Passover Granola

Happy Passover!

This recipe is nothing short of delicious.  I was given this recipe from a new friend that I met recently playing Mah Jongg.   It's made with Matzoh Farfel and lots of yummy dried fruit and nuts.  My friend Caryn, who already made some for her family was so sweet to drop off a whole bag of mixed dried fruit so I can test this recipe.  Thank you Caryn!  I hope you try it too because it really is amazing.  If you don't have Matzoh Farfel, you can just take sheets of Matzah and place in a large Ziplock bag and crush the using a rolling pin.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 Cups Matzoh Farfel
1 Cup Almonds, Coarsely chopped
1/4 Cup (1/2 stick) Butter
2 Tablespoons Honey
1/3 Cup Brown Sugar
1/2 Teaspoon Salt
1 Cup Mixed Dried Fruit ( I used Apricots, Prunes, Figs and Apples)

Preparation:

Preheat Oven to 325 F.  Spread Farfel on a lightly greased cookie sheet.  Bake for 10-20 minutes, tossing several times until it's very lightly toasted (watch carefully)

Meanwhile in a 2-quart saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar, honey and salt.  Bring to a simmer for a few minutes, stirring constantly.  Remove from heat.  Place the Farfel, Nuts and Dried Fruit in a large bowl and drizzle the Brown Sugar/Honey mixture over  top.  Toss until Farfel, Nuts and Dried fruit is coasted well.

Spread mixture back on to cookie sheet and bake in a 350 F oven for another 10-20 minutes stirring frequently to prevent burning, until Granola is golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool.  Once Granola is cool you can store in an air tight container to store or just take a handful and Enjoy!

Slow Cooker Steel Cut Oatmeal - Oatmeal Party Bar

When we have family get togethers it's usually early so we typically serve Brunch.  It seems though we ALWAYS serve the same things over and over again.  Bagels, lox, salads, french toast casserole etc.  So this time when I had my entire family over for Brunch to celebrate my daughter's 12th birthday I decided to add a new item - Oatmeal.  I know many family members like oatmeal including many of the kids but I  also know that everyone likes to eat oatmeal flavored their own way.   For example, my kids love brown sugar and maple syrup in their oatmeal but my Mom always flavors hers with a little salt and prefers it more savory.   So I set up a "bar" of flavoring ingredients which was also a great way to make use of the case of mason jars I just bought at target.   I made a double portion of slow cooker steel cut oatmeal (recipe below) and set up mason jars filled with different ingredients.  Brown sugar, coconut, nuts, maple syrup, dried fruit, cinnamon -  just to name a few.  I also had a jar with fresh blueberries (not shown).  The options are endless! This was a fun  addition to our family brunch menu.  The kids really loved making their own oatmeal as did the adults.  

Ingredients:

1 cup Steel Cut oats (not the quick cook)- Also known as Irish Oats.

1 1/2 cups low fat milk or Almond Milk

1 1/2 cups water

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon vanilla

In a slow cooker add all ingredients and stir.  Set your slow cooker to the low and let cook for 3 hours.  Check oatmeal after 3 hours and give it a stir and a taste.  Oatmeal should be thick but spoonable.  When tasted it should have a lot of texture but be soft not be crunchy.   If you feel your oatmeal is too thick add a splash a milk and give it a good stir.  If you feel it's too runny let it cook for another 30 minutes and check again.  Every slow cooker is different so you will have to play around with your recipe to see how long it will take for you.  If you want to cook it longer you can also set your slow cooker to warm intend of low and let it go for 4-5 hours before checking.  

Mini Date and Walnut Cakes

These are the easiest little yummy desserts.  There are only 4 ingredients and you just mix everything together and bake in a mini muffin pan, you just can't screw these up.  The outcome are these little crispy, chewy, nutty, "cakes" Be careful, these are really delicious and before you know it you've eaten 12 all by yourself.  Save some for the rest of your family :)

Ingredients:

3 eggs beaten
1/2 cup dark brown sugar packed
1 cup chopped dates (you can buy dates already chopped in a box at the grocery store, so easy!
1 cup chopped walnuts

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Mix all ingredients together and spoon into a well greased mini muffin pan.  Fill each almost to the top of the pan. Bake for 20 minutes or until cakes are golden brown.

**Do not line the tins with paper liners before baking.  It's best to heavily grease the mini muffin tins and bake directly in the greased tins.  Then pop out the cakes and put each one into a liner and top with half a candied cherry.

Makes 24 mini cakes

Chicken with dried fruit and honey

This is the chicken dish I make every year for Rosh Hashanah, the jewish new year but of course it's delicious for anytime of the year. It is traditional to cook with honey for Rosh Hashanah because it is sweet and symbolizes that we should all have a sweet new year. This recipe combines honey and dried fruit and is always a crowd pleaser.

Ingredients:

1 3 1/2 to 4 lb chicken cut in 8ths

2 carrots, peeled and sliced into discs

1 onion, sliced

1/2 C golden raisins

1/2 C pitted prunes

1/3 C dried apricots

1/4 C dried currants

1/3 C oil

1 C honey

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 4oo degrees.

Place chicken pieces in roasting pan.

Combine carrots, onion, golden raisins, prunes, apricots, currants, and oil in a large bowl. Spoon mixture evenly around and over chicken.

Pour honey over chicken and vegetable/fruit mixture, lightly coating chicken pieces.

Bake for 30 minutes, baste, and reduce heat to 350 degrees. Bake for 1 hour, basting occasionally, or until chicken, vegetables, and fruit are tender and golden brown.

Linked to Everyday Mom's Meals

Autumdoodles

New recipe that is perfect for the fall.  Thanks to Krista at Everyday Mom's Meals for the great name :), Autumdoodles, a play on Snickerdoodles.  These cookies are nice and chewy and crispy and chock full of cinnamon, chocolate and dried fruit.  So delicious!

Ingredients:

1 cup sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 sticks of margarine (or butter), softened
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup cinnamon chips
1 cup chocolate chips
1 cup dried mixed berries (I used cherries, cranberries, blueberries, currants and raisins)

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line a baking sheet with a silpat liner or grease pan with non-stick cooking spray.  In a large bowl cream together margarine and sugars until smooth.  Add eggs and vanilla and beat until combined.  In a medium bowl combine flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt.  Add dry ingredients a little bit at a time to wet ingredients.  Mixing in between additions to incorporate well.  Once all dry and wet ingredients are mixed together add cinnamon, chocolate and berries.    The batter will be very thick and hard to mix.  Use a wooden spoon to help get the batter evenly mixed. 

Using a small scoop drop batter onto prepared cookie sheet.  These cookies do not spread a lot so you do not have to space them too far apart.  Bake for 15 minutes until cookies are golden brown.  Transfer to wire rack to cool completely.