Breakfast, Granola, Recipes

No Bake Tropical Energy Bites

Sarah

So, as you guys know, I’ve been furiously writing away on my thesis for the past few weeks. I worked on it before, but I took a break from my campus jobs to really focus. That helped… but you wanna know what really helped? These awesome, tropical little bites of energy! Enjoying a treat full of coconut, apricot, mango, and white chocolate makes the tedious just a lil bit better!

So many good things could be said about these little treats. I think the most important thing about them [besides their fun flavors!] is that they are little! I’ve always loved cute little things like these pumpkin chocolate chip muffins [sorry about the photo, I reallllllllly need to update the pic of these muffins for the blog] or way back in the day [circa 5th grade], those mini poptarts. Anyone remember them? My favorite flavor was grape or wildberry or something like that… they were so small you couldn’t put them in the toaster, and I used to beg my mom to let me eat them on the way to the bus stop. No idea why, but she never liked the idea because then it meant I couldn’t brush my teeth after eating. I thought that was the dumbestexcuseeverughmomnooooooo! Now, I wouldn’t really dream of eating poptarts, especially not on the way to the bus stop, because I’m obsessed with brushing my teeth. Go figure.

Well, these energy bites are most assuredly not mini poptarts, but they are just as tasty [if not more so!!]. These energy bites are sweet, filling, and a snap to throw together. They literally take 5 minutes to stir together and another 5-10 to shape. Add in some downtime in the middle to chill [perhaps during your favorite TV show? Or while reading a “scholarly” article…sigh.], and you’re ready to go.

I stored them in the fridge and loved taking the first gloriously cold, slightly sticky bite. Indulgent and delightful, I say. [Ben ate them in one bite and just said yum.] Whatever you say, just be sure to make them soon. I wish I had more right now! Anyone wanna send me a care package? 🙂

No Bake Tropical Energy Bites [inspired by these energy bites]
click to print

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup old-fashioned oats
  • 1 cup coconut flakes [I used sweetened but unsweetened would work too]
  • 1/3 cup dried apricots, diced
  • 1/3 cup dried mango, diced
  • 1/3 cup white chocolate chips
  • 1/2 cup honey
  • 1/3 cup coconut oil [melt on low heat in the microwave to bring to liquid consistency for easier stirring]
  • 1/2 teaspoon coconut extract
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Directions:

In a large bowl, stir together oats, coconut, apricots, mango, and white chocolate chips. In a small bowl or measuring cup, whisk together honey, oil, and extracts. Pour wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, then stir to combine.

Let chill in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to firm up, then roll into heaping tablespoon-sized balls. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week [if they last that long] and enjoy!

Time: 45 minutes [15 minutes active].

Yield: about 2 dozen bites.

Menu Plans

Menu Plan

Sarah

Week of October 8

Monday: I made batch of black beans. I ate mine over a baked sweet potato and Ben added his to some leftover taco meat to make a burrito.
Tuesday: leftovers
Wednesday: Chicken Tortilla Soup
Thursday: Pumpkin Alfredo Pasta
Friday: breakfast for dinner!!! I’m feeling pancakes…
Saturday: out to eat
Sunday: turkey meatballs and rice

so, this is a little late… but better late than never, right?

Breads, Recipes

SRC: Maple Cornmeal Drop Biscuits

Sarah

My Secret Recipe Club assignment this month was Katrina’s fabulous blog, Baking and Boys! As I say every month, I love being part of the SRC. It’s a fun way to try new blogs and recipes and be part of a great community. If you’ve missed my past SRC posts, the premise is this: you’re assigned a different member’s blog every month. You visit their blog, choose any recipe you want, then make it and share it on your blog… all while keeping your assignment a secret! Everyone else posts about their secret blog the same day. It’s fabulously fun to try out new blogs. If you have a blog, definitely check it out and consider joining! I highly recommend it.

Katrina is a devoted wife and mom, always involved with the lives and activities of her husband and their four[!!!!] sons. I can’t imagine how she finds time to bake and blog so many goodies all the time, but she does. I guess it’s because you always make time for what’s important to you. And feeding your family with delicious food is typically a high priority for many, including Katrina.

When I was perusing Katrina’s blog for something to serve with some potato soup I was making for a dinner with friends, I came across this story on her blog about how she made these fabulous maple cornmeal drop biscuits only to have them meet a tragic ending in her oven. You should check out the story, it’s really sad and totally something I would do. So in honor of that event, I thought I would recreate these maple cornmeal drop biscuits. The recipe technically wasn’t on Katrina’s blog since it was made as part of the Tuesdays with Dorie blog group. I thought long and hard whether this was something that I should make for a SRC post in that case, but decided the story was just too good to not share. So I hope that is alright with the SRC-powers-that-be… because these maple cornmeal drop biscuits should definitely get some attention.

They are flaky, sweet, and so easy to make. Instead of regular yellow cornmeal, I used a stoneground local blue cornmeal that I got at our farmer’s market recently. It tastes really good, but I suspect that’s why my biscuits don’t look quite so pretty–browned blue turns a bit of a funny color. Maybe it’s my oven. Anyone have any tips for baking with blue cornmeal? Regardless of their appearance, these maple cornmeal drop biscuits will definitely be added to my rotation of quick breads to serve with soup. We ate them plain, dipped in soup [butternut squash apple and potato], and think they would have been great with pumpkin butter, but I forgot that at home so it wasn’t an option. Sad day.

Thankfully, these biscuits are a snap to make, so I can taste test them with pumpkin butter very, very soon. Hope you enjoy them as much as we did! And Katrina… thanks for the recipe. Hope you make them again soon!

Maple Cornmeal Drop Biscuits

  • Servings: 12
  • Print

from Baking with Boys! via A Little Something…..Sweet!

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1 cup yellow cornmeal, preferably stone-ground [I used blue]
  • 1 tablespoon baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 6 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into 12 pieces
  • 1/2 cup milk [I used skim]
  • 1/4 cup pure maple syrup

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Prepare a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat.

In a large bowl, stir together flour, cornmeal, baking powder, and baking soda. Add butter and toss to coat using your fingers or a pastry blender until butter is mixed in well in pieces no bigger than a pea. Pour in milk and maple syrup and stir together gently until a very soft dough forms.

Spoon dough into 12 mounds on prepared baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Bake for 13-15 minutes [mine were done in about 13, but original recipe said 15] or until golden brown. Serve warm.

Be sure to check out the other fabulous recipes posted today (click below) for this week’s SRC reveal. Have a great day!



Beef, Main Dishes, Recipes

1970s Style Tacos

Sarah

Hello! I’m back. 🙂 Thanks for all your kind comments on my last few posts. It’s been a busy week and a half with my sister’s bridal shower and then working like mad on my thesis draft. I’m still not finished yet :(… but I’m making definite progress so that is a very good thing. Anyways, I thought about not blogging until I had the draft done but that didn’t seem like a good idea so here I am. Yay! On to more important things… like these awesome tacos!

1970s style tacos - an easy way to get your taco fix using pantry ingredients when you're all out of taco seasoning!

I feel like awesome is quite the appropriate term to describe these really good tacos since they are from the 1970s. I found the recipe in the September issue of Everyday Food, and the recipe was originally made by the author’s Aunt Colleen, in the–you guessed it–1970s! Since I don’t have an Aunt Colleen, I decided a rename was in order. As a side note, I made these tacos almost immediately after receiving my issue in the mail. This NEVER happens!! But these tacos were so easy, so flavorful, and so fun that I should definitely start making good looking recipes right away… Why? So I have more time left in my life to enjoy them, silly!

These tacos might seem fairly simple–onion, garlic, cayenne, chili powder, and tomato paste–but let me tell you, it’s loaded with flavor. Seriously, it tastes just like those handy grocery-store packets or homemade spice mix…but with some fresh ingredients too. Whoa! What could be better? We absolutely adored their rich depth of flavor… and their utter simplicity and speed. Perfect for a weeknight meal.

Oh… and if there are leftovers… check out this loaded taco salad! Utterly amazing.

1970s style tacos - an easy way to get your taco fix using pantry ingredients when you're all out of taco seasoning!

Enjoy!

1970s Style Tacos

  • Servings: 4
  • Print

from Everyday Food September 2012

Ingredients:

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 1 cup onion, finely chopped
  • 3 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1/3 cup tomato paste
  • 1/8-1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
  • 4 teaspoons chili powder
  • 1 pound ground sirloin
  • soft taco shells
  • lettuce, tomatoes, green onion, cheddar cheese, lime wedges, and sour cream for serving

Directions:

In a large skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onion and garlic to the skillet and cook for 4-5 minutes until translucent. Stir in tomato paste, cayenne, and chili powder, and cook for about a minute until fragrant. Add sirloin and cook until browned, about 7-8 minutes. Serve in soft taco shells with lettuce, tomatoes, green onion, cheddar cheese, lime wedges, and sour cream for toppings.

Notes: Since sirloin is 90% lean, I didn’t feel the need to drain any fat. If I made this using ground turkey or chicken, I’d probably feel the same way. However, if I used a cut that wasn’t as lean, I might cook the beef first, drain most of the fat and proceed with cooking the onion and garlic, then the tomato sauce mixture.