Homemade snacks and treats

Well, i haven't been keeping up with my blogs, now, have I? Sorry. End of session for my after school program ~ which also means enrollment for next session ~ coupled with out of town travel and sick kiddos have meant a busier than usual schedule. Nevertheless, we continue to pinch pennies. And to eat. So, yes, I have some recipes to post.

The truth is, I have been experimenting with a few recipes, and I wanted to test them and make some adjustments before I shared the results. One thing I have been working on is homemade granola bars. Kaia loves granola bars. I have been able to find some great deals on them, so it's not the cost that's the problem. However, I have long thought it would be nice to save all of that packaging and learn to make them at home. In addition to the environmental impact of all of those individually wrapped bars and boxes, I have been concerned about the ingredients in commercially available granola bars. My general feeling is that if my eyes start to glaze over halfway through the list of ingredients, there's probably too much crap in whatever's inside the package. Especially if I don;t even recognize some of the ingredients.

So, I stumbled upon this: (okay...I STILL cannot post a link here!! Ugh! here is the address ~ check it out! http://www.acupofflour.com/2011/08/05/easy-homemade-granola-bars/) and decided to give it a shot. Now, the first time I made them, I made a batch with a combination of chopped almonds, dried cherries and semisweet morsels as the add-ins. I liked those ones a lot. Kaia made a batch that day, too. Hers included just semisweet morsels as the add-ins. A whole cup of them. They were like candy bars. Naturally, the kids thought they were terrific. I, on the other hand thought they were a little more candy-like than I was hoping they'd be. I decided to play around with the recipe. Now, several batches later, I feel like I can say, "By Jove, I think I've got it!" Here is my revised recipe:

Homemade Granola Bars

3/4 c. peanut butter
1/3 c. honey
1/4 c. coconut oil
1 1/2 c. oats
2 1/2 TBS ground flaxseeds
1/2 cup semisweet morsels

Add peanut butter, honey, and coconut oil to a sauce pan over medium heat. Stir mixture until it melts and is evenly mixed.
Remove from heat and add oats and flaxseeds and stir well to combine. Stir in semisweet morsels. They will melt. (If you don't want them to melt, I think you could press the mixture into the square pan as below before adding the morsels, then sprinkle them on top and lightly press into the surface. I have not tested this theory, as my kids like the chocolate melted and mixed in to the bars.)
Pour mixture into a square pan lined with parchment paper, and spread evenly. Refrigerate for 1 – 2 hours.
Cut into bars. Store in an airtight container.

Now, I have to say this: these still strike me as being a bit more like a no-bake cookie than a granola bar. I feel like the oats should a bit crispier for it to qualify as a granola bar. I still want to try a more traditional baked granola bar recipe, but the kids love these, and I am happy with the result. even if it isn't exactly what I was going for, it is delicious.

So, the recipe testing continues. Right this very moment, my very first batch of homemade "fruit by the foot" is drying in a slow oven, and the new (to me) bread machine (purchased from craigslist for $30 ~ brand new, still in the box) is doing its thing, so we will have a freshly baked batch of homemade wheat bread in the morning. I'll let you know how those fruit treats work out. The instructions can be found here: http://outoftheboxfood.com/2011/09/04/foot-long-fruit-roll-up-recipe-update-frozen-berries/ If Kaia will eat them, I will feel I have staged a coup, since the kid doesn't usually eat fruit (except for bananas).

I feel good about feeding my kids healthy, whole, homemade foods, and they seem to enjoy trying all of my recipes. Just this afternoon, I got a request from Hallie for peanut butter banana "ice cream" sandwiches. We first made these many years ago, and all of the kids love them. It's easy to say, "yes" to treats when they are a perfectly healthy choice. In this case, the "ice cream" is actually a mixture of mashed bananas and peanut butter, sandwiched between graham crackers. This is very simple to do, and you will be surprised how much it tastes (and feels) like ice cream.

Begin by mashing a banana or two. Stir in a couple of tablespoons of creamy peanut butter. Place a graham cracker (if using the big ones, I break each one in half, but lately I have been using Trader Joe's Cinnamon Grahams, which are a great size for a little treat) on a sheet of plastic wrap. Top with a glob of the banana mixture, Don't spread it to the edges, as it will spread when you add the top of your "sandwich." Gently place another graham cracker on top of the filling. Wrap tightly with the plastic wrap and place on a plate or a tray for freezing. When you have assembled all of your sandwiches, freeze for a few hours, until the filling has frozen. Unwrap and enjoy.

I guess that's it for today. Sorry about the lack of pictures. Maybe I will try to add some later. In the meantime, you can just make yourself some treats, and then you'll know just how they look :)