Pecan Pie Energy Balls

I got a Thermomix for Christmas. Having been diagnosed with high blood pressure last year, I have had to make a lot of dietary changes ... basically needing to make EVERYTHING (processed) from scratch. I kept thinking that a Thermomix would really help me do that! I was given the opportunity to borrow one from a friend for a few weeks to see they are really all that they are touted to be. They are ... and more! And now, one lives in my kitchen. I'm still learning how to use it to it's full capacity but I use it A LOT!

 

One thing I've been wanting to make is energy balls and when I saw a few recipes for Pecan Pie flavoured ones, I HAD to try them.  (I didn't use any one recipe but a  combination of a few.) I've made these a few times since!!  They are amazing.  Or should I say amazeballs? You know, since they are balls ... No?  Ok ... forget I said that.

Now ... you don't need a Thermomix to make these.  You could totally make them in a food processor. (You might want to do the nuts and dates separately and then add everything else?)

Thermomix measures in grams (right in the machine!!) so I'll put the measurements in grams ... sorry, you'll just have to grab out your kitchen scales!

350g pitted dates

65g rolled oats

30g pure maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract (I use my homemade vanilla)

1 tsp cinnamon

180g pecans

Chuck them all in the Thermomix together ... 12 seconds on speed 7. 

Roll them into balls.  

And that's it!!

Keep in fridge.  Not that they keep very long ... they get gobbled up pretty quick in this house!

Homemade Energy Bars

I love a good bar.  Since I made the big switch to exercising more and eating less I've looked for a good mid morning snack option. I tried several different bars, some I liked, some I didn’t. So we decided to make our own. 

Here is a recipe that you can as a base and experiment from there. The possibilities are endless.

Preheat oven to 325 F or 160 C 

Wet Ingredients:

1-1/2 bananas, or pumpkin, mashed 

3/4 cup light syrup, or honey, or agave nectar, or any combination you like.  

1/4 cup juice– I use orange/banana/pineapple juice; orange juice is fine

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

2 egg whites

Dry Ingredients:

3-1/2 cups rolled oats

1/4 cup protein powder– we used vanilla flavor

1-1/2 cups nonfat dry milk

1 tbsp cinnamon

1/2 cup assorted nuts– we have used almonds, pecans, soy nuts, pumpkin seeds, and flax seeds. 

1/2 cup dried fruit– we have used a number of combinations of cranberries, dates, and golden raisins, use what you like! 

1/2 cup dark chocolate chips– these are not necessarily a healthful option, but we like them, a lot. 

In separate bowls mix the wet and dry ingredients. Pour the wet bowl into the dry bowl and mix thoroughly. Really mix it. You don’t want any protein powder bits not mixed up. 

After it is mixed well, drop portions onto a pre-greased cookie sheet. Depending on the size you make the amount of calories will vary. I use a 1/4 cup and this makes around 20-22. I shape them into a bar shape with a couple of butter knives and bake them for 15-18 minutes, or until the edges turn a nice brown color. 

Take the bars out of the oven and place on a cooling rack. They will be soft, but as they cool they will firm up. We put a batch in tupperware before they cooled all the way and this was a mistake. Wait till they are cool! 

Delicious! tastes even better around 10:30 a.m. when your belly is empty! 

Depending on what you put in them and how you portion them, they have a calorie count of around 200, with almost 9 grams of protein. (using the 1/4 cup)

Enjoy. 

Ryan 

Granola (Meusli)

I tried this at Shay and Shawn's place while we were in the States last month.
I loved it, got the recipe and tried my hand at making it tonight. Sooooo yum !!

12 cups oats
2 cups unsweetened shredded coconut
4 cups coarsely chopped pecans & almonds & cashews
1 tsp salt

2/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup honey
2/3 cup oil, I used canola

preheat oven 300F/150C
put baking paper on baking sheet ... I actually used two deep baking pans b/c this makes heaps
mix first four ingredients

stir honey, brown sugar oil in saucepan over medium low heat until smooth. ( i just popped it into the microwave for a few minutes) pour over oat mixture, toss. spread on baking sheet

bake until golden, stirring every 10 minutes ... about 40 mins (mine took much longer ... it was in there over an hour)

stir. cool.

Apple Coffee Cake Streusel

I've long been searching for a recipe to make a cake I remember from my childhood. It was a coffee cake. It was cake on the bottom with buttery, brown sugary, crumble stuff on the top. I've never found what I was looking for. This morning, I came pretty close. The one I remember didn't have apple in it, but this filled the craving I have had for many many years to eat this cake again !!

I took elements from a couple of recipes I've tried recently and came up with this. There are three layers ...

For the Cake Layer:
2 tablespoons canola oil (I think you could probably use whatever oil you like)
1 & 1/2 cups flour
1/2 cup sugar
2 & 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 large egg
1/2 cup milk
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Place rack in center of oven, and heat oven to 160C/325F degrees. Spray a 9-by-12 & 1/2-inch baking pan with oil, lay baking paper on top of that and push it into the corners and up the sides to flatten it. (leave a little excess up the sides to easily remove the cake at the end) Set aside.

In a medium bowl, sift together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt; set aside. In a second bowl, whisk together egg, milk, canola oil, and vanilla. Using a rubber spatula, fold dry ingredients into wet ingredients.

Spread batter evenly into prepared baking pan, and set aside.

For the Apple Layer :
2 apples, peeled, cored & thinly sliced.
2 tablespoons sugar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg

Mix all ingredients in medium sized bowl. I used my fingers to rub the sugar and spices into the apple sliced. Cover cake batter with apples.

For the Streusel Layer :
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup butter, softened

In small bowl combine all ingredients and sprinkle on top of apples.

Transfer pan to oven, and bake, rotating pan every 10 minutes. Bake until a cake tester comes out clean, about 30/40 minutes. (this will depend on your oven ... I tested mine every 5 minutes after the first 20)

Transfer cake to a wire rack to cool. I actually pulled the cake out of the pan, using the excess baking paper ... it took two people to do it.

Let cool for a couple of minutes, then serve it up and enjoy ! Rory and the kids (and our friends who live next door) had creme fraiche with theirs but I just ate it as it was ... mmmmmmmm.

Chocolate Marble Banana Muffins

A friend of mine made these a few weeks ago...then my sister...so Saturday when I had a few bananas that needed to be used up I gave in and finally tried them. Delicious! I found the recipe here.

I only did a couple things differently, which are highlighted in orange.

Ingredients

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 cup quick-cooking oats
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 medium ripe bananas, mashed (about 1 cup)
• 1 cup buttermilk (I poured 1 Tablespoon white vinegar into a 1 cup measuring cup then filled it up with Vitamin D Milk and let is set for 5 minutes. Ta Da! Buttermilk!)
• 3/4 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup vegetable
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons cocoa powder
• 1 cup chocolate chips, optional

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray 12 count muffin tin.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
3. In a medium bowl, mash the bananas, then whisk in the buttermilk, sugar, oil, egg, and vanilla extract.
4. Pour the wet ingredients into the flour mixture, and whisk until just blended.
5. Remove one cup of the batter, and add it to a medium bowl. Whisk in the cocoa powder, just until blended.
6. Mix chocolate chips into the regular, white/yellow batter.
7. Divide the regular, white/yellow batter between muffin cups.
8. Scoop 1 tablespoon of chocolate batter on top of the batter in each muffin cup.
9. Using a toothpick, swirl the chocolate batter into the banana batter.
10. Bake for about 20 minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Fruits of the Forest Streusel

I saw a Blueberry Crumble recipe on line the other day and wanted to try it. But, I didn't have all the ingredients, blueberries being one of them and the crumble topping seemed a bit weak. So, I decided to make something up. Sort of. I used the filling recipe from the recipe I'd seen ... but substituted for the blueberries and then used the streusel topping from that magnificent apple cheesecake streusel

Here's what I did :

Filling:
1 box frozen Forest Fruits - no, I didn't bother to thaw them, I just used them frozen
1/2 cup sugar
1 tablespoon cornflour
a drizzle of lemon juice
a pinch of salt

Mix together ingredients from above and set aside.

Base and Topping:
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup oats
1/2 cup butter, softened

Mix together all ingredients. Push 1/2 (or maybe not quite half) of the streusel mix into the bottom of a springform pan, forming a very thin base. Top with berry mixture and then the rest of the streusel mix.

Bake in preheated oven on 180 til fruit is bubbling through the top edges and streusel topping is golden brown. I wasn't sure how long it would take so didn't set a timer and forgot to look at the clock .... but my best guess is that it was between 40 and 50 minutes.

Let set for a bit before trying to remove it from the pan !

Serve with a dollop of freshly whipped cream. (no sugar, just a spot of vanilla needed in the whipping !)

Cheesecake and Apple Crumble ? Together ? OH YEAH !

This is insanely delicious ! It's like cheesecake (my all time favorite dessert!) with apple crumble (a close second !!) on top !! It's supposed to also have caramel on top but I didn't do that on mine ... I think it was plenty rich without it.

I got this recipe from Mari ... who got it from Paula Deen.

Caramel Apple Cheesecake Bars
(Paula Deen)

2 cups flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup softened butter
2 - 8 ounce packages cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup sugar plus 2 tablespoons divided
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
3 granny smith apples, peeled, cored, cut and finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Streusel topping - recipe follows
1/2 cup caramel topping

Streusel topping
1 cup packed brown sugar
1 cup flour
1/2 cup quick cooking oats
1/2 cup butter, softened
In small bowl combine all ingredients

Heat oven to 350 degrees.
In a medium bowl, combine flour and brown sugar. Cut in butter with a pastry blender until mix is crumbly. Press evenly into a 9x13 baking pan lined with heavy duty aluminum foil. Bake 15 minutes or until lightly browned.

In a large bowl, combine cream cheese with 1/2 cup sugar at medium speed until smooth. Then add eggs, one at a time, and vanilla. Stir until smooth and pour over warm crust.

In a small bowl, stir together chopped apples, remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar, cinnamon and nutmeg. Spoon evenly over cream cheese mix.

Sprinkle evenly with streusel topping. Bake for 30 minutes or until filling is set.

Drizzle with caramel topping. (optional ... like I said, I didn't worry with this last step ...)

Maple Walnut and Oats on Fruity Yoghurt

I read on delish.com that you should eat Blueberries and Walnuts together. Apparently eating them together boosts memory, reduces oxidative stress and inflamation.

In an effort to eat these two things together, I came up with this little recipe.

I put a small scoop of oats in a bowl, add a handful of walnuts and some pure maple syrup.

Set aside.

Add a scoop or two of greek yoghurt to a small bowl, add some frozen blueberries and banana slices.

Set aside.

I leave both of these things for a little bit because I like the blueberries to thaw a bit ... and for the walnut to 'candy' a bit. When ready to eat, add oats & walnuts to yoghurt & fruit.

Mix & eat.

Warm Apple Cinnamon Maple Oats

A quick and easy breakfast for a cool morning.
I throw all of this stuff together and cook it at work sometimes !

All you need is ...
Rolled oats
An apple, finely diced. I like granny smiths.
Raisins (sultanas)
A sprinkle of cinnamon, ground
Pure Maple Syrup

Put the oats, apple and cinnamon in a bowl, cover (just) with water. Cook in microwave for a minute or two. Just til the apple has softened and the oats have cooked to your desired 'cookedness'. Throw in the raisins and top with a small drizzle of maple syrup. Mmmmm.

Dessert {Pizza} Experiments

We had dessert pizza at our friends place ... made in a wood fired oven ... a while back. The kids rave about it still so I thought I'd give it a go ! My pizza dough recipe actually makes four thin crust pizzas. I just roll one smaller one and three equal size ones. I use the smaller one for the dessert ...

For the blueberry and nectarine ... I just spread thickened cream on the base. Added frozen blueberries, slivered fresh nectarine, and then sprinkled with our nut/oat mix. Drizzled with a bit of maple syrup and into the oven. 400F/200C - still on from the dinner pizzas (!). 15 minutes or so ... but watch so the oats don't burn ! I drizzled with thickened cream to serve.

The second experiment was actually with a different dough (you can see it in the previous post if I forget to come back and link it !) that I like even better. The toppings were 1 cup mango - blended with a couple tablespoons of thickened cream and 5 dates. (I just threw those three things in my hand mixer and whizzed 'em into a thick paste) Spread that paste onto the dough. Sprinkle with same oat/nut mixture ... except that we've now added sultanas (raisins) and goji berries to the mix. 15 minutes in the 400F/200C oven and dessert is served. You could probably top with cream again but we didn't. This one was even better than the blueberry one !! Can't wait to try more ....

Yummo Apple Oats

Ok ... this is a combination of a few recipes I've seen around. The almond milk is based on an Ani Phyo recipe but with a few omissions.

You'll have to start this two days before you want to eat it (if you make your own almond milk). I know ... crazy planning involved but it's worth it.

To start you will need to soak the almonds overnight.

Then, put the following into your blender :

1/2 cup soaked almonds
1/2 cup pitted dates
5 cups water

Blend really really really well. I don't strain this ... it's not necessary in these oats.

That's you almond milk.

Then ...

Grate (skin on) two granny smith apples
Top with :
1.5 cups of rolled oats
2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/2 cup slivered almonds (and any other assortment of nuts/seeds you might like)
1.5 cups of almond milk

Mix it up, cover it and put it in the fridge ... it'll be ready in the morning !!

All you have to do in the morning is scoop it into your bowl ! I topped mine with chopped nectarine. My children topped theirs with a bit of extra milk and some frozen blueberries. Both ways were delicious !!!

Brekky

Years ago, my children started eating raw oats.
They just topped them with milk and ate them. They still do it.
I've decided to add to the oats ... and we all love it.

Here's what I do.
In a big plastic cereal container, I mix :

Rolled Oats.
Sunflower seeds.
Sesame seeds.
Flax seeds.
Slivered Almonds.
Pumpkin Seeds.

To eat we mix through some greek yogurt and top with some yummy fruit.
I keep frozen berries in the freezer. They are easy.
Fresh mango is yummy too ...

Agave and Honey Oat Cookies

I got the recipe for this at Cookie Madness.net - A site well worth checking out !
I made a couple amendments so I will post my amended recipe here ...

2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons agave nectar
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 tablespoon wheat germ
1/8 teaspoon EACH baking soda & baking powder
1/4 scant teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cups old fashioned oats
1/3 cup raisins (next time I'm going to try adding dried apricots as well) (and the time after that I am going to try adding just fresh blueberries ....)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Mix egg, agave, honey, oil and vanilla together in a bowl. Stir very well.

Combine flour, wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a bowl. Stir very well, then add to agave mixture and stir until blended. Stir in the oats and raisins. Let batter sit for about 5 minutes.

Using a tablespoon measure, scoop up dough and arrange on parchment lined cookie sheets spacing 2 inches apart. Bake one sheet at a time for about 10-11 minutes. Let cool completely.

Makes 8 cookies.

I doubled this recipe. The cookies were good for days. So filling that you only needed ( or even wanted ) one at a sitting ! Fantastic. Perfect for school lunches or a Mommy's breakfast on the run !!

Annie's Honey Muesli Slice

I don't know who Annie is and I don't remember exactly where I got this recipe from except that it was online somewhere. I am NOT A BAKER. I hate baking. I am not good at it. I do it RARELY and it's usually not a pleasant experience for me. I much prefer to cook. So ... I love it when I find recipes like this, where you get something that looks/tastes/seems like it has been baked, but it hasn't.

Ingredients:
2 cups rolled oats
2 cups rice bubbles ( rice krispies )
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
I also add flax seeds but that wasn't part of the original recipe
1/2 cup diced dried apricots
I also add raisins but that wasn't part of the original recipe either.
~
3/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
4 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons peanut butter
125g butter
~
How to Make It:
Combine dry ingredients in a big bowl. Mix well.
Combine brown sugar, honey, peanut butter and butter in a smallish saucepan. Heat til melted and then stir constantly for 5 minutes or til mixture is thick and caramel in color. Combine wet mixture with dry ingredients and mix well. PRESS evenly into 12 X 8. Original recipe said to grease the pan but I use baking paper instead. Then I can easily pull the whole thing out to cut it up into individual servings ! Refrigerate until firm before cutting. Store in fridge.

Enjoy ... I am !!!! :)

Granola a la Shay and Bonnie

This recipe was originally given to me by Shay. I've made a few changes ...

In a big bowl, mix 1/3 cup cold pressed canola oil, 1/3 maple syrup, honey or both and 1 tsp vanilla. Mix well.

~
Add:
4 cups oats
1 cup nuts (I like whole cashews, slivered almonds and a few peanuts)
some seeds (I like sunflower, sesame and flaz)
½ cup shredded coconut
bit of psyllium husk or wheatgerm

~
Mix real well. Should not be too dry. Will goop together but not like cookie dough.

~

Spread onto baking sheet ( keep together … don’t spread too thin or it will burn )

~
180C bake.

~

Stir every 5 minutes. Watch closely, especially at the end or it will burn.
Should be crispy and toasted.

~
Add dried fruit. (I like almonds and raisins)

~
Optional … choc chips. (I never add these but Shay always does !!)

~

Peach crumble

The addition of a surprising amount of lemon juice perks this up wonderfully.

INGREDIENTS
-8 ripe peaches, peeled and sliced (I used drained canned peaches, they were a little soft but tasted fine; I will try this again with fresh ones)
-juice of one lemon
-1/2t ground cinnamon
-1/4t ground nutmeg
-1/2 cup whole-wheat flour
-1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
-2T cold butter cut into small chunks
-1/4 cup rolled oats

Preheat the oven to 375 F. Lightly spray a 9" pie pan with cooking spray.

Arrange the peaches in the pan, sprinkle with lemon juice and spices.

In a small bowl, mix together flour and brown sugar. With your fingers, crumble the butter into it (it's OK to leave the butter a bit chunky). Stir in the oats. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over the peaches.

Bake till the juice is bubbly, the peaches soft and topping browned, about 30 minutes. Makes 8 smallish servings.

If you double this recipe, bake it in a 9x13 pan, and bake for 45 or so minutes.

Granola Peanut Butter Balls

Granola Peanut Butter Balls

www.foodnetwork.com

2 tablespoons honey
4 tablespoons peanut butter
2 cups granola
2 to 4 tablespoons milk, or as needed

In a large bowl, mix together the honey and peanut butter. Using a spatula, stir in the granola. Add enough milk to just moisten--you want it to stick together. Form into balls. Chill until ready to serve.

Yields: 16 balls

In the picture above, I drizzled a little melted chocolate on the tops. These are so yummy, and nutritious!