
nuts
coconut
dried fruit
cinnamon
etc.

1.  Mix all together in large bowl.  Use your hands to evenly mix.
2.  Press firmly into a large, greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 400 degrees until the bars are golden brown and have begun to bubble a little.
 At this point you can sprinkle chocolate, peanut butter, and/or vanilla chips across the top if you want to.  Allow them to melt and then spread in a thin layer.

3.  Cool completely and cut into bars.

Source:  Melissa Coombs' cookbook, The Hows and Whys of the Year Supply (Chat N Chew Granola Bars)

Notes:

• I doubled the original recipe in the amounts above, so you can easily half it if you need less bars.
• I like to wrap my bars in wax paper and tape closed.

Enjoying a rest at the top of a very long, very steep hike!

Potato Soup

So,  I needed a slow cooker meal to have tonight so that I wouldn't have to spend so much time in the kitchen after work because my daughter and her family might be coming over for supper and Family Night.  I also had a sack of spuds to use, leftover from a beach retreat with my sisters.  Enter my Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook.  I love my slow cooker--really need to use it more often.  Anyway, Potato Soup sounded like a good idea and I just picked one of many recipes in the book.  SCORE!!  This was delicious!  And not as fattening as my normal stove-top recipe, because I usually add bacon drippings for flavor.  This recipe did not even need it.  Enjoy.

Ingredients:

6 potatoes, peeled and cubed

2 leeks, chopped (I didn't have any so I just added some minced garlic)

2 onions chopped (.......used dehydrated)

1 rib celery (actually had that!)

4 chicken bouillon cubes (I used chicken bouillon powder and added it to the water below)

1 T. dried parsley flakes

5 cups water

1 T. salt (I did that, but in retrospect, it was a little much)

pepper to taste (I used about 1/2 tsp.)

1/3 cup butter

13-oz can evaporated milk (that is not in the picture, because I was debating about using it.  I did    end up using it.)

chopped chives

1.  Combine all ingredients except milk and chives in slow cooker.

2.  Cover.  Cook on Low 10-12 hours, or High 3-4 hours (mine was more like 5 or 6 hours because I was at work for 5 hours).  Stir in milk during last hour.

3.  If desired, mash potatoes before serving.

4.  Garnish with chives.  Fresh would be better but I only had dried.

Source:  Jeanne Hertzog, Marcia S. Myer, Rhonda Lee Schmidt, Mitzi McGlynchey, Vera Schmucker, Kaye Schnell and Elizabeth Yoder in FIX-IT AND FORGET-IT, 2000 ed., p. 61. 

Danielle's Caramel Apple Popcorn Clusters

Ingredients:

2 T. oil                                                                           12 T. (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter,
2/3 c. popcorn kernels                                                         cut into pieces
4 c. dried apple chips, broken into pieces                       Kosher salt
1 c. unsalted almonds, roughly chopped                          1/4 t. apple pie spice
2 c. apple juice                                                              1/4 to 1/2 t. cayenne pepper (optional)
2 c. packed light brown sugar
1/4 c. light corn syrup

Directions:

1.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Heat the oil in a pot over medium-high heat.  Add the popcorn kernels; cover and cook, shaking the pan, until the popping subsides.  Remove from the heat and let any remaining kernels pop for 30 more seconds.  Divide the popcorn between the prepared baking sheets, discarding any unpopped kernels.  Scatter the apple chips and almonds on top.

2.  Make the caramel:  Bring the apple juice, brown sugar and corn syrup to a boil in a large heavy-bottomed pan over medium-high heat.  Cook without stirring until the mixture is deep amber and a candy thermometer registers 280 degrees, about 30 minutes (the caramel will bubble vigorously toward the end of the cooking time).

3.  Stir the butter into the caramel until melted.  Add 2 t. salt and the apple pie spice.  Add the cayenne, if using, and cook until slightly thickened, about 1 minute.  Remove from the heat.  Pour the hot caramel over the popcorn mixture and carefully toss with 2 rubber spatulas.  Let cool slightly, then separate the mixture into clusters while still warm.  Let cool completely.

Source:  Food Network

Grilled Chicken Piccata

Who says you can't grill past Labor Day? In our home, we grill year round! This is such a tasty recipe. Once you take a bite, you'll think you're at your favorite Italian restaurant. Gotta give major props to Pioneer Woman (P-Dub if you will) for this amazing recipe! 

Ingredients:

Chicken
Juice of 1 lemon (3 Tbsp)
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/2 tsp basil or oregano
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts

Pasta
2 cups dried penne pasta
2 Tbsp butter Juice of 2 lemons (6 Tbsp)
1 Tbsp minced garlic
1/2 cup half and half (or heavy cream)
2 tsp dried basil
2 Tbps capers (you'll find these by the olives at the grocery store)
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Directions:
Chicken
1. Combine first 6 ingredients.
2. Place chicken in a zipper bag and pour marinade mixture over chicken. Marinate overnight in the refrigerator.
3. When ready to cook, grill.

Pasta
1. While chicken is grilling, cook pasta. Reserve 1/2 cup of pasta water and drain.
2. In same sauce pan, melt butter over medium heat. Whisk in garlic and lemon juice.
3. Pour in half and half and whisk until hot. Add some salt and pepper to taste.
4. Add the Parmesan cheese, basil and capers, and heat until cheese is melted. Check the consistency of the sauce and add some of the reserved pasta water to loosen the sauce if necessary.  5. Toss in pasta. Serve in pasta with grilled chicken on top. Sprinkle with more Parmesan if desired.

Pumpkinger Bread

I know that I did a post a few months back on how much I love pineapple.  But, let me tell you about how much I love Pumpkin and Fall in general!  I mean I love this time of year!  Any recipe with pumpkin, sweet potatoe, allspice, cinnamon, chocolate, cloves, ginger bread...oh, man! I could go on, and on, and on, but I want.  Just know that if I post a recipe on this blog and it has any of the above mentioned...its good.  Really good. 

This recipe was found on pinterest! I tucked it away for this fall season and pulled it out today to make and take over to my new neighbors!  (By-the-way, they are a very nice family.) Anyhoo, this recipe makes me happy for another reason other than the pumpkin and the spices,  it make two loaves!  You gotta love that.  Because, sometimes in baking you can't just double a recipe.  You have to make it twice! And that gets old.  So, I loved that this makes two BIG loaves the first go round!

We made some cream cheese icing to smear on it and ...sorry, there wasn't any left to photograph. But it was yummy too!

3 cups white granulated sugar
1 cup vegetable oil
4 large eggs
2/3 cup water
1 (15oz) can pumpkin puree
2 tsp. ground ginger   (which is why i named this "pumpkinger" bread)
1 tsp. ground allspice
1 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground cloves
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking soda
 1 1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp. baking powder

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Lightly grease two 9x5 inch loaf pan. ( I generously sprayed Pam and it worked great!)

Mix your wet ingredients first. Beat together the following until smooth: sugar, oil, and eggs. Then add the water. Blend well. Add the pumpkin puree, and blend well. Then to the wet ingredients add the spices.  The ginger, allspice, cinnamon, and clove.

In a seperate bowl mix together your dry ingredients.  The flour, baking soda, salt, and baking powder. Add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and blend well. Divide the batter between the two loaf pans and bake!

Bake for about 1 hour or until your toothpick inserted comes out clean. I had to bake mine for about 1 hour and 15 minutes.

Recipe adapted from pinterest.

Milk Art

The other day while I was browsing through Pinterest searching for a project to do, I ran across a little fun art activity that looked interesting.  Since it only takes 3 common household "ingredients" I decided to hop up from the computer right then and give it a try.  It's easy, quick, and fun to watch.  Take pictures to preserve your beautiful art!

"Ingredients"
milk (2% or higher was recommended)
liquid food coloring
dish soap

1.  Take a plate and pour in some milk.   You don't need much; just enough so you can't see the plate underneath.
2.  Drop 2-3 drops of each color food coloring in the center of the plate.  Place the colors near each other.
3.  Pour 1 drop of dish soap in the very center and watch the magic!

Source:  Flutter Flutter

The food coloring will continue to move around slowly.  When it's done (or your kids are ready to do it again) rinse the plate in the sink and go again!  You can also take a toothpick and swirl it around on the plate for more action.

Have fun!

"Boiled" Eggs

Oh, y'all...you have got to try this technique when you need to boil a large number of eggs.  Like a dozen or two.  So quick and easy!  I saw this on....wait for it...PINTEREST.  Yes and it was a success.  I did it quickly while I was preparing Veggie Shooters for a board meeting--which was my 9/27 post.

Ingredients:
Eggs (can't get any simpler than that)

1.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
2.  Place eggs in muffin pan.
3.  Bake for approximately 25 minutes.



Perfection and easier to peel than boiled.


Source: Pinterest.