Super Easy Granola Recipe

Super Easy Granola Bars
Ingredients:
4 c oats (do not use instant)
1/2 c olive oil (I would not use a extra virgin olive oil, use something lighter)
2/3 c honey (depending on how sweet you like it and what kind of honey you're using)
1/4 c flaxseeds
1/2 c total of mix-ins (whatever you like, nuts, dried fruit, coconut, chocolate, etc)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees. Mix all ingredients until well coated. Line the bottom of a 9x13-in glass pan with aluminum foil. Spray with cooking spray. Add mixture and firmly press into pan. (a little oil rubbed on your hands or some plastic gloves will help with the pressing into the pan.) Bake for25-30 minutes, until the top just become golden brown. Remove and press the top with a spatula to compress the bars even more. Let cool thoroughly before cutting into bars. To remove from pan pull foil up and peel away from the bars. Yields: 24-32 bars

For granola, Spread mixture on to a greased sheet pan and bake for 25-30 minutes stirring 1/2 way through. Let cool and crumble to desired consistency.

Greek Yogurt with Fresh Berries, Mint, Honey and Granola
17.6 oz container of )% Fage Greek Yogurt
 8 strawberries, stems removed/quartered
4 tbsp honey
4 tbsp granola
2 tbsp mint

Divide yogurt between four 8-10 oz ramekins. Add two quartered strawberries to each dish. Drizzle each with 1 tbsp of honey. Sprinkle with 1/2 tbsp of mint and top with 1 tbsp of granola and serve immediately. Yields : 4 servings

I make up a few of these minus the granola and save in the refrigerator for a quick breakfast or snack at work I have great Pampered Chef prep bowls with snug lids or I use my Fit & Fresh 1/2 cup containers. Add granola when you're ready to eat.

If you have a lot of people you can serve family style, doubling or tripling the recipe, pie plate or other large shallow dish. I have great shallow sided, flat bottom pasta bowl that work really well. It's a great quick, cheap surprise for a work pot luck or a party. Simple, health, inexpensive and packed full of flavor.
ENJOY!

The Write Bite - Spring Harvest Cooking Class

It was a culinary cornucopia. I learn and tasted so many new thing this weekend. I occasionally take recreational classes at the Institute of Culinary Education in NYC. On Thursday; evening I took a Spring Harvest class. It was focused on local seasonal resources forming a fresh, healthful meal. I love the idea eating seasonally and supporting the local farmers.
I do find it a little challenged monetarily sometimes the small local growers are not the cheapest, but I'm working on sacrificing quantity for quality. Also getting to know the growers or being you're own grower helps. Or if you are not a green thumb having friends that are helps!
Back to class, this was perhaps my favorite class thus far. Not only did I get to experience some great new foods but Chef Sasso was amazing. His unbridled enthusiasm and passion for food was prevalent from the first words that came out if his mouth. (He wasn't bad on the eyes either.) I have taken several other classes before and none of the Chefs had shown such passion about food. I loved that he challenged us to sample the lardo on a piece of bread. Then, got the idea of adding some arugula, chili flakes and a touch of lemon. Lardo is basically cured pig fat that has been sliced thin. It is considered a salume and can be eat as such or added to a dish. We used it to top our asparagus salad with warm poached eggs. It really just melts in your mouth. I brought some home to serve as an app for my brothers birthday dinner later in the month. After all, he did get my the ICE gift certificates for Christmas. Love is giving the gift of cured pork fat!
Unfortunately, we didn't get to have the shad roe. I was most looking forward to trying that, but there were so many other wonderfully unique creations. I think the other classes I had taken were more traditional in the sense that they were teaching cultures and techniques where Spring Harvest was my favorite because opened my eyes up to completely new flavors and while honestly teaching me new techniques. It was a great combination of exciting new foods and life long techniques. Ok, my farmers market fillets fish to order, I'm lucky, but I learned how to fillet a fluke. I would love to go fishing and show off my new skills right on the boat. Wouldn't that be hot to see me filleting fresh fish on the open sea! haha. The best part about filleting the fluke was eating it as we were doing it. Sasso encouraged us to taste the fish sashimi style, none of the condiments needed. The fish was super fresh and delicious, such good energy in the room, so exciting.
Silly, but one of my arch enemies... the poached egg! I love them and order them out all the time but the daunting task of making them at home has always baffled and challenged my culinary skills. It is an egg braised in water till the whites are set and the yoke is runny. So simplistic, elegant and delicious yet challengingly impossible. Well, not any more. Who's coming over for poached eggs?! I love it. I made them this morning. Two for me and one for Frankie, yes my dog is spoiled. All you have to do is place some plastic wrap over a small prep bowl, spray with cooking spray, the pampered chef Kitchen Spritzer is perfect for this, crack the egg into the bowl, salt, another spritz of oil and gather all the sides and tie the top in a knot. Once you have all your egg bundles ready. Start a pot of water and grab a bowl to make an ice bath. Boil your egg bundles for about 5-6 min depending on how you like your eggs done. I'm a 5 minute girl. Immediately remove them from the boiling water and put into the ice bath or serve. They will last in the fridge for about a week so make extra for a quick special mid week breakfast treat. How easy and foolproof is that, brilliant!

Out of all the yummy food we ate like dandelion, fresh ricotta and pork belly with honey and citrus segments and monkfish medallions with creamed spinach and morels my favorite dish of the evening was curried beets and carrots with a lime coriander yogurt. It was a beautifully unique, fresh and inspiring dish. I really woke up and surprised my palette with  the contrasting sweet, sour and savory flavors. The sweet beets and carrots were delicately perfumed with the curry while the sour lime infused yogurt cut the sweetness balancing out the dish to perfection. I was put off by the whole coriander seeds at first. They are rather hard and crunchy but in true foodie form they grew on me. I have over come the texture to realized the immense burst of flavor they provided when you crunch into them.
Growing up with funky pickled beet and not knowing any better I am a recent convert to the beet craze. If you like Indian food this is definitely a great mild intro to the flavors of beets. I'm sure this is illegal but I am going to share the recipe courtesy of the Institute of Culinary Education and chef Anthony Sasso of Casa Mono.
I am planning a trip to Casa Mono on Saturday May 22nd if anyone wants to come along. Maybe chef Sasso will whip us up something special.


What is your favorite spring time dish?

___________

This salad would make a great side to chicken, steak or even fish. It would also be great served as a small plate or as a light lunch served on top of a bed of spicy arugula.

Curried Beets and Carrots with Lime Coriander Yogurt
serves 4
2-3 carrots, peeled
3 med/large beets (red, pink, yellow)
2 small shallots, peeled and sliced thinly
2 sprigs of thyme
1 TBSP of curry powder
2 limes
12 oz strained greek yogurt
1/2 TBSP of whole corianders seeds
1/2 bunch of mint
1/2 bunch of cilantro, picked

Bring a large pot of water, big enough to submerge the beets in, to a boil with a few handfuls of salt and the tyme. Add the beet and cook until tender or when you stick a paring knife in it barely starts to slide off the knife. Similar to a potato. Remove from liquid, peel and set aside. If the beets are perfectly cooked you can take an old, it will stain, cotton side towel (or i used paper towels) and rub the warm beets the skin should peel right off.
In the same water  blanch the carrots for 4-5 min or just until tender. do not over cook.
Add the zest and juice of  the limes, chopped mint, coriander seeds and salt/pepper to taste to the yogurt.
Dice the cooled beets and carrots uniformly. I like them just bite size maybe about a 1-2-in dice. Toss with the curry powder and salt/pepper to taste.
To serve, spread the yogurt onto to bottom of a serving plate. Mound the beet and carrot mixture in the center and sprinkle the cilantro on top.
ENJOY!

Turkey Hill Frozen Yogurt

 

 For all you dieter and health conscious people. I just had Turkey Hill Fat-Free Frozen Yogurt for breakfast. I was definitely a little hesitant buying fat-free frozen yogurt to replace a rich creamy ice cream. Well, I was pleasantly surprised! No, I do not usually eat ice cream for breakfast but I CAN eat frozen yogurt especially when it has all of the great properties of non-frozen yogurt. The Turkey Hill Fat-Free Frozen Yogurt has only 90 calories per half cup serving, active yogurt cultures and is gluten-free. Oh did I mention it was fat-free too... haha ok, I think you get it. 

I went for the classic neopolitan to get a well rounded first experience, but they have about ten different fat-free varieties, ranging from 90-160 calories/serving, including limited additions. To help with portion control  have been eating out of my small prep bowls and Fit and fresh plastic-ware instead of my everyday Corelle dishes. I think that it's more of a optical illusion of having a full bowl and feeling satisfied when I'm done, but it's reeking havoc in my dishwasher. There are random little lids and bowls flying everywhere when I turn it on.

I can't wait to try some other flavors like Peanut Butter Pie or the Limited Edition -PomBlueberry Chocolate Truffle. YUM! Check all of them out at Turkey Hill Dairy. What is your favorite low-fat or fat-free frozen yogurt? 

Day 18

I'm still doing the 4 day diet but have just been super busy, tired and a little unmotivated to exercise. Maybe it's the weather or the idea that the ground hog decided there will be six more weeks of winter or maybe I just need to get out of the house, besides work, and socialize.
Last time I went out I was doing so good and then someone decided to fry french fries and then onion rings somewhere at the bar. It smelled so good... so I left. That sounds stupid right?! But it was seriously making me hungry. I couldn't handle it.

I made kale chips the other night. They were deliciously addicting and super easy. Just salt pepper, olive oil, baking sheet and oven! I have been using my Pampered Chef Kitchen Spritzer to control my oil intake. It is so easy to start dumping way too much oil in a pan or on veggies that just soak it up. The spritzer is refillable, non-aerosol and economical, but it is kind of a pain in the ass because you have to keep pumping it up every few seconds. I have to admit I do love the smooth spray of a aerosol can whether it be hair spray to cooking oil.

I made whole wheat pancakes the other night to heat up and eat in the morning, as per my diet schedule. While I was making them I ate one! I was not hungry and I knew it was bad. I live alone, no one would know. I'm pretty sure the dog would not tell on me. I thought about spitting it out and realized it was too far gone and that it would be borderline some form of anorexic disease if I did that. I chewed, swallowed and spent an extra hour on the elliptical machine. Stupid pancake!
It's six in the morning. I'm up and ready to work out. I let the dog out, turned on my DVRed shows from the night before and hopped onto the elliptical machine. About fifteen minutes in the door flies open with a loud boom, I scream at the top of my lungs (almost falling off of the elliptical machine), Frankie barks manically and we both kind of duck as if some deranged serial killer just kicked down the door and is standing out on my 3rd floor balcony ready to kill us. Apparently in my hast I did not close the door all the way and the gale force winds blew it open. I watch too much TV!
My new years resolution was to get to work on time. It was getting bad by the end of the year and I felt like I was taking advantage of the relaxed environment i appreciate working in. Living less than five minutes from work is really a disadvantage to getting there on time. I have no set time I need to leave. I leave when I'm supposed to be there because I'm literally "almost" there, no big deal. I digress, the real point of this gibberish is that I because of the full fledged diet/third life crisis initiative I have been getting up, not early, but on time, working out and getting to work early! WHOA... yup, I feel much better about myself and life, much more organized, self-controlled and therefore calmer. Despite the pancake and windy door incident.
Two more things, I can't wait for the snow and I'm going to work on taking more pictures for your viewing pleasure. YAY, it's Friday!

My Day in the Kitchen

I had a lovely Sunday spent in the kitchen for some much needed therapy. I use cooking and baking to relax and unwind. I love that by combining a few raw ingredients you end up with something completely new. Flour, water, yeast and olive oil make a lovely tender and crispy pizza dough.

I started out my morning by making some whole wheat pizza dough. So simple, takes only a few minutes to mix up and completely satisfying. My recipe made four individual size pizza. I ate one and froze the others so I could enjoy homemade dough any night of the week. I also discovered that  is my Pampered Chef Mini-Baker is the perfect size individual pizza baker too. I wish that I had some fresh mozzarella and basil but I made due with some part skim mozzarella. The mini-baker is made of the same stoneware that the pizza stones are made of so it left a delicious crispy bottom in only about 15 minutes. I bet they could be pre-made, baked off, cooled and frozen for a quick work lunch or for an after school snack. Yummm... add some sauteed peppers, onions and sausage. It is just as quick, tastier and much healthier for you than the store bought frozen pizzas.

As per my previous post about roasted veggies. I am still obsessing over them. I had some left over broccoli from a few days ago. Past its prime for eating raw but deliciously suited for roasting. The broccoli gets this nutty, intense flavor that can not be achieve any other way. I love adding whole cloves of garlic, olive oil and some salt/pepper. Along with my pizza it made a delicious lunch and was well within my diet guidelines.

The tofu chili did not photograph well. I will have a recipe to follow with much better pictures. I added some lentils instead of bean because I had some left over. The soy bean is amazing. It is used in everything from 

powering cars to making rich creamy smoothies and everything in between.

Next on the menu was baked turkey meatballs. I was worried about them being dry between the baking and the 99% fat free turkey I used. To prevent this I use a slice of my Arnold Flax Seed & Fiber bread (I actually used the "useless" end.) I soaked it in water and squeezed it dry and added it to the ground turkey. Out of 3/4 lb I made nine plus a little taster one to make sure the seasoning was correct. I let them cool on the baking sheet and popped them into the oven to eat with my homemade whole wheat pasta.

How exciting! I got a Pasta Roller Set for my KitchenAid Mixer for Christmas. I have never made pasta before. I was very excited in the idea of experimenting with different flavors, shapes and testing old recipes with fresh pasta. Nothing is better than fresh pasta. You just can not get that al dente taste with store bought dried pasta. It is amazing how expensive the fresh store bought pasta is when it is so easy to make. Water, flour and eggs, soo simple. Even more simple than the pizza dough.

The pasta roller set came with four different pasta recipes; egg, semolina, light whole wheat, whole wheat and spinach. I decided to try the light whole wheat pasta recipe. Now, I know some do not believe in making pasta dough with anything but a counter top and a set of hands, but I'm busy! I simply dumped all of the ingredients into the stand mixer using the kneading hook I let it run for two minutes. It did seem a little dry so I added another tablespoon of water and let it go for another minute. Perfect! I dumped it onto my cutting board kneaded it to a loaf and let it rest for a few minutes. After resting I sliced into eight pieces as per instructed by recipe. Well, here goes nothing. I wish I could have taken pictures as I was rolling out the dough but I have yet to grow a third hand. I'm sure I will find a future volunteer to photograph for food. I decided on a fettuccine width and using a clean kitchen towel I was off! Look at my beautiful whole wheat fettuccine nests. I recipe made ten servings with a few pieces boiled up for an immediate irresistible taste test.

Honestly, If you make the dough ahead and refrigerating it you could get fresh pasta on the table in the same amount of time it would take you to boil up dried pasta! Unlike store bought whole wheat pasta my pasta did not have that toothy gritty dry texture. It had the familiar chewy al dente texture familiar to only the best Italian restaurants. What a lovely day. I can't wait to eat and serve all of my delicious food. Happy cooking!