No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

No-Bake Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

 

I have been making these cookies for years.  I don't remember where I got the recipe, but I'm pretty sure it was a church cookbook.  Maybe my grandmother's church?  I have several so I could go back and look through them, but I vaguely remember finding this recipe years ago as I was reading through a newly gifted cookbook.

 

These are very simple and kids can make them, with a little supervision.

 

I made them for kids this time around when I attended a couple of parties over the 4th of July weekend where there would be plenty of kids to enjoy them.

 

And I made them while watching Bridget Jones's Diary.

 

 

 

I paused to get started on my cookies after Bridget had her heart broken by Daniel Cleaver, and was headed to the dinner party with lots of smug married couples.  You know, where at the end Mark Darcy tells her he likes her. 

Just as she is.

 

 

You bring sugar, milk, cocoa, and butter to a boil, letting it boil for 1 1/2 minutes.  Then you remove it from the heat and immediately stir in peanut butter and oatmeal.

 

 

And then it needs to seriously cool.  But not too long or it is difficult to shape them into cookies without them crumbling.  I would say 20 minutes.

 

Or, in my case, until the end of the fight between Daniel and Mark after Bridget's birthday dinner (with the blue soup). 

 

Then form the cookies (I usually end up making more like balls than cookies - but any shape works), and let them sit on wax paper to cool completely so they won't crumble apart.

 

Serve, and store any leftovers (ha) in an airtight container.

 

 

Tom:  Well done Bridge, four hours of careful cooking and a feast of blue soup, omelette and marmalade. I think that deserves a toast, don't you? To Bridget, who cannot cook, but who we love

just as she is.

 

 

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Enjoy!

 

 

Mock Chocolate Truffles

Mock Chocolate Truffles

 

This recipe is courtesy of wellness coach, and my friend, Sandy Thomas.  We made these mock truffles in a cooking class I took with Sandy and friends last year.  They were delicious, and I made them with Brennan today.

 

Excuse the state of the kitchen, we're having interior painting done this week!

 

While Brennan really prefers creating his own recipes, he is also good at following a recipe, so I put him to work today in the kitchen.

 

We started by chopping pecans in the food processor.

 

Then we added pitted dates, maple syrup, vanilla extract, cocoa powder, and one tablespoon of water, per the directions.  This gave us a rough texture, so we added another tablespoon of water or two until we go the right texture - rather smooth.

 

Then we rolled the truffles, and rolled half through cocoa powder, and half through shredded coconut.

 

 

 

I chilled them in the fridge until after dinner, but we didn't make it that long.

 

 

 

This recipe made about 3 dozen.  I loved the coconut.  David and Brennan (my dark chocolate lovers) really liked the cocoa powder ones.

 

 

 

I am understating how much they loved this dessert.

 

They absolutely loved these.  In fact, they completely disappeared.  Before dinner!

 

David thought they made a great special treat to take to a dinner.  Brennan wants to make more to take to his grandmother's house this weekend.  And he wants to make them for Thomas.

 

If you have any leftover, store them in an air tight container in the fridge.

 

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Enjoy!

 

Homemade Lemonade

Homemade Lemonade

 

I like to have a pitcher of fresh lemonade in the fridge for the boys, or myself, or for when friends stop by to sit by the pool and catch up.  A pitcher of lemonade and some fresh strawberries makes the perfect snack!

 

I use fresh lemons and juice them on a citrus juicer.  Then add sugar and stir until the sugar dissolves, before adding water and chilling the lemonade. 

 

5 lemons makes about 1.5 cups of lemon juice.  I add 2/3 c sugar. 

 

Some recipes call for equal parts lemon juice and sugar, but there is no way I'm adding 1.5 cups of sugar to a pitcher of lemonade. 

 

2/3 c is the right tartness/sweetness ratio for my family.

 

 

 

A fun thing to do is fill the juiced lemon halves with sherbet (I used pineapple sherbet below) and freeze for game night with the kids, or a pool treat.

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Enjoy!

 

Hummingbird (Cup)Cakes

Hummingbird (Cup)Cakes

 

My friend Sarah shared her Hummingbird Cake recipe with me so I decided to try it for Easter.

Instead of a cake, though, I made cupcakes.

 

They were delicious and really moist.

 

Along with a gorgeous carrot cake and a cheese cake, we had great Easter desserts.

 

Mix together oil, sugar, eggs, and vanilla.  Then add in baking soda, cinnamon, flour and salt.

 

Finally, stir in diced bananas, crushed pineapple with its juice, coconut, and chopped pecans.

 

 

Combine well.  This recipe makes either 3 cake layers or 36 cupcakes.

The layers should cook for 25 minutes at 350*.  I cooked the cupcakes for about 18 minutes.

We made cream cheese frosting by beating cream cheese and butter together, then adding powdered sugar and vanilla.

 

Brennan frosted the cupcakes for me which was a big help.

 

So yummy!

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Enjoy!

 

Cranberry-Apple Delight

Cranberry-Apple Delight

 

This recipe comes from the November/December 2012 Mississippi Magazine and I would have called it a "Crisp" instead of a "Delight", but I'll stay true to the original title!

 

My mom has a wonderful Apple Crisp recipe, but I was intrigued by this one because it mixes apple and cranberry, which I thought would be great for a winter baby shower/wine club gathering.

 

You'll notice there are no cranberries.  Epic fail!  I couldn't find raw cranberries anywhere in January!

So I replaced them with more apples - I vow to try this recipe with the cranberries next Fall.

 

This is a quick recipe and great for a crowd.

 

I cut up 10 cups of tart green apples (normally would be 6 c apples and 4 c raw cranberries), tossed them with lemon juice and sugar and place them in a sprayed 9x13 baking dish.

 

 

Then I mixed up the topping by combining melted butter, uncooked oats, all-purpose flour, brown sugar, and chopped pecans.

I crumbled this on top of the apples, and baked for 50 minutes at 350*.

 

It was delicious and didn't last long served hot out of the oven with vanilla ice cream!

 

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Enjoy!

 

Grape Salad

Grape Salad

 

 When we were at home at Thanksgiving, my mom made this salad, and it was sooo good.
I made it this past week for our Wine Club/Baby Shower (what a combo!), and then again when I hosted my daytime Book Club, As the Page Turns.

It's rather addictive, and is really sweet.
I actually cut back on the sugars and didn't notice the difference.
A great, easy dish for a big group (especially kids!)

 

 

 

Remove stems from grapes.

Mix together cream cheese, sour cream, and granulated sugar.

Toss together with the grapes and place in a serving bowl.

 

Combine brown sugar and chopped pecans and top the grapes.

Cover and chill before serving.

 

 

 

 

Enjoy!

Cinnamon Apples

Cinnamon Apples

 

My friend Kami, who makes the best whole-foods dishes for her kids, sent me this recipe from Taste of Home for a sweet treat.  It's a quick dish that can be made ahead of time and pulled out after dinner.

 

There are only 4 ingredients, all of which I have on hand, except for the red hot candies.

I couldn't find them anywhere!  Do they only sell red hots at Valentine's Day? 

Well, honestly, I only looked in 3 stores, but still.

 

So I went with hot cinnamon Jolly Ranchers, and I think they worked just as well.

 

 

I boiled water, sugar, and Jolly Ranchers in a saucepan until the candies fully dissolved.

 

Then I carefully added in my peeled & quartered apples, and let them cook until they were tender - about 15 minutes.  You could go longer, as long as the apples stay intact.

 

Here they are after 10 minutes. 

 

When they're tender, you place the apples in a serving dish and pour the syrup over the top.

Let them cool for a couple of minutes, then cover them and refrigerate for at least 3 hours.

 

I wish I had a plated photo of this dish, but they disappeared so quickly! 

They were good and cinnamony, and a nice after dinner treat.

 

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Enjoy!

 

Berry Crisp with Maple-Pecan Topping

Berry Crisp with Maple-Pecan Topping

Last weekend we were invited to a neighborhood gathering at our neighbor's gorgeous horse stables behind the ravine.  The theme was "Welcome to Fall".  We had hot apple cider and everyone brought a fall treat.  We played games, fed the horses carrots, and caught up with our neighbors. 
A fun afternoon!

Brennan and I decided to make this yummy sounding cobbler from this month's Vegetarian Times. 
The original recipe is a Blackberry Cobbler, but Brennan is not a huge blackberry fan because the seeds get stuck in his teeth.  I hear ya.

So we decided to do a mixed berry cobbler.  We used (thawed) frozen berries we had on-hand, but you could also use fresh berries.

What I love about this cobbler recipe is that it isn't overly sweet - it's really tart, with a hint of sweetness.  It was perfect!

We started by whisking together maple syrup and Balsamic vinegar, then tossing the mixture with our berries.

Then we tossed the berries again with a little sugar, flour and salt and poured it in our sprayed baking dish.

Next we made a topping with flour, maple syrup, rolled oats, chopped pecans, brown sugar and a little oil.  We crumbled it with our fingers and then arranged it over the berries.

We baked the cobbler for 35 minutes at 350* until the berries were bubbling and the cobbler topping was light brown.

We took it piping hot to the barn and shared it with our neighbors!

Delicious!

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Enjoy!

Watermelon Salad with Jalapeño and Lime

Watermelon Salad with Jalapeño and Lime

 

I saw this salad in the Vegetarian Times Farmer's Market Cookbook and I've been meaning to try it all summer.

We love sweet watermelon and I almost always have some cut up in the fridge that we eat at most meals.

 

This recipe can be made ahead of time or right before serving.

 

You whisk together lime juice, lime zest, and olive oil and pour it over 3 cups of cubed watermelon.

Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.

 

When you're ready to serve, place some jalapeño rings in each serving dish and mound watermelon on top.

The original recipe calls for garnishing with sea salt, black sesame seeds, and thinly sliced basil.

We served ours without the garnish, but I think the black seeds and basil would make it extra pretty.

 

It's a zesty, only hint of hot at the very end, version of plain watermelon.

I like it, but don't think the oil was necessary at all.

I think watermelon by itself, or with a little lime and lime zest, works just fine!

 



 

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Enjoy!

 

Chocolate Thistles

Chocolate Thistles

My friend Maggie sent this recipe to me and we tried it last weekend. 
These dessert treats were delicious, and so easy to make.

You start by chopping up a chocolate bar into tiny pieces and then melting it in a double boiler.

Or, do like I did and use a microwaveable bowl, stirring the chocolate every 30 seconds and returning it to the microwave.  This took me 1.5 minutes.

Then you mix in All-Bran cereal (the twig shaped version) and 1/2 cup of chopped nuts or chopped dried fruit - whatever you like.  I used raw almonds that I chopped up.

Mound the mixture onto a parchment-lined baking sheet and freeze for 10 minutes.

I made mine large, using a 1/4 c measuring cup to scoop and mound. 

Maggie's original recipe calls for a Tbsp amount.

Freeze and voila!

Definitely kid-approved delicious-ness!

Double click to print as a 5x7 recipe card.

Enjoy!