Chocolate Almond Coconut Granola

It's been a while since I've been this excited about a recipe but... holy smokes, y'all.  I am in love with this granola!

I recently saw a recipe for Triple Chocolate Crunch Granola and knew that was something I needed to try.  But shortly thereafter, I was inspired by a very nice representative from Nuts.com* to develop a recipe using almonds.  I had the idea to make a chocolate granola, with almonds... and coconut.

For a coconut lover like me, that's essentially a trifecta of deliciousness.  Almond joy-ous, if you will!  Plus I keep hearing about all the health benefits of almonds and coconut oil, so I feel like it's an indulgence you don't have to feel too guilty about.

And while I had a pretty decent first attempt at this, I tweaked a few things and my second try was spot on.  I have been sneaking handfuls of this stuff every time I walk by the container.  It's addicting!

Honestly.  The photo session was like 30% shooting, 70% snacking.

Soo good.

I just feel badly for Mr. Vittles-- he's not big fan of granola, and he's REALLY not a fan of people crunching food in his presence.  It's a weird pet peeve of his.

I didn't realize how super crunchy this granola really is until The Mini was chomping away on some as her "after-dinner treat" the other night.  Pretty much her dad's worst nightmare.  I wasn't sure if I should be more worried about her tiny teeth chipping, or his soul being crushed with every bite.

So... uh, sorry, Mr. V.  But everyone else - you're welcome!

Chocolate Almond Coconut Granola

• 2 1/2 C. old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
• 1/2 C. sliced almonds
• 1/2 C. sweetened, shredded coconut
• 1/4. C. agave nectar
• 1/3 C. dark brown sugar
• 1/4 C. coconut oil (use unrefined for coconut flavor)
• 1 T. almond butter
• 1/2 C. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1/8 t. salt
• 2/3 C. mini chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.  Line a baking sheet with parchment or nonstick foil, & set aside.

In large bowl, mix oats with almonds and coconut until evenly distributed.  Set aside.

In small saucepan over medium-low heat, combine agave, brown sugar, coconut oil, and almond butter.  Stir until oil and almond butter are melted, then add cocoa powder.  Mix until no lumps remain (mixture will be thick, like brownie batter).

Remove saucepan from heat and stir in vanilla and salt.  Add to oat mixture, and use clean hands to coat oats with cocoa mixture until evenly covered. (I know this is messy, but I recommend using your hands because you'll be able to coat the dry ingredients more thoroughly if you stir & squeeze the ingredients through your fingers.)

Spread granola evenly onto prepared sheet, and bake for 30 minutes, stirring well but gently every 10 minutes with a rubber spatula.  Remove from oven, and immediately sprinkle with mini chocolate chips.  Stir well to form larger clusters of granola, then spread back out evenly on pan to cool.  Place pan on wire rack until granola has cooled completely & chocolate has hardened (2-3 hours). Store in airtight container.

Recipe Loosely Adapted from Sally's Baking Addiction

*Note: I did not receive any free samples or compensation from Nuts.com when collaborating on this post.

(Flourless) Peanut Butter Blossoms

Sometimes, you think you know a person.

Seven years ago in October, I met Mr. Vittles.  Five years ago (from almost the same day) I married him.

Two days ago... I found out his favorite cookie.

Friday I had gotten a flourless peanut butter blossom recipe from someone at work, but it had a few ingredients I was unsure of.  So I did a quick internet search and found a recipe that had only peanut butter, sugar, egg, and vanilla in the dough.

I was still a little skeptical that it would make a good cookie, but it looked so easy it was worth a potential fail.  Especially when I took into consideration the only person I'd be disappointing is myself. 

Or so I thought.

When I took them out of the oven Friday night, Mr. Vittles asked "Are those gluten-free?"  

"Ummm... yes, duh, I'm eating them."

But apparently his actual question was whether or not the original peanut butter blossom recipe is gluten-free.  I said that I didn't think so, but I honestly didn't know - I hadn't made them in years.  I thought maybe my mother-in-law would know, because she usually makes them at Christmas.

That's when he said "Yeah I know. Those are my favorite cookies."

Wha-what?

All this time I had thought his favorite cookies were scotcheroos, a chocolate & butterscotch crispy rice cookie that his grandmother makes.  But apparently I was wrong.  Peanut butter blossoms take the #1 spot on his cookie list.

Who knew???

Then I figured these would be a huge disappointment to a Blossom Connoisseur such as himself.  The first pan I made wasn't even rolled in sugar, and he loooves his treats sweet.  So I tried to redeem the second pan by rolling them in coarse sugar.  

Much to my surprise, he said they were more peanut-buttery than his mom's, but still really good.  Success!

On another note... I would like to dedicate this post to my mom, who would have been 60 years old today.  

We just celebrated my dad's upcoming 60th birthday with a fabulous surprise party, and I only wish that she was here to celebrate as well.

She is the one who fostered my love of baking and creating, and I know she would love the idea of this blog.  

Mom, I miss you every day, and thank you for everything.  I would not be the person I am today were it not for you.  I hope you are somewhere having a huge piece of cake that's as delicious as all the treats you baked for us over the years.  Pssst... I love you!

(Flourless) Peanut Butter Blossoms

• 1 cup smooth peanut butter (I used Jif's Natural creamy peanut butter)
• 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar 
• 1 egg
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 14 Hershey's milk chocolate kisses
• Extra sugar, for rolling (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Unwrap chocolate kisses, and set aside.  Line a baking sheet with nonstick foil or parchment paper, and set aside as well.

In a medium bowl, combine peanut butter, brown sugar, egg, and vanilla.  Stir until well-combined.  If rolling balls in sugar, place some in a shallow dish.  Wet hands until damp, then roll about 1 Tablespoon of dough into a ball.  Roll in sugar (if using) and place balls onto prepared baking sheet at least an inch apart. 

Bake 10-12 minutes until set and lightly browned (although dough will still be soft).  After removing from oven, press a chocolate kiss into the center of each cookie.  Let cool on baking sheet for 5-10 minutes, before transferring to wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 14 cookies.  Recipe slightly adapted from nutritiouseats.com 

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins

Fall is undoubtedly my favorite season. The cool, crisp air.... the leaves crunching under your feet... Halloween... and of course, the apples and pumpkins.

It's only natural that I would try to foster the same love of everything autumn in the Mini.

So we have been reading books about Halloween and Fall- mostly in an attempt to persuade her to put on her Halloween costume- but we inadvertently created a pumpkin-loving monster.

She points them out everywhere.  On walks, at the store, driving in the car.  "Mommy look! Punkins!"

So we thought bringing her to the pumpkin "patch" last weekend would be the greatest thing ever.  Better yet, they offer pumpkins at the orchard where we pick apples every year, so we figured we'd kill two birds with one stone.

At first it was great...

...but after about ten minutes of apple-picking, she was turning into Grumplestilksin.  It was no fun that Mommy kept trying to take pictures and wouldn't let her pick up the rotten apples on the ground, or run around with giant sticks.  So she refused to smile for any photos, and said she didn't want to pick out a pumpkin.

Although she did eventually come around a little, and tried to carry her pumpkin to the wagon.

But alas, it was too heavy.

Who knew the pumpkin patch would be a field of disappointments.

But the good news is, Mini has never met a pumpkin muffin she didn't like.  Even these gluten-free ones, which no one will even guess are missing wheat flour!

Gluten-Free Pumpkin Muffins

• 2 C. Gluten-Free Flour Blend* (see below)
• 2/3 C. firmly packed brown sugar
• 1/3 C. sugar
• 1 T. baking powder
• 1/4 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 t. ground ginger
• 1/8 t. ground nutmeg
• 1/8 t. ground cloves
• 6 T. butter, melted
• 3/4 C. canned pumpkin
• 1/3 C. buttermilk**
• 2 eggs, slightly beaten
• 1 t. pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400°F. Place paper baking cups into 12-cup muffin pan cup, or grease cups. Set aside.

Combine flour, sugars, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices.  Whisk to combine.

In smaller bowl, whisk butter, pumpkin, buttermilk, eggs, and vanilla.  Stir into flour mixture just until moistened.

Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool 5 minutes; remove from pan & cool completely on wire rack.  Makes 12 + muffins.  Store muffins in an airtight container for up to 5 days.

*Gluten-Free Flour Blend: Combine 2 cups rice flour, 2/3 cup potato starch, 1/3 cup tapioca flour and 1 teaspoon xanthan gum. Use appropriate amount for recipe; store remainder in air-tight container. Stir before using.

**If you don't have buttermilk, substitute 1 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice plus enough milk to equal 1/3 cup.  Let stand 5 minutes

Recipe Adapted Slightly from Land O Lakes

Banana Coconut Chia Muffins

I'm sorry to report that it's been a bit of a sad and stressful week in the Vittles family.  My grandmother (mom's mom) went in for heart surgery on Monday, and on the same day my grandfather (stepmom's dad) passed away.

Luckily Grammy seems to be doing ok, but my grandpa, who we knew as Pop Pop, will be sorely missed.

I have happy memories of listening to him play guitar, and he would always keep us laughing - about anything from how he wooed my grandma, to his fondness for his "cream puff" of a car, that faithfully transported him from Florida to New Jersey at least once a year.

As the years go by, I know I will be forced to say goodbye to more and more people that I love.  But now I also watch our Mini grow with each passing day - I guess this is what they refer to as the 'circle of life?'

Well today our little munchkin floored me, and I think that was just what I needed to lift my spirits this week.

Our good friend Pauline came over with her beautiful, almost 5-month old daughter Genevieve, and Mini was going to meet the baby for the first time.  They arrived while Mini was napping, and we put G in her old bouncy seat.  G was having a blast, but I couldn't help but wonder what Mini's reaction would be - she is not exactly known for sharing.

But after waking up and getting past a brief bout of shyness, she was not only fine with G using her seat, she was excited.  G was excited to see her too, smiling and kicking.  Then my heart melted when Mini, without any prompting, bent over and gave G a kiss.

Unfortunately Pauline and I were completely unprepared for this moment of cuteness, but we were still able to capture a reenactment a few minutes later:

I said that when they get older, we'll have to tell them they had an instant connection!

Speaking of which, I had an instant connection with these muffins I made to accompany our coffee this morning.

You may know by now that I love me some coconut, but I found out today that Pauline does too!  And with both shredded coconut and coconut oil, these muffins have a double dose of the good stuff.

Banana Coconut Muffins

• 2 C. flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 3/4 t. salt
• 1/4 t. nutmeg
• 2 T. chia seeds*
• 1/2 C. unsweetened, shredded coconut (you can also use sweetened, flaked if you prefer)
• 1 C. brown sugar
• 1/2 C. coconut oil
• 4 mashed bananas
• 2 eggs
• 1 t. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease 12 muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray, or line with muffin cups.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, salt, nutmeg, chia seeds, and shredded coconut. Set aside.

Cream the coconut oil and brown sugar until well combined. Add the egg, and beat well. Add the mashed banana and vanilla, and mix until blended.

Stir the dry ingredients into wet ingredients, and mix only until just combined (be sure not to over-mix here!). Scoop batter into prepared muffin tins, about 3/4 of the way full.

Bake for 23-25 minutes, or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.  Yield 12 muffins.  *If you do not wish to use the chia seeds, you can either substitute poppy seeds or leave them out completely.

Recipe Adapted from Jenna Weber, as found on PBS online

Baked Chocolate Coconut Coffee Donuts

In case anyone was wondering how my 30th birthday shaped up to be (I'm sure you were on the edge of your seat) -- it was great!

It was a little more low-key than going on vacation (as we had planned pre-Mini Smalls) but it was still perfect!  Last weekend I celebrated with all my fellow February B-Day people in Mr. Vittles' family, at his parents' house.  Then on Sunday my dad & stepmom came over for Super Bowl with enough snacks for a small army and also a delicious, homemade chicken parm dinner!

On Monday (my actual birthday) Mr. Vittles had to work but my stepdad & his wife babysat The Mini so we could go somewhere after & sit down for a nice dinner.  They also brought me a fabulous chocolate mousse cheesecake (which turned out to be the THIRD birthday cake I enjoyed - yeah that's right, don't hate!)

You probably think it ends there.  But noooo.

This past weekend, my mother & father-in-law watched The Mini for a night while we continued the festivities out west in Lambertville, NJ.  Mr. Vittles planned for us to stay over in a really cute old hotel there, and we went to a great restaurant over the bridge in New Hope, PA.  It was awesome to do "couple stuff" for a night!

I heart us :)

So anyway, Valentine's Day is this week and I thought it was time to honor another couple I heart...

Coffee and coconut!

As I've mentioned previously, the discovery of Coconut Iced Coffee at Dunkin' Donuts was a life-changer for me.  I do not know who came up with this holy marriage of deliciousness, but I hope that today finds this person very, very rich and successful.

Now in my opinion, baked donuts are more like cake than traditional donuts.  So really this is like eating chocolate cupcakes with coconut coffee frosting for breakfast.

(If that sounds like a problem to you, you should probably leave this blog.  Immediately.)

But if you're still here - I heart you too.   Happy Valentine's Day, hope you enjoy it!


Baked Chocolate Coconut Coffee Donuts

Donuts:

• 1 C. flour
• 1/4 C. unsweetened cocoa powder
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• Pinch salt
• 1 t. instant coffee granules
• 1 T. water
• 1/2 C. low-fat buttermilk
• 1/2 C. packed brown sugar
• 1 egg
• 3 T. melted butter
• 1 t. vanilla extract

Glaze/Topping:

• 1 C. confectioner’s sugar
• 1 T. melted butter
• 2 T. half & half (or cream or milk)
• 1 t. instant coffee 
• 1/2 t. coconut extract 
• 1/2 C. toasted coconut flakes

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Coat mini donut pan with non-stick cooking spray. (If you do not have a donut pan, you can also use a mini muffin tin).

In small bowl, whisk flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt to combine.  In very small bowl, mix water with instant coffee granules to dissolve.  Then add to large bowl with buttermilk, sugar, egg, butter, and vanilla.  Whisk to combine.  Add dry ingredients to wet and whisk until batter is smooth.

Spoon batter into a large resealable plastic bag. Cut a little bit off of one corner and squeeze batter into prepared mini-donut pan, about 2/3 full.  Bake for about 6 minutes, until donuts spring back when lightly pressed.  Allow to cool in pan 2-3 minutes before carefully turning out donuts onto a wire rack to cool completely.  Repeat with remaining batter (unless you're really cool and have two mini donut pans?  I'm not that cool.)

In a very small bowl, combine the half and half with coffee granules and mix until dissolved.  In a medium bowl, stir coffee mixture into confectioner's sugar, melted butter, and coconut extract until consistency is thick.

Dip cooled donuts into glaze and top with toasted coconut.  Return to rack to dry, or serve immediately.  Makes 24 mini donuts

Recipe Adapted from Shutterbean (who originally adapted from Full Circle Magazine)

Coconut Blondies

I'm beginning to think there needs to be at least 4 more hours in the day.

I am still working full-time, and at 34 weeks pregnant I feel like have so many things I want to do to prepare for the baby.

Plus, be social with friends & family.  Maybe relax & watch a TV show.

Blog.  Bake some coconut blondies.

Hmm what else... oh yeah, SLEEP.  That is, if I could get comfortable, which is nearly impossible these days with the raging heartburn and feeling like I can't breathe.  (My father reads this occasionally so allow me to clarify - not in a 'hospitalization required' sort of way, Dad.  It's normal for us preggos to feel a bit winded, things are getting awfully crowded in there so that means the ol' lungs can't expand like they used to.)

But oh well, I guess it's all just preparing me for the ZERO sleep I'll probably be getting in a matter of weeks!

I'm starting to rethink this 4 hours though - maybe we should go with an extra 6 or 8 hours in the day, just to be safe?

Coconut Blondies

1 C. plus 2 T. all-purpose flour
1 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
3/4 C. packed light brown sugar
1/3 C. (5 T.) butter, softened
1/2 t. vanilla extract
1 large egg
1 C. (6 oz.) semi-sweet chocolate chips
3/4 C. sweetened shredded coconut

Preheat oven to 350° F. Grease 8-inch square baking pan.

In medium bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt. Set aside.

In large bowl, beat brown sugar, butter and vanilla extract until creamy.  Beat in egg.  Gradually beat in flour mixture until combined and no flour streaks remain.

Stir in morsels and coconut.  Press into prepared baking pan.

Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown.  Cool completely in pan on wire rack, then into bars.  Makes 16 bars.

Recipe Slightly Adapted from Nestle Very Best Baking

Slow-Cooker Pulled Chicken

So... originally this post was supposed to be Homemade Ginger Ale.

And then when that tasted like crap, it was supposed to be something else (which I won't tell you, because there's hope for that yet).

However, I will tell you it involved an ice cream maker - which originally I couldn't use because I forgot to put the canister in the freezer.  So I put it in overnight... and then our power went out early this morning.

But then it came back on, and I (mistakenly) thought the canister was ready so I got the ice cream maker going - and it ended up just doing a really thorough job of mixing everything, because the canister wasn't actually frozen.

ARGH.

So... Slow-Cooker Pulled Chicken it is!

This is a great recipe for when it's really hot out and you don't want to turn on your oven.  (Like yesterday here in NJ... it's never good when you look at the weather forecast and see "High 103").

I believe you could also set it on low in the morning and it will be ready for dinner when you get home from work.

Slow-Cooker Pulled Chicken 

• 1 1/2 lbs. boneless, skinless chicken breasts 
• 1 1/4 C. ketchup
• 1/4 C. brown sugar 
• 1 T. + 1 t. Worcestershire sauce 
• 1 T. + 1 t. soy sauce
• 2 T. cider vinegar 
• 2 T. chipotle sauce* (see notes below) 
• 1 t. molasses 
• 1 T. Dijon mustard
• 3/4 t. garlic powder

Place all sauce ingredients in slow cooker - stir to combine.  Add chicken breasts, nestling into sauce to coat.  Cook on high about 3 hours, or until chicken is cooked all the way through and beginning to fall apart.  Remove from chicken pieces from crockpot and shred with forks.  Replace in sauce, stir to coat, and cook an additional ten minutes.  Serve on potato hamburger buns, or other roll of your choosing.  Makes 6-8 sandwiches.

*Note: "Chipotle Crushed Sauce" is available in the Spanish foods section of many grocery stores, in a small squeezable bottle - the brand I have is Goya.  You also can substitute pureed canned chipotles in adobo sauce instead.  You may also adjust the amount of any of the above to your taste for spiciness; 2 T. of chipotle sauce gives this a little kick and adds smokiness. (If you can't find chipotle at all, you can also use red pepper flakes to taste).

Recipe Adapted from About.com

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

I can't believe this weekend is Father's Day already!  I am excited to spend it with all my "dads" - my father, step-father, and father-in law.

I am super lucky... they are all the greatest in their own way.

Mr. Vittles and I already bought gifts for my dad & father-in-law, but I still need to figure out what to make for my stepdad, Chris... he is an extremely mellow, quiet, 'surfer-dude' who doesn't care much for traditional gifts.

The gifts he likes best are homemade.

So here's a story for ya.  A little over a year ago, he was driving to one of his favorite surfing destinations when his roof rack came completely off his car, holding two of his favorite surfboards, and smashed onto the side of the highway.

He was naturally devastated - his boards are probably the only possessions he owns that he actually cares about.  Mr. Vittles offered to dispose of the pieces for him, and then secretly kept them in the garage for a project.

So for Chris' birthday this past March, we presented him with this amazing bench that Mr. V designed & made from the broken surfboards.

Chris was... ecstatic.

Now unfortunately for me... I do not have the talents my husband does, and I will not be crafting anything from wood to rival this gift.

But fortunately for me... Chris happens to love baked treats (even though he probably eats healthier than most people I know), and this fits more comfortably into my range of abilities.

Some of his favorite goodies are my mother-in-law's chocolate cake, ricotta cookies, and also good old-fashioned chocolate chip cookies.

He also loooves peanut butter - he puts it on everything.

Like... things that are totally inappropriate for slathering in peanut butter, such as tuna fish and meatloaf.

My personal favorite is when he makes giant, thick pancakes that take up the entire width of the frying pan, spreads peanut butter over the top, then adds tuna fish and honey.

Yeah... barf.

However, for all that peanut butter madness, he does not like baked goods with peanut butter in them.  Go figure!

It's ok though.  Because you know what that means?

More peanut butter cookies for me.

These are surprisingly yummy for not having any flour or butter in them... I used Natural Jif for these (the creamy natural kind, not the grainy natural kind that needs to be stirred) and the consistency is awesome.  Mr. V would probably prefer them a bit softer, but they're not crunchy either.

Maybe if I just added some tuna fish to the batter they would be a good candidate for this weekend?

Flourless Peanut Butter Cookies

1 C. creamy peanut butter
1/2 C. packed light brown sugar
1/2 C. granulated sugar
1 large egg
1 t. vanilla extract
1 t. baking soda
1/4 t. salt

Heat oven to 350° F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix together the peanut butter, sugars, eggs, vanilla, baking soda, and salt until smooth.

Shape the dough into 1" balls (you can use a cookie scoop - just mush back together if it cracks in half) and place cookies 2 inches apart onto prepared baking sheet. Using the tines of a fork, flatten each ball, creating a crisscross pattern.

Bake until puffed and golden, 10 to 12 minutes.  Let cool slightly on the baking sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Makes about 2 dozen.

Recipe Adapted Slightly from Real Simple

Oatmeal Raisin Breakfast Bars

So I feel badly that I haven't posted in over a week, but the last seven days have been pretty interesting for us.

Between paying our income taxes (plus the accountant), paying off the first year of insurance for our new house, packing our belongings, dumpster diving for free cardboard boxes, and having my brain scrambled by the (extremely adorable & well-meaning) seller who tried to teach me about all her beautiful plants around the house.... it turns out I am not only poor, but also botanically-challenged, and incredibly tired.

(And... we haven't even had to sign away our life savings and our first-born child at closing yet.  That's next Monday.)

Sooo... needless to say I haven't spent much time in the kitchen lately.  But a few weeks ago I got a recipe from Mr. Vittles' aunt for 'granola bars' that are super yummy.  They are basically like oatmeal cookies, but without a leavening agent, and for breakfast.  

Raise your hand if you like cookies for breakfast?

(P.S. if you didn't raise your hand, I will forced to rethink our friendship.  Just sayin'.)

His little cousin actually made the ones we tried at their house, this is a good recipe for kids.  (BTW, she was also helping her mom make chocolate cake while we were visiting - definitely a girl after my own heart!)

Sadly my bars came out a little more dry than hers, I think maybe because I used whole wheat flour instead of all-purpose.  (I also added whole flax seeds, but that shouldn't really affect the moisture in the bars).  But they were still really good.  You can use whichever flour you prefer, or a mixture of both, and feel free to switch up the dried fruit too.  Just be sure to watch these carefully in the oven, because they do burn easily!

Oatmeal Raisin Breakfast Bars

• 2 C. old fashioned oats (not the quick-cook kind)
• 1 C. flour (all-purpose or whole wheat, or a mixture of both)
• 3/4 C. brown sugar
• 3/4 C. raisins (or other dried fruit of your choosing)
• 1/2 C. wheat germ
• 1/4 C. whole flax seeds
• 3/4 t. salt
• 3/4 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 C. canola oil
• 1/2 C. honey
• 2 t. vanilla extract
• 1 egg

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, and cover a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together all dry ingredients (oats through cinnamon).  In a small bowl, whisk together canola oil, honey, vanilla, and egg.  Add to dry ingredients and mix with a spoon until evenly coated and well-combined. 

Then, with wet hands, place 5 clumps of the mixture on the cookie sheet and shape them slightly into even bars.  (This should use half your mixture - you will have about 10 bars total, depending on how large you make them).  Bake 18-20 minutes, watching carefully toward the end of the baking time so bars do not burn.  Cool briefly on pans then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.  Repeat with remaining half of mixture.

Makes about 10 breakfast bars.

Adapted Slightly from Family Recipe

Pumpkin Cornbread

Today was a very emotional day for many people - not just in this country, but all across the globe.

I stopped by my grandmother's house (my stepdad's mom) for an early birthday celebration, and she has some friends visiting from the Netherlands.

When we arrived a little after noon, they were in the middle of watching the names being read at the ceremony held in New York City for the 10th anniversary of 9/11.

Her friends had actually insisted on watching it.  In fact, her one friend Nelly says she has watched it every year since 2002, from Holland.  And a few days ago, they visited New York City to see Ground Zero in person.

My stepdad and I were initially a little surprised to hear this, but they pointed out that the world changed after 9/11... not just America.

That comment really struck me.

Before I left my house, I had been watching the ceremony too - particularly to see my high school friend Mary's sister, who had the honor of reading their father's name.

He was in the South tower when the second plane struck it, and he never came home.

I can't believe that was 10 years ago. 

On September 11, 2001, I was a college freshman at the New College of Florida, in my first few weeks of school.  I woke up a little early that morning, so I went on the internet before class.

That was the heyday of Instant Messenger, and a friend of mine from home messaged me, asking if I heard about the plane hitting the World Trade Center.

I had no idea what he was talking about.

"Your class is probably cancelled," he wrote, but I wasn't comprehending the seriousness of the situation.

Wasn't it just an accident?  Why would classes be cancelled?

But they were, and this was no accident.  I didn't have a television in my dorm room, so I spent the rest of the day either glued to the TV in the student lounge or on my laptop.

I frantically tried to reach my father, who didn't work in the WTC specifically but sometimes had business there.  Of course, cell phones weren't working, so it took me a while to find out he and my stepmom (they also had an apartment in NYC) were physically fine.

Emotionally... not so much.

And then I heard about Mary's dad.

At the age of 18, I had little experience with devastating news of this caliber.

My heart went out to her, but I didn't know what to do.  I didn't know how to talk to her.  I didn't know what to say.

Watching that ceremony this morning, the same awful feeling of helplessness came back to me.

Seeing children pay tribute to mothers and fathers that they never really even knew brought tears to my eyes.  And my heart broke again for all the people that lost their family members & friends so suddenly. 

I look at Mary now and think how much has changed in 10 years.  She finished college, got a good job, and has an amazing husband and an adorable baby boy who's about to be a year old in November.

Her oldest brother is also married, with two kids.  Her older sister and other brother are happy and successful.

Why their father had to be taken from them in such a senseless act is beyond me.

But if there is another 'side' or another life out there beyond our understanding (as I like to believe) then I know that he is watching them, smiling, so proud of everything his family has accomplished and become.

Mary & her son Bryce, February 2011

Last week, I promised you the fall-flavored cornbread recipe I made with my slow-cooker chicken chili.

I think it's a good choice for today when we could all use a little 'comfort'.

Pumpkin Cornbread

• 1 C. whole wheat pastry flour (regular all-purpose is also fine)
• 1 T. baking powder
• 1 t. kosher salt
• 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 t. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 C. brown sugar
• 1 C. cornmeal
• 2 eggs
• 1 C. pumpkin purée
• 1/4 C. canola oil
• 1 T. molasses

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and grease an 8×8″ baking dish. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, spices, brown sugar, and cornmeal.

In a small bowl, lightly beat the eggs, and then stir in the pumpkin, oil, and molasses.

Stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients just until combined, and then pour the batter into the pan, smoothing out the top as much as possible.

Bake 30 minutes or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Serve warm, with butter if desired.


Recipe Slightly Adapted from Sugarcrafter

Mexican Mocha Iced Coffee

So after the last two weeks, I’m kinda thinking I might want to crawl under a rock and never come back out. 

It’s been hectic, and just plain old weird.

Exactly two weeks ago my 80 year-old grandmother had a dizzy spell & took a tumble in the middle of the night. She fell and hit her head.

Badly.

Poor Grammy Vittles suffered from a broken nose, two black eyes (one eye was completely closed), a lot of bruising, and above all - a serious scare.

Well let me tell you. So did I.

My stepdad & I spent most of the weekend helping her until my aunt was able to get there Sunday afternoon.  I even had to call in the big guns (my dad) to convince her to get checked out at the emergency room.

Needless to say, it was a stressful weekend... and I was pretty freaked-out over those events alone.

But the freaking-out was actually just getting started.

A week later, Mr. Vittles and I were watching some TV in the living room.  We had crazy thunderstorms that night with a ton of rain (some towns in the area had serious flooding) and I was thinking how happy I was to be inside when I saw something flying out of the corner of my eye.

Initially I didn’t think much of it since, after all, we do have a bird that makes a habit of flapping around the house.  But when I noticed my husband was holding the bird next to me, I realized we had a little problem on our hands.

Yep.  It was a bat.

...in the house...

...zooming around our living room.

Thank goodness for my husband, who put on some gloves, got a fishing net & a headlamp, and (about 10 minutes later) was able to capture the bat and let him loose back outside.

After the bat was out we had a pretty good laugh over the whole thing.  I was still shaken up though.

But the shaking-up was actually just getting started.

Tuesday I was out driving for work, and I wanted to run some errands on lunch so I decided to just grab a quick sandwich at a convenience store & eat in the parking lot.

As I was sitting there, listening to the radio, the car started shaking so noticeably that I thought something was wrong with it.

So I turned it off, but the car was still shaking. I heard the fluids inside sloshing around, and could not figure out what in the world was going on.

It stopped as suddenly as it started, so I turned the car back on & went about my munching. But via the radio I quickly learned that there had been a 5.8 earthquake in Virginia, and there were reports of people feeling the rumblings all the way up to Canada.

Now I know there are probably many of you who have experienced much more than a brief rumbling.

But guess what.  I live in New Jersey.

We don’t have earthquakes here.

So I was a little shocked.

But the shocking was actually just getting started.

There have been numerous mandatory evacuations of coastal & low-lying locations in NJ, including my town, due to Hurricane Irene - which (as of now) is supposedly heading right for us as at least a Category 1.

Now while our house is about 6 blocks from the beach, we also live very close to a lake.  So even if this just ends up coming through as a tropical storm, surges could pose a very serious threat to us - not to mention the effects of heavy rain and sustained high winds. 

And this month has already been one of the top ten wettest Augusts New Jersey has seen since the 19th century.

Umm... seriously?

I’ve lived on the Gulf Coast of Florida and also the Outer Banks of North Carolina, so as you can imagine I’m no stranger to hurricane threats.

But again… this is New Jersey.

New Jerseyans having to evacuate for a hurricane is about as likely as the Governor temporarily suspending the collection of tolls along the southern half of the Garden State Parkway (the North/South main artery of the state). 

Which he did starting at 8AM today, to help lessen the burden of evacuation.

In fact, in just a couple hours they are completely closing the southbound lanes of the parkway altogether, starting about 10 miles south of here.  No one will be able to travel south on that road after 8PM tonight.

So.  Now I’m waiting for a mudslide or tornado to happen next.  

Who knows, perhaps that's what awaits Mr. Vittles and me as we head west to my in-law's house!

Or, maybe all those wackos that thought the world was going to end a couple months back were actually on to something. 

(Side note:  I just Googled that out of curiosity, and in case you were wondering we are still on track for doomsday - it's now scheduled for October 21, 2011.  Which is conveniently my best friend Lauren's birthday! Guess we better celebrate early :))

But in any case, I’ve been too busy securing all my outdoor furniture, placing all the boxes in our basement on raised plywood platforms, removing air conditioning units from our windows, and reading news updates to make any new recipes.

So I went with the one recipe that I had already written in Blogger - Mexican Mocha Iced Coffee.

It's good.

And… that is all.

Wish me luck!

Mexican Mocha Iced Coffee

• 1 T. chocolate syrup (if you want to make your own, try this one)
• ice cubes
• 1/2 C.cold café de olla (recipe below)
• 1 T. heavy cream or half-and-half
• pinch cinnamon

Drizzle some chocolate syrup on the bottom of a glass.  Add ice cubes, the shot of coffee liquor and café de olla.  If you'd like to create a floating layer or cream, carefully pour the cream over the back of a spoon on top of the drink (otherwise pour on top to mix it all together).  Sprinkle with a pinch of cinnamon.  Makes one drink.

Serves one.

Café de Olla

• 4 C. water
• 1/4 C. packed light brown sugar
• 1/2 t. molasses
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 2/3 cup whole or coarsely ground coffee beans (not espresso)

Bring water, brown sugar, molasses, and cinnamon sticks to a boil in a large saucepan or pot over moderate heat, stirring occasionally until sugar is dissolved. Stir in coffee and boil 5 minutes. Pour through a fine-mesh sieve into a heatproof pitcher or clean pot, discarding coffee beans and cinnamon stick.  Serve hot or chill to make iced coffee recipe above.  Makes about 4 cups.

Iced Coffee Recipe Addapted from Girl Cooks World (who adapted from Amor y Tacos); Cafe de Olla Recipe Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, via Epicurious

Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

Growing up, I had just about every summer job you can imagine.

I always babysat, but I got my first 'real' job at 14, the summer before I went into high school.  I worked in the gift shop of a local aquarium on the boardwalk.

From there, I went on to work as a chambermaid in a bed & breakfast, an assistant manager of a frozen yogurt stand, a counselor at a day camp, a typist at a newspaper, an inventory-taker (!), and even a telemarketer (!!).  I also worked in a tanning salon, and the nursery of a gym where parents would drop off their kids while they worked out.

But one of my personal favorite employers was a Ben & Jerry's ice cream shop I worked at during college.

First of all, I got a really cool bulging forearm muscle from scooping hard ice cream.  And secondly, I got to eat delicious ice cream every day, which is basically a dream come true.

To be honest, I took advantage of that perk much more at the frozen yogurt place than Ben & Jerry's (let's not lie, a cup of ice cream on a daily basis would be a little much).  But I did treat myself at least once a week.

And I probably tried 75% of the flavors there, but I always came back to Oatmeal Cookie Chunk.

Ummm... whoa.  Cinnamon sweet cream base with chunks of oatmeal cookies and fudge.  What could be bad about that?

So when I realized that July is National Ice Cream month, I decided I needed to try & replicate my old favorite.

But I wanted it to be completely homemade and I didn't feel like first whipping up a batch of oatmeal cookies just to crumble up for ice cream. So I devised a sort of crispy, sugary oatmeal crumble instead.

And while it's not a dead ringer... it's pretty freaking close.

Not to mention pretty freaking delicious.

And the cool part about it is it's an eggless ice cream! I've never made one of those before, but it came out really well.

Which reminds me- don't be tempted to replace the corn syrup, that's part of what keeps it scoopable (if you're like me & try to avoid the stuff whenever possible, this might make you feel better).

Either way... I think my former employer would approve.

Oatmeal Chocolate Chunk Ice Cream

Oatmeal Crumble

• ½ C. old fashioned oats
• 2 T. butter
• 2 T. brown sugar
• 1 T. granulated sugar
• 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
• pinch salt

Cinnamon Ice Cream

• 2 C. lowfat milk
• 1 T. plus 1 t. cornstarch
• 2 oz. cream cheese, softened
• 1 C. heavy cream
• 1/2 C sugar
• 2 T light corn syrup
• ½ t. cinnamon
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 C. chocolate chunks

Make the oatmeal crumble: Preheat oven 350 degrees and grease a baking sheet.

In a medium skillet, heat the butter over medium-low until melted. Remove from heat and stir in the oatmeal, sugar, cinnamon, and salt.

Spread oat mixture on prepared baking sheet and cook for 8 minutes, stirring halfway through baking.  Empty oats back into skillet to cool.

Make the ice cream:  Measure out the 2 C. milk then take 2 T. of it and mix with the cornstarch in a small bowl. In a large bowl, whisk the cream cheese until smooth.  Prepare an ice bath in a container big enough for the bowl with the cream cheese to fit in it.  (An ice bath is just cold water with ice).

In a large saucepan, combine the remaining milk with the heavy cream, sugar, corn syrup and cinnamon over medium heat. Whisking occasionally, bring the milk mixture to a boil, then reduce heat slightly and simmer, about 2 minutes. Off the heat, gradually whisk in the cornstarch mixture.  Return to a boil (watch carefully so it does not boil over) and whisk over medium heat until the mixture is slightly thickened, about 1 minute.

Gradually whisk the hot milk mixture into the cream cheese until smooth. Whisk in the salt and vanilla. Set the bowl in the ice water bath and let stand, stirring occasionally, until room temperature (about 30 minutes).  Then refrigerate mixture until chilled, about 2 hours.

Freeze according to the manufacturer's instructions. With ice cream maker still on, add chocolate chunks & about 2/3 of the oatmeal, and mix to evenly distribute.  Pack the ice cream into a plastic container, and press a sheet of plastic wrap directly onto the surface of the ice cream. Close with an airtight lid, and freeze the ice cream until firm, about 4 hours.  Use remaining 1/3 of oatmeal for sprinkling on served ice cream, if desired.

Ice Cream recipe adapted from Jeni Britton Bauer on Food & Wine; flavor inspired by Ben & Jerry's

S'mores Blondies

So last night I went out with a couple of my girlfriends who I have known for almost 15 years.

Unfortunately between the craziness of life and the distance between us, it seems we don't get together nearly as often as we should.  But we had so much fun catching up over dinner & some cocktails, and as we were reminiscing about old times it started turning into griping about new times. 

Mainly, the fact that once you get to be around 30 years of age, your appearance really starts to change.

And... it can be a little disconcerting.

Some of it is the result of not realizing that when you're young & dumb, you will pay for it later.

Like baking in the sun all day without sunscreen.

Especially when you lived at the beach your whole life, and then went to college in Florida.

Stupid, stupid, STUPID.

Then again, other problems seem to crop up out of nowhere.

For instance, despite the beautiful weather outside, my friend observed that the three of us were all wearing cardigans - not because they're cute, but (as we all admitted) because showing the upper arm/back area has started to get downright dicey.

Not that any of us are overweight, it just seems like things that used to be tight are suddenly... er.... not-so-tight.

As my one friend put it, she woke up one day and noticed she had 'a couple of steaks' on either side of her back.

Now while that is definitely an exaggeration, I will say I know the feeling.

And the worst part is that it's only the beginning.

Ahh!

Something tells me these blondies probably aren't helping? 

Good thing Mr. Vittles spared me the calories & single-handedly ate the entire pan.

Smore's Blondies

• 1/2 C. Butter (1 stick), melted and cooled slightly
• 1 C. brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 + 1/3 C. all purpose flour
• 1/4 C. whole wheat pastry flour
• 1/2 C. Graham Cracker Crumbs
• 1/4 t. salt
• 1/4 t. baking powder
• 3 1-oz. semisweet chocolate squares, chopped (1/2 C.) or chocolate chunks
• 1 C. miniature marshmallows

Preheat oven to 350F.

Beat together melted butter and brown sugar until smooth.  Add egg and vanilla extract, mix well.

Combine flours, graham cracker crumbs, baking powder, and salt in a small bowl.  Beat butter & sugar mixture on low, and with mixer running, add dry ingredients slowly.  Mix just until no flour streaks remain.  Add chocolate and marshmallows and mix to distribute evenly.

Press into a greased 8 or 9 inch square baking dish (dough will be pretty stiff).  Bake 20-25 minutes, do not over bake (22 minutes was perfect for me).  The blondies should be very soft when you take them out.  Cool completely.

Recipe Adapted from Shove It In Your Face

Crème Brûlée French Toast

So by a few of the comments I received on my post about Russian Tea Cakes, I can see that not all my readers are familiar with the game of beer pong.

I'm sorry that you were forced to 'Google' it :(

I'd say, if you are a college student or the parent of one, you should probably know what beer pong is - even if you've never played it personally.  Anyone else, I'll be happy to give you a pass on that one and explain the game.

To play beer pong, you set up plastic Solo cups in a triangle on each side of a long table (ideally, something the size of a ping pong table).  The object of the game is for two teams of two people to toss a ping pong ball into the cups of the other team.  If it goes in the cup, someone on that team must drink it and the cup gets taken away.  The game continues until all the cups on one side are gone.

My husband's family started playing beer pong on Christmas night the year before I met him.  Some people might think this is a strange thing for a family to do, but I thought it sounded like so much fun!

However, I did not attend Christmas Eve with Mr. Vittles our first year together, so I missed out.  But the next year, they decided to continue their new tradition and I was invited to get in on the fun.

Ok, so you know how there are people who just naturally amazing at everything they try to do?

I am not one of those people.

I am, however, excellent at getting bunny ears in family photos...

...but that's neither here nor there.

Otherwise, I'm typically awful at anything that requires coordination, skill, or athletic ability - especially if I have never tried it before, or it's been years since the last time I've done it.

And I hadn't played any beer pong since I was in college.  So needless to say, I was not helping Team Gopher (Mr. V's tribute to the gopher from Caddyshack) much at all.

Thankfully Mr. Vittles is one of those people, and he is still pretty good at the game.  I was able to hit a few cups, but he basically 'carried' our team to victory that year.

Mr. Vittles & I : Team Gopher, 2008 Champs

The next year, I played a little better, but so did everyone else! So were unable to duplicate our success and we lost to "Team Blackout," which consisted of my brother & sister-in-law:

C. Ochovittles and Mel V : Team Blackout, 2009 Champs

Now as you can see, some teams made homemade shirts in the past, but this year, my in-laws bought us all fun t-shirts for the big game.  They picked ones that fit our personality, which was hilarious.  Like, Mr. V's said "On your mark, get set, go AWAY."

(He's a real people person.)

And in honor of Vittles and Bits, mine said "Food Fight" with cartoons of food items duking it out.

They also bought us stick-on mustaches... not for any particular reason, but because they're just cool.

2010 Competitors

Now in past years, I would just haphazardly chuck the ball and hope it landed somewhere near the cups.  I also couldn't get enough of an arc on my throws for the ball to drop nicely into the cup.

So with these problems in mind, this year I decided it was time to concentrate a little harder. And it actually paid off.  I not only hit a number of cups during our games, I also managed to hit the very last (i.e. hardest) cup in 3 out of 4 of our games.

Competition was pretty stiff, so our last game went into overtime (thanks to me, if you can believe it!)  But in the end, Mr. V locked it up and we went home with our second trophies AND championship shirts.

2010 Champs

So, now that you know what beer pong is and how fun it can be, maybe you and your family will decide to play a New Year's Eve tournament? So let's talk about a nice hearty breakfast for you in the morning.

I am not usually a fan of french toast casserole (from my post on Puffed French Toast, you already know I like it to have some crunch!), but I think this Crème Brûlée French Toast is absolutely delicious.

Actually, this is my own new Christmas tradition.  A few years ago, I started having my mom and my stepdad over Christmas morning for breakfast, and that's when I made this for the first time.  It was a hit, so I've made it every year since.

This year, my stepdad came over with my stepbrother Garrett Vittles and we had a delicious french toast breakfast with bacon and melon.

It's nice because it's prepared ahead of time and can feed a number of people (although that number depends on how much each of your guests can eat!).  And between the powdered sugar on top and the caramel on the bottom, it's sweet enough that you don't have to use syrup if you don't want to.

Crème Brûlée French Toast

Note: this is a casserole best made the night before & then baked the next morning

• 1 loaf challah or brioche, sliced in 1 1/2" thick slices (discard ends of loaf or reserve for other use)
• 1/2 C. butter (1 stick)
• 1 C. packed brown sugar
• 2 T. corn syrup
• 5 large eggs
• 3/4 C. heavy cream
• 3/4 C. milk
• 1 t. vanilla
• 1/4 t. salt
• optional:  
• 2 t. Grand Marnier or Cointreau
• powdered sugar & cinnamon, for dusting 

Grease a 9x13 baking dish.  In small saucepan over medium heat, melt butter with corn syrup & brown sugar.  Stir together until sugar is melted & mixture begins to bubble.  Pour into prepared baking dish.

Arrange bread slices in single layer on top of caramel mixture, squeezing edges slightly to fit.  In a large bowl, whisk eggs, cream, milk, vanilla, salt & liquor, if using.  Pour mixture over bread.  Cover tightly with plastic wrap & refrigerate overnight, or at least 8 hours, up to 1 day.

When ready to bake, let dish stand at room temperature 20 minutes and preheat oven 350 degrees.  Bake 30-40 minutes until golden & puffed.  Serve with powdered sugar and/or cinnamon on top, if desired.

Recipe Adapted Slightly from Gourmet, at Epicurious.com

Caramel Corn

You know what they say... when the hubby's away, the wife will play :)

Ok wait.  Not like that. 

It's all very innocent.

I'm just eating my weight in popcorn, watching bad reality tv, and going to Target at 9PM.

And... dancing around the house in my pj's and doing laundry at midnight and writing blog posts at 2AM.

Mr. Vittles is at a bachelor party tonight in Atlantic City, so he's probably getting into waaay more trouble than I am.

I'm sure it involves lots and lots of alcohol.

Although tonight is actually just the pre-party festivities, so maybe it's a bit more low-key?

...

Nah.

But more importantly - this caramel corn is amazing.  I mean, I could seriously eat this for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. 

Is popcorn a food group?

Well, at least it's a whole grain.

...covered in buttery, sugary goodness.

Which reminds me - what you definitely don't want covered in buttery, sugary goodness is your finger.

Ouch.

Or as my dad used to say, "Ooch McGooch."

?? 

Me, I always manage to burn the #%$* out of my hand at least once with anything involving hot caramel.

And while its sooo worth it in the end, it totally sucks every time.

So let that be a warning to you.  Just "go easy" with the molten sugar, ok?  For Pappy V's sake and mine. 

Now.  Back to the Real Housewives :)

Caramel Corn

• 3 quarts plain popped popcorn (1/2 C. unpopped kernels)
• 1 C. brown sugar
• 1/4 C. light corn syrup
• 1/2 t. salt
• 1/2 C. butter (1 stick)
• 1/4 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. vanilla extract
• 1 C. dry roasted peanuts (optional)

Preheat oven 250 degrees and place popped popcorn into 2 shallow greased baking pans (I usually line a roasting pan with foil becuase it can get rather messy).  Add peanuts to popcorn, if using.

In a saucepan over medium heat, melt brown sugar, corn syrup, butter and salt in saucepan and stir occasionally until mixture starts to boil.  Boil 5 minutes while stirring constantly.

Remove from heat, and stir in baking soda and vanilla (mixture will be light and foamy).  Immediately pour over popcorn and stir to coat.  Note: at this point, there is no need to go crazy making sure all the corn is covered - the baking process should take care of that.

Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes to evenly coat the corn.  Line the countertop with waxed paper, dump out corn, and break any clumps into pieces to separate.  Allow to cool completely, then store in airtight containers or resealable bags.

Recipe barely adapted from Allrecipes.com