Apple Pie Smoothie

October, my very favorite month, came and went in the blink of an eye.

Unfortunately, September ended on a very sad note for me, as I lost my grandma - my beloved Yaya - on the 28th.  She was truly one of a kind, with the biggest heart and a beautiful spirit.

I feel lucky that we had so many years of wonderful memories with her, and I'm so happy she got to meet our little Minion before she passed. But it was very hard to say goodbye, and there are no words to describe how much she will be missed.

On a happier note, my "baby" girl is officially a threenager.  And in true Mini fashion, we had two food-filled celebrations - a great family party complete with a make-your-own-taco bar, and a donut-making party with her little friends.

Best. Birthday. Ever.

We also had a fabulous Halloween!  Which is amazing, because I feel like occasions & holidays are always very touch & go with young kids.

Actually, that's an understatement- when they don't completely suck, I consider that to be a great success.

But this Halloween totally exceeded my expectations. Mini had a blast being a fox....

...and while the Minion was cranky at points and clearly did not want to be a bat...

... he did rally at the end of the day, and was very cooperative for trick-or treating (which lasted for about 2 hours!)  So aside from the grumpy bat, we couldn't have asked for a better day.

For Mini, it was basically the best week ever.  One weekend was her birthday, and the next was Halloween.  Cake and treats and fox costumes galore, what could be better when you're 3?

I actually think she is taking after her momma in her love for Fall, which is totally fine with me!  I'm especially happy that she also seems to enjoy the Autumn flavors.  So we have been getting our fill of pumpkin pancakes and apple pie smoothies as we watch the leaves fall.

I like to make her smoothies a few times a week (or as she calls them, "smoovies") and along with yogurt and fruit, I usually throw in some kale or spinach... which are things she refuses to eat otherwise.

We were having salad recently at a family party, and she commented, "I don't like salad.  Except when it's in my smoovie."

Haha. As delicious as "salad smoothies" are, I decided it was time to switch things up and add some fall flavor to our smoovies, so the apple pie smoothie was born.  Mr. Vittles and I drink her leftovers, and he commented that it really does taste like apple pie! Straining it before drinking it is totally optional, but I'm personally not a fan of seeds and chunks in my smoothies.

Apple Pie Smoothie

• 3/4 C. apple cider
• 1/2 C. Greek yogurt
• 1/4 t. cinnamon
• 1 T. pumpkin (or mashed banana)
• pinch nutmeg
• pinch allspice
• 2 t. oatmeal
• 3-4 ice cubes

Place all ingredients in a blender, and pulse until thoroughly blended.  If no chunks are desired, strain through a fine mesh sieve into a glass. Makes 1 serving (about 12 oz).

Original Recipe

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.

Baked Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

Happy 4th of July y'all!

It's currently raining here, courtesy of Hurricane Arthur, so there is not much celebrating to report from the Vittles household.

The rest of the holiday weekend is supposed to be beautiful, but I knew most of today was supposed to be a wash.  So last night I made this oatmeal to bake in the morning.  

I never liked oatmeal until recently, though I was also never sure why.  Much like hot tea, it seems like something I would enjoy, yet every time I had it I found it to be... bleh.

I still don't know what brought me around to it.  Maybe the fact that I started feeding it to the Mini, and eating her inevitable leftovers?  Maybe the fact that I started having it with a little brown sugar and cinnamon?  Maybe the fact that I don't have a lot of "hearty" breakfast options since going gluten-free?

Not really sure.  But in the meantime, the Mini is also starting to get a little more discerning with her tastes - she has started asking for specific things at mealtime, and refusing others.  (Our newest favorite is cherries.)  But so far, this has been a hit.  

It's also great left-over, so no worries if you don't eat the whole pan.

Hope everyone has a fun & safe holiday - Happy Birthday, America!

Baked Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal

• 2 C. uncooked quick-cooking oats
• 1/2 C. packed brown sugar 
• 1 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/8 t. ground cloves
• pinch salt
• 1 t. baking powder
• 1 1/2 C. milk
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1/2 C. unsweetened applesauce 
• 2 T. butter, melted 
• 1 large egg, beaten 
• 1 apple, peeled, cored & diced

Preheat oven to 375°.  Grease an 8" square baking dish with cooking spray, and set aside.*

In a large bowl, whisk together the oats through baking powder, & set aside.  In separate bowl, combine the milk, vanilla, applesauce, butter, and egg.

Add milk mixture to oat mixture; stir well. Fold in diced apples. Pour mixture into prepared baking dish & bake for 20-25 minutes, or until set in middle. Allow to cool 5 minutes, then serve warm.

*Note: This recipe can be made the night before, and stored in the refrigerator.  If making ahead, skip the step of preheating oven until ready to bake.  Also you may need to add an extra few minutes to bake time.

Recipe adapted from Cooking Light, as posted on MyRecipes.com

Carrot Cake Cookies

I wanted to make something festive for Easter, and now (almost 2 weeks later!) I am finally getting around to posting it.  Luckily it's not something in the shape of bunnies - these are good anytime.

Mr. Vittles thought these should have some cream cheese frosting to make them more like carrot cake - actually, the original recipe was for a frosted cookie, but I was looking for a plain one.  If you agree with him, you can always whip some frosting after they cool.   I happen to think they are tasty un-frosted, but that's just me!

We had a nice holiday at my in-laws' house, although of course the Mini decided she was not going to nap and was a bit of a disaster.  But she did have some good moments, particularly toward the end of the day, where she just hung out on her Aunt Melissa's lap or with my father-in-law.  She also looked incredibly adorable in her polka dot dress!

In other news, Miss Mini is intent on bringing me back to the Vampire World of last fall.  She has been waking up multiple times in the night since she caught a cold a month ago.  In the midst of all this, we stopped feeding her before our bedtime (around 10:30 PM) however I do not think the cause is hunger.  While the cold itself is gone, the congestion is not - so I suspect that is what's waking her up.  We just give her a pacifier and go back to sleep, but that still requires getting out of bed.

And can be anywhere from 3-7 times per night.

This is a very mean April Fools joke to play on your tired parents, Mini Smalls!  Months ago you showed us you had the ability to sleep all night without making a peep... and now you've yanked the proverbial rug out from under us.  Not nice.

Which basically sums up the majority of her behavior, actually.  Mr. Vittles told her, "You have to start being nicer to people."  Of course she doesn't know what that means... or that she's not being "nice" in the first place.  But it's the truth!  He and I have seen her smiling, laughing, & happy more than most, just because of the sheer amount of time we spend with her.  But people like my dad & stepmom, who only get to see her for an hour or so per week, have seen mostly grumpiness and crying.

Thankfully, now that it's getting warmer, we're figuring out that she really likes the outdoors.  It doesn't always work, but her demeanor seems to be better when we're either outside or "on-the-go."  I guess there's more to look at and keep her busy little brain occupied.

<Sigh.>  Someday I'll be able to just bribe ol' Grumpelstilskin with carrot cake cookies.  That is, assuming she ever decides to eat solid foods.  So far we've tried oatmeal and sweet potatoes, and both have essentially been a bust.

Oatmeal was a complete failure.  Her immediate reaction was wailing, 3 days in a row.

Our journey into the land of the sweet potato seemed much more promising...

...but still ended in despair.

My dad suggested we try carrots next, he said those were my favorite when I was her age.  (Apparently... some things never change!)

Carrot Cake Cookies

• 1/2 C. (1 stick) butter, softened
• 1/3 C. white sugar
• 1/2 C. brown sugar
• 2 T. cream cheese, softened
• 1 egg
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1 1/4 C. flour
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1 1/4 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/8 t. salt
• 1/3 C. sweetened, shredded coconut
• 1/3 C. old fashioned oatmeal (not quick-cook)
• 3/4 C. finely grated carrots

Line baking sheets with parchment, or grease with non-stick spray, and set aside.  Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

In medium bowl, whisk flour, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt until evenly distributed.  Set aside.

In large bowl of stand mixer, cream butter & sugars until light & fluffy (about 2 minutes).  Beat in cream cheese, egg, and vanilla until well-combined.

Add flour mixture and stir until no streaks of flour remain.  Add coconut, oatmeal, and carrots.  Stir to combine.

Drop by rounded tablespoonful onto prepared cookie sheets.  Bake 11-14 minutes in preheated oven until edges are lightly browned.  Cool 2 minutes on sheets, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.  Makes about 20 cookies.

Recipe Adapted from Land O'Lakes

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

Hazelnut Carmelitas

So call me crazy, but Pinterest is one of the best things that's ever happened to me.

To say that I'm obsessed with it is a serious understatement.  I have wasted spent hours upon hours on this website, scrolling through pins.  Salivating over delicious foods.  Simmering with jealousy over other people's fabulous sense of style.  Willing my pea brain to remember all the handy tips I've read.  And wishing I had more time to make all the neat crafts I've seen.

(In a more practical sense, I also love Pinterest because it has brought so many new visitors to my blog.  Yay! I like new friends!)

Now, I recently noticed a very popular Pinterest recipe, for Carmelitas from Lulu the Baker, that I have been dying to try.

I'm sure the original recipe is amazing, but I wanted to put a slightly different spin on it - so I added some Nutella and toasted hazelnuts.

Oh my word.  These things are dangerous.

My dad and stepmom had Mr. Vittles and I over for dinner, and we brought these for dessert.  My stepmom specifically asked to be quoted on V&B that she "thoroughly enjoyed" this dessert.  Which, might I add, is a lot coming from a person that doesn't much care for sweets.

My dad... well that's another story.  I only brought a few because they don't like to keep bad-for-you food in the house, but he quickly determined that the two leftover bars would definitely not be going home with us.

I did have a couple more left at our house though, so I brought one to my friend (and cube buddy) Joe at work.  He loves caramel, so I figured he would enjoy it.  It lasted until about 8:30AM on his desk, when I heard a muffled "These are amazing!" over my cubicle wall, amidst lots of chewing.

So please, do me a few favors.

One, get on Pinterest if you aren't already.  

And two, make some carmelitas.  Plain, hazelnut, whichever - just please make them!

I can't be the only one wearing pants with an elastic waist around here.

Hazelnut Carmelitas

• 16 caramel squares, unwrapped
• 1/3 cup heavy cream
• 1/4 C. nutella spread
• 3/4 cup butter, melted
• 3/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 cup flour
• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 C. semisweet chocolate chips
• 1/2 C. chopped hazelnuts (I recommend toasting them first, but that's up to you)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.  In a large bowl, combine melted butter, brown sugar, flour, oats, and baking soda. Pat half of the oatmeal mixture into the bottom of an 8x8" pan.  Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.

While crust is baking, melt caramel squares with heavy cream and nutella in saucepan over low heat.  Stir until melted & smooth.

Remove pan from oven and sprinkle chocolate chips and hazelnuts over baked crust. Pour caramel mixture evenly over pan. Crumble remaining oatmeal mixture over caramel. Return to oven and bake an additional 15-20 minutes, until the edges are lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool completely before cutting.*

*The original recipe says you can put these in the fridge to speed up cooling if you are short on time. The bars shouldn't be served cold, but the caramel takes a long time to cool down.  I would wait until they are cooled a little bit though first if you used a glass pan (don't want it to crack).  Bars should be stored and served at room temperature.  Mine were good for about 5 days in an airtight container.  Makes 1 8x8 square pan.

Recipe Adapted from Lulu the Baker

Blueberry Oat Muffins

For the past few months, Mr. Vittles and I have been on a house hunt.

And so far, the process of becoming a home-owner has been exhilarating, frustrating, and terrifying all at the same time.

I have literally memorized the MLS listings in our price range and geographical area, yet they all start to run together after a while.

This past week, we set out to visiting 7 houses we'd seen online and wanted to drive by.  As we were on our way to the third one, Mr. Vittles kept commenting about how familiar everything seemed.  We had looked at other homes in the neighborhood so I thought nothing of it - until we pulled up to the house and realized we had already looked at it in December, and crossed it off the list.

Whoops.  My bad.

We've had one house in mind, though, from the very beginning.  And I think negotiations are finally about to wind down, and (barring any serious issues) the house will likely be ours!

YAY!!

Owning a home has actually been our goal for years, but with Mr. Vittles' job as an assistant golf course superintendent, it was very likely that we'd have to move for him to be promoted to running his own course.  But we had no idea when he'd be able to move up, or (worse yet) where that would be.

Then this fall, he had an opportunity to become a partner with his brother & father in a construction business, and ultimately decided it was time to leave the industry he worked in for 13 years.  Everything has been going really well with their company, and we finally have the stability we needed to start putting down some roots.

For me the move is bittersweet, though.  While I am thrilled at the prospect of owning a home, I'm also sad to leave the house & neighborhood we live in now.

I am also pretty bummed about moving, in & of itself... once again.  We're hoping this is our last move for while, but since graduating college seven years ago this will be my fifth time moving.  And Mr. V has the same amount under his belt, if not more.

It's basically just one giant, exhausting game of Tetris and I am not looking forward to it in the least.

Still, the bright side is that you typically shed a lot of unwanted or unneeded items (we already have 8 huge shopping bags of stuff to donate to Goodwill).

You also inevitably eat way less, because you are so busy there's hardly time to concern yourself with petty things like hunger except for extreme situations.

And then... there's the workout.  Scrubbing down both the house you're in and the house you're moving to.  Lifting boxes. Going up & down stairs. Standing for hours on end, fitting items into boxes, then fitting those boxes into vehicles. (See? It's Tetris, I'm telling you.)

Our move last February came at a rough time, though - I was recovering from foot surgery on both feet.  So a lot of the work fell on my poor hubby, and yet I still pushed the envelope more than I should have.

(When my doctor & physical therapist told me to 'take it easy for a while' I'm thinking they probably didn't mean 'move everything you own into a house with 3 floors & a basement'?)

But this time I will be ready.

This time I will not wimp out on Mr. Vittles.

My feet are fine, I'm feeling energized, and this week I'll be eating these healthier, whole grain blueberry muffins instead of dark chocolate cupcakes with strawberry buttercream.

Yep.

That's me.

Super duper health-conscious.

...

Ah, who am I kidding?  Next week I'll be back to my old tricks, I'm sure.

(In fact, today's post would have been very un-healthy, had a recipe I was working on not backfired on me!)

But in the meantime, we can all have a slight reprieve from my usual.

My landlord said these were some of the best blueberry muffins he had ever tasted (thank you, Warren!), so despite the 'healthier' take, I think you will still enjoy them :)

Blueberry Oat Muffins

1 C. old-fashioned oats
1 C. all-purpose flour
1/2 C. whole wheat flour
1/2 C. packed brown sugar
2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
1/2 t. salt
1/4 t. ground nutmeg
1 large egg
1 C. + 2 T. low-fat buttermilk
1/4 C. canola oil
1 1/2 t. vanilla extract
2 C. blueberries, rinsed & dried
granulated sugar, for sprinkling (optional but recommended)

Preheat oven to 400°F. Spray 12-cup muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray, or line with paper liners.

Place oats in a food processor, and pulse until finely ground.  Add flours, brown sugar, baking powder and soda, salt, & nutmeg- pulse to combine.  Empty dry ingredients into a large bowl.

In small bowl, whisk egg, buttermilk, oil, and vanilla.  Add to flour mixture and stir just until flour is moistened.  Fold in berries.

Spoon batter into muffin-pan cups (I like to use a large cookie scoop to divide batter evenly) and sprinkle tops with a little granulated sugar.  Bake 23 to 25 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center of muffins comes out clean. Cool briefly in pan, then transfer to wire rack; serve warm, or cool to serve later.  Makes 12 muffins.

Recipe Adapted from Delish (Originally from Good Housekeeping)

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

Crunchy Granola Bites

Do you like granola bars?

I do, but unless you get some expensive organic brand, you probably don't like what you see on the side of the box.

You know, the likes of high fructose corn syrup...  partially hydrogenated oil.... artificial flavoring...

Ech.  Not ideal for a supposedly "healthy" breakfast or snack.

My friend, Super Mom Natalie, already shared with you her fabulous recipe for granola, but sometimes I want something that doesn't require a bowl.

Something I can easily grab and eat on the go.

Like a granola bar.  But without all that bad stuff.

So that's why I made these.  They are full of wholesome goodies like oatmeal, flax seeds, almonds, and pumpkin seeds, and wheat germ.

Also, if you're feeling crazy, they are easily customizable to whatever you're craving at the moment.  Raisins, cranberries, pecans, mini chocolate chips (I won't tell if you won't!), sesame seeds - anything your little heart desires.

But nooo hydrogenated oils or corn syrup in these bad boys.

And they're more fun than a granola bar because they are bite-sized.

Everything is more fun when it's mini :)

Crunchy Granola Bites

• 1 1/2 C. old-fashioned oats
• 1/4 C. flax seeds
• 1/4 C. sliced almonds
• 1/4 C. pumpkin seeds
• 1/2 C. shredded coconut
• 1/4 C. wheat germ
• 2 T. blonde coconut palm sugar (or light brown sugar is fine)
• 1 T. molasses
• 2 T. honey
• 1 T. agave nectar
• 1 T. almond butter
• 4 T. Earth Balance spread (or butter)
• 2 t. pure vanilla extract
• 1/8 - 1/4 t. salt (to taste)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Grease a 24-cup mini-muffin tin and set aside.

Combine oats, flax seeds, almonds, pumpkin seeds, coconut, and wheat germ on a rimmed baking sheet and spread into an even layer.  Bake 20 minutes, stirring every 6 or 7 minutes, until ingredients are lightly toasted.

Meanwhile, combine sugar, honey, molasses, agave, almond butter, and Earth Balance spread in a small saucepan on stove.  Heat over medium-low, stirring until melted, and bring to a gentle simmer.  Stir occasionally, lowering heat if necessary to prevent burning, until oats are done.

Empty oat mixture from baking sheet into a bowl, and stir.  Remove sugar syrup from stove, and add vanilla and salt.  Pour syrup over oats in bowl, and stir to coat mixture well.

Increase oven heat to 325 degrees, then divide granola mixture among cups of prepared mini-muffin tin (I used a small cookie dough scoop to distribute evenly).  Press mixture firmly into cups - you want the mixture to adhere to itself, otherwise you'll just end up with cups of loose granola!

Bake in pre-heated oven for 13-15 minutes until golden.  Let bites sit in pan for 10 minutes before removing and cooling completely on wire rack.

Original Recipe

Milk Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

Sometimes I wonder if famous chefs and bakers ever mess up in the kitchen.

Does Martha Stewart ever make a cake and say, "Oops, I forgot the eggs?"

Does Emeril Lagasse ever slice his pork roast and realize its half raw in the middle?

Does Maggie @ Vittles and Bits ever decide to make oatmeal cookies and forget to put the oatmeal in?

Yes... yes she does.

Ok so unfortunately I'm not famous.  But can you believe that I specifically wanted to make oatmeal cookies and almost neglected to put in the main ingredient?

After finishing up mixing the ingredients, I licked some of the batter on the beaters and thought "This batter is awfully buttery."

So I added some extra flour and placed the dough in the refrigerator to chill.

A while later it dawned on me... I had no recollection of opening the canister of oats?

Good to know pre-Christmas baking is off to a glorious start. 

Milk Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Cookies

• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, softened
• 2/3 cup light brown sugar, packed
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 3/4 C. + 2 T. all-purpose flour
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/2 t. ground cinnamon
• 1/4 t. salt 
• 1 C. rolled oats
• 3/4 C. milk chocolate chips

In a large bowl, cream together the butter, brown sugar, egg and vanilla until smooth. In a separate bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together. Stir flour mixture into the butter/sugar mixture. Then stir in the oats & chocolate chips.

Chill dough in refrigerator 30 minutes, covered.  Preheat oven 350 degrees.

Drop rounded tablespoons of dough 1" apart on a parchment-lined (or nonstick-sprayed) baking sheet. Bake cookies for 10-12 minutes, taking them out when golden at the edges but still a little undercooked-looking on top. Cool on baking sheet for a few minutes, then transfer to cooling rack to cool completely.

Recipe adapted from SmittenKitchen.com

Homemade Granola

On this last day of August, I have got a treat for you - a guest post by Natalie Vittles!

She has been kind enough to take some time out of her busy schedule to share not only her super-secret and super-delicious homemade granola recipe, but also a little history of how it came to be!

Ahhh!!
 
I'm not sure which I'm more excited about.

You be the judge.  Enjoy :)

As Maggie mentioned in her last post, I don't have a lot of spare time on my hands these days. I am a mother to a very rambunctious 3 year old boy and a happy-go-lucky, but still needy 5 month old infant. Oh and I just started law school.  I ever-so-wisely rode the late pregnancy hormone-induced wave of ambition straight into that logistical calamity.

As you may have guessed, a lot of my time-consuming stay-at-home-mom-with-a-perfectionist-hippie-streak obsessions have fallen by the wayside. While our first child was on a super strict cloth diaper regimen (which even included toting giant bags of soiled linens on vacation) our second receives this conscience-soothing treatment in increasingly rare cases such as when the toosh isn't a little bit irritated, or when he isn't about to take a nap, or for that matter when dirty diapers aren't in queue behind 2 days of backlogged laundry - i.e almost never.

But there is one law school felled tradition that I quickly resurrected - making my own granola. It's just too good. It makes the store-bought stuff (even the organic, pumpkin seed, super omega, etc. stuff) seem like Cap'n Crunch in comparison. Nothing against the Cap'n, but that's dessert not breakfast.  

I had been making this recipe every week for a year, slowly changing things as I went along. Finding a good granola recipe to start with was no easy task. Even my trusty Mark Bittman, the man who taught me how to cook..well.."Everything..," left me with burnt and bland granola after way too many steps and way too many pans and bowls. I eventually adapted a recipe from Delicious Living magazine, a free handout at our local co-op. 

If you compare the recipes, you'll see that in the end I just added almond butter (to create the crunchy clumps), subtracted the coconut (because it really didn't add anything to the taste), and greatly reduced the cooking time (to avoid the burnt taste). Amazing how it took me a whole year to get to this point, but hindsight is 20/20. 

The final recipe is very adaptable and customizable. You can add different seeds, nuts and dried fruit for a completely new taste. It's equally as good with yogurt as it is with milk, which is a plus since I've been addicted to Greek yogurt lately. Is that stuff amazing or what?!  And I assure you that you do not need to be a domestic goddess like Ms. Vittles to make this recipe. If your idea of cooking is throwing ingredients into a giant bowl (or if you've just got a lot on your plate), this recipe is for you:

Homemade Granola

• 8 cups uncooked rolled oats
• 1/2 cup sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup sesame seeds
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1 cup almonds, chopped or sliced
• 3/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup honey
• 1/2 cup sunflower oil*
• 1 TB Molasses
• 1 TB vanilla extract
• 1 heaping spoonful (or more) Almond Butter
• cinnamon
• salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large bowl, mix first 5 dry ingredients. Make well and add in next 6 ingredients. Stir to combine. Press mixture into two jelly roll pans and sprinkle with a little bit of salt and a lot of cinnamon. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove from oven, stir, and bake for 10 additional minutes. Remove granola from pans immediately (otherwise it will stick) and put in resealable bag or storage container. I keep mine in the same giant Pyrex bowl that I used to mix the ingredients. After it comes out of the oven you can add dried fruit to the recipe.

*Any neutral, high heat oil could probably be used if sunflower oil isn't available.

Recipe Adapted (by Natalie) from Delicious Living Mag.com

Chocolate Oatmeal Fudge Bars

Much unlike me, Mr. Vittles could take or leave desserts.  He usually eats sweets more as a snack than a dessert, and for the most part, seems strangely indifferent to their sugary goodness.

But on the rare occasion he latches on to something, he doesn't let go.

Like... the ricotta cookies, and now these.

I made these chocolate oatmeal fudge bars for the first time a few weeks ago, as a dessert to bring to a friend's birthday dinner party.  Mr V. was supposed to accompany me to said party, but at the last minute he couldn't go because there was a fire at the golf course where he manages.

!!

Which would be a really insane excuse not to go a dinner party (I'm sure people have used it) but I did see pictures and can confirm their storage shed really did get reduced to rubble.

Anyhoo... since he was not going to be able to try this new recipe at the party (AND I was having a very small gathering of my own a couple nights later) I saved about a third of the batch to keep at home.  Which is actually a lot, because these are very rich and I cut them into small pieces.

But apparently...that was not enough.

Between the night after the birthday party and the next day, I could not pry these things from his grubby little paws.

In fact, I had to explicitly tell him NOT to touch any more of the oatmeal cookie bars until after our party.  Which I thought would be fine since a) he's not a big sweets guy and b) there were still some cookies and cupcakes left over from Momma Vittles' brunch.

But alas, this was not the case.  I was told that the oatmeal bars were "dominant" and that he could see no other desserts in their presence.

Then yesterday, I was told it was "time to make more of those oatmeal things", and he again used the term "dominant" to describe them.

Kind of a strange choice of words... must be a powerful attraction.

So even though its currently 81 degrees in our home (our AC is not so great so we don't even bother unless its super hot), I fired up the oven and made the Dominant Oatmeal Bars.

Which are, by the way, a layer of oatmeal cookie, topped with a soft, chocolately fudge, and then more droplets of oatmeal cookie.

Yes.  What a good wifey I am.

And after they had cooled and I went to go cut them into squares ... I found that a little mouse had already taken a sample:

 

 A 6'4" mouse that knows how to use a knife.

Chocolate Oatmeal Fudge Bars

For the oatmeal layer:

• 2½ C all-purpose flour
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 t. salt
• ¼ t. ground cinnamon
• 1 C. (2 sticks) butter, at room temperature
• 2 C. light brown sugar, packed
• 2 large eggs
• 2 t. vanilla extract
• 3 C. old-fashioned oats

For the chocolate layer:

• 1 (14 oz.) can sweetened condensed milk
• 2 C. semisweet chocolate chips
• 2 T. butter
• ¼ t. salt
• 1 t. vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350° F.  Line the a 9 x 13-inch baking pan with foil (preferably nonstick) that overlaps the edges, and grease with nonstick cooking spray.

Make the oatmeal cookie layer:  Combine the flour, baking soda, salt and cinnamon in a medium bowl and whisk to blend.  Set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter on medium-high speed until it is soft and creamy, about 1 minute.  Add the brown sugar and beat on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes.  Mix in the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.  Blend in the vanilla.  With the mixer on low speed, mix in the dry ingredients you set aside just until incorporated.  Mix in the oats on low or with a rubber spatula until evenly combined.

Reserve 1½ cups of the mixture.  Place the remaining dough in the prepared pan and press over the bottom of the pan in an even layer.

Make the chocolate layer: combine the condensed milk, chocolate chips, butter and salt in a microwave safe bowl. Heat in 15 second increments, stirring after each, until mixture is smooth.  Stir in the vanilla.

Pour the warm chocolate mixture over the oatmeal cookie layer and spread evenly with an offset spatula.  (Tip: Spray one side of spatula with nonstick cooking spray to spread more easily, if desired)  Crumble the remaining oatmeal cookie mixture and scatter evenly over the top of the chocolate.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the topping is golden brown and the chocolate layer is starting to pull away from the sides of the pan.  Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely.  Lift foil out of pan, and cut into bars as desired. (I would recommend cutting them fairly small, as they are pretty rich).

Recipe Adapted from Annie's Eats