Tag Archives: craisins

Oatmeal Craisins Cookies

I’m on a craisins kick! Why not? Really you could use any dried fruit you prefer. Craisin add a pretty hue. This recipe was inspired by a Bob’s Red Mill Recipe that originally called for nuts, I swapped out the almonds for chocolate chips. I think white chocolate chips would go good here as well

This recipe yields: 32 cookies using a number 40 scoop ( 2 Tablespoons)

Ingredients:

1 cup unsalted butter (aka two full sticks)  (room temperature/softened but not too soft)

1 cup Granulated Sugar

1 cup Raw sugar or brown sugar

2 extra large eggs

2 tsp pure vanilla extract ( I prefer penzeys vanilla)

1 1/2 cups Whole Wheat Pastry Flour  or Graham Flour

1 tsp baking Powder

1 tsp ground Vietnamese cinnamon

1 tsp Kosher salt

1/4 tsp ground nutmeg

3 cups Old fashioned Rolled Oats

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips or dark chocolate (pick your favorite)

1 cup dried cranberries

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees convection (standard oven 350 degrees). Parchment paper line two 1/2 sheet baking pans.  Set aside.

2. In a stand mixer with a paddle attachment cream butter, salt, and sugars together. Add in eggs, one at a time and follow up with vanilla. Mix until combined.

3. In a seperate medium to large bowl mix together flour, baking powder, nutmeg, and cinnamon. Gradually add to the wet ingredients and stir until combined.

4.  Fold in oats, craisins, and chocolate chips and mix until incorporated.

5. Use ac cookie size 40 scoop to drop cookies onto parchment paper. I only placed 6 cookies to a 1/2 sheet pan.

6. Bake for 16-17 minutes and allow to cool on pan for 1-2 minutes. Remove the cookies to a wire rack to completely cool off.

****Bonus trick….Place the dough in the refrigerator overnight or for a good hour before scooping & baking. This helps them hold their shape.

Craisin maple granola

Granola is very versatile! You can add it to everything or just eat it plain. My favorite is with Greek yogurt and fresh berries.

It is a perfect idea for snacks, breakfast or lunch. Granola is nonperishable so it can be kept in a sealable coming container in your desk at work or in your book bag for a handy hungry nourishment to get you through until the next meal.

Buying prepared granola can get pricy however making it from scratch from home can be fun and less costly, not to much lower in calories! Win, win!

This recipe yields: 2 cups

Ingredients:

1 1/4 cup puffed wheat cereal

1 cup quick or old fashioned oats

1/4 cup craisins

1/4 cup roasted sunflower seeds

1 teaspoon of Vietnamese ground cinnamon

1/4 cup peanut butter

1/4 cup pure maple syrup

2 Tablespoons of sugar in the raw

1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract

Predirections: preheat oven to 350.

Directions:

1. Place the first 5 ingredients into a large bowl. Mix to marry.

2. Pour the peanut butter, maple syrup, and sugar in a 2 quart sauce pan and on turn the stovetop burner onto medium high and heat the liquid ingredients until they start to boil. Remove from heat and add vanilla & stir. Pour mixture over the dry ingredients.

3. Pour the mixture onto a parchment pan lined baking dish. Spread the granola out evenly. Bake at 350 for ten minutes and using a spatula mix the granola and place back in the oven for another 10 minutes or until granola is golden brown. Remove the granola from the oven and allow to cook on wire rack.

4. Once completely cooler place in a sealable container.

Thanksgiving Cranberry Turkey Salad

My work graciously gave us vouchers for either turkeys or hams this year at Christmas. Since we are in the process of moving, I waited until the very last minute to pick up my turkey breast at the Piggly Wiggly. We only had until the last day of February to purchase them which really worked out in our favor since we did not have our own refrigerator until mid January. 

My husband and I waited until Saturday to roast the turkey breast in the slow cooker while we house shopped. The turkey pretty much took that long to thaw out in the refrigerator. It sure was nice to have dinner done when we returned home from an exhausting day of decision making. What location to buy the house? Which neighborhood ? What house? 

What I love most about roasting poultry is there are unless outcomes with the end result. First of course sliced and served with a heeping amount of garlic mashed potatoes than served in pot pies, soups, salads, pastas,  Ect. 

Yields: 5 Servings 

Ingredients:

4 Tablespoons of roasted sunflower seeds

4 Tablespoons of dried cranberries 

2 teaspoons malt vinegar 

2 teaspoons whole grain Dijon mustard

4 Tablespoons of light miracle whip

4 Tablespoons plain fat free Greek yogurt

2 cups of cooled roasted turkey breast, chopped 

Salt and pepper to taste 

Directions: 

1. Mix the first 6 ingredients together in a sealable container (should hold at least 3 cups). 

2. Fold in the turkey to the salad dressing blend. Lastly salt and pepper to taste. 

3. Enjoy with some whole grain crackers or whole wheat bread with spinach!