Chicken Tagine with a Twist!

Some days I have to work a very long 12 hours. A 12 hours in a busy O.R. that wipes me out. A 12 hours that isn't as easy to recover from as it used to be. These are the days that cooking is the very last thing I want to do at the end of the day. Eating a hot, home-made dinner however, is just what I do need. Dilemma.

Crock Pot to the rescue! I keep most of these ingredients stocked in my pantry and only had to pick up some chicken thighs as we have been really limiting chicken lately for various reasons (read more about this life changing decision in my post/rant here). Also, I have been trying to not eat meat for dinner since IMO it isn't good for your body to be digesting meat while you sleep. Meat takes several hours of hard work for your GI system to digest and disrupts sleep.

Chicken Tagine is a classic Moroccan dish made several in several yummy variations but usually with the spices ginger, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, paprika and turmeric.  Tajines are slow-cooked stews braised at low temperatures, resulting in tender meat with aromatic vegetables and sauce. The best thing about Chicken Tagine is that you can throw in any combination of your favorite ingredients such as dried fruits, nuts, olives, veggies, preserved lemon, honey ect. and as long as you use the classic base of spices and tomatoes you've got yourself a Moroccan Delight!

I love my veggies and so I threw in some diced eggplant along with my olives, dried apricots and fresh cranberries. *On a side note, I don't think I will use fresh cranberries next time as they were pretty tart, or maybe I'll just use less to compliment the other flavors without over powering them.

A pretty Tagine pot is on the top of my wish list. I use a 'crock pot' for now ;)

Image from Emily Avila

The traditional tajine pot is formed entirely of a heavy clay, which is sometimes painted or glazed. It consists of two parts: a base unit that is flat and circular with low sides, and a large cone or dome-shaped cover that rests inside the base during cooking. The cover is so designed to promote the return of all condensation to the bottom. With the cover removed, the base can be taken to the table for serving

Recently, European manufacturers have created tajines with heavy cast-iron bottoms that can be heated on a cooking stove to a high temperature. This permits the browning of meat and vegetables before cooking.



PRINT THIS RECIPE

Ingredients


2 tablespoons olive oil

8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces

1 eggplant, cut into 1 inch cubes

2 large onions, thinly sliced

4 large carrots, thinly sliced

1/2 cup dried cranberries

3/4 cup chopped dried apricots

1/2 cup green olives, sliced

2 cups chicken broth

2 tablespoons tomato paste

2 tablespoons lemon juice

2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons garlic salt

1 1/2 teaspoons ground cumin

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon cinnamon

3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper

1 cup water

1 cup couscous



Directions:
* Searing the chicken before adding it to the crock pot is important to lock in flavour.

Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place the chicken pieces and eggplant in the heated oil; stir and cook until the chicken is browned on all sides but not cooked through. Remove the skillet from the heat.

Place the browned chicken and eggplant on the bottom of a slow cooker. Layer the onion, carrots, cranberries, and apricots over the chicken.

Whisk together the chicken broth, tomato paste, lemon juice, flour, garlic salt, cumin, ginger, cinnamon, and ground black pepper in a bowl. Pour the broth mixture into the slow cooker with the chicken and vegetables.

Cook on Low setting for 8 hours.

Bring water to boil in a saucepan. Stir in couscous, and remove from heat. Cover, and let stand about 5 minutes, until liquid has been absorbed. Fluff with a fork.

PRINTER FRIENDLY VERSION

 
 
 
  I'm sending this over to Potluck Fridays at eKats Kitchen!
 

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Spiced Cranberry Chutney with Apricots, Cherries and Pecans

When did we as Americans (just my observation) start filling our tables and bellies with an assortment of fatty and sugary food for Thanksgiving?  Do we use the holiday as an excuse to over indulge? I do believe that all most things in moderation are fine but I would really like to see more real, whole foods on the holiday table. I love veggies but even if your not as excited about them as I am, there are so many delicious and new ways to try them that there's really no reason to load your plate with 3 different kinds of potatoes, stuffing and bread.





Fall produce is one of the healthiest and tastiest in my opinion and needs very little or no sugar or additives to make them a perfect holiday dinner addition. Take cranberries for example. Besides being gorgeous, they are a super power food for your health and yet most people buy the canned stuff and then pour sugar into them. Whole, fresh cranberries can be simply prepared or added to stuffing, squash, a salad or as a chutney.


Try making this cranberry, apricot and cherry chutney this year, it goes perfect with turkey and you can add it to your left over turkey sandwiches for a tangy twist! You can add diced apples too if you'd like. No sugar is needed but if you find it too tart, which I happen to love, add a teaspoon of  honey or turbinado/raw sugar to the cranberries as they cook.

Check back in the next day or two, I will be posting a simple and savory variation of green bean casserole.

Cranberry Chutney

1/2 cup apple cider

1/4 cup pomegranate juice

1-12 oz bag fresh or frozen cranberries

1/2 cup dried cherries or fresh chopped apples

1/2 cup dried apricots chopped

1/2 cup toasted pecans, chopped

2 tsps. orange zest

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp each ground fennel and ground cardamom

1/8 tsp each ground cloves and ground ginger

pinch of cayenne pepper!

Mix spices; bring cider, pom juice and spice blend to a gentle boil in a large saucepan. Add cranberries and return to a gentle boil. Cook until some of the cranberries just start to pop, 2-4 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile, mix dried cherries, apples if using, apricots, pecans and orange zest in a bowl. Add cooked cranberries and toss gently to coat. Cool and refrigerate until ready to use. Can be covered and refrigerated for a week.

A note on spices used in this recipe.

Fennel

Fennel Seed is a common herb used to promote good digestion and ease gas and bloating. This Mediterranean herb can also be found in many medicinal formulas designed to help ease women through monthly fluctuations. Fennel is also thought to help produce milk for nursing mothers.  Fennel is said to cure earache, toothache, asthma and rheumatism. It is meant to help stop hiccups and coughs, and improve eyesight. It has even been thought of as a good slimming agent. Fennel oil is used in cough medicine, liquorice sweets, perfumes and soaps.

Cardamom

 Cardamom is a very intense and wonderful spice. If you haven't ever tried it I suggest you add it to your spice collection soon. Use it in this cranberry recipe, stuffing's, Indian and Mediterranean foods, give your Holiday cookies and cakes a wonderful exotic flavor, pairs well with orange flavor.

Cardamom is know for oral/gum health and a powerful antioxidant, especially when concerning the brain.
I thought this piece of information was very interesting and fun however.

Cardamom is also widely known as an aphrodisiac in the more mystic and esoteric circles of society. Love spells, love potions and general chemical concoctions having to do with romance, lust and attraction usually have cardamom as a component. 

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Pumpkin and Apple Spiced Granola

Would you believe that I've never made my own home made granola before this? I'm not sure why, I never really thought it would be difficult or time consuming and it's definitely not. It was just a matter of gathering the ingredients and throwing them in a bowl, mixing, baking on low heat and then voila, warm, cinnamon apple and pumpkin granola for breakfast served with some Greek plain yogurt. 

Simple. Delicious. Fall flavors, Check.

I've made several batches of this and can't seem to keep it in the house for more than a day or two which is a very good thing.  The kids are enthralled with this granola and who can blame them? Home made granola is everything I imagined it would be and more. Seriously. Pumpkin and apples and cinnamon and o.k. everything fall flavored is my happy place. 

{I just had an image of Will Ferrel dressed as a school boy in Zoolander  spinning in circles saying "Happy, Happy, Happpppy, Happy....."

Unlike store bought granola, home made turned out much, much well, moister (is that a word? Can granola be moist?) Never mind. It's damn good. Obviously, you can substitute whatever nuts and dried fruits you like in this granola. I also like to add Hemp Hearts, ground flax and/or chia seeds.

A handful of ingredients to gather, change it up to your liking and in 10 minutes your house will smell like a potpourri of Autumn goodies.

Throw the mixed granola onto a stone baking pan for optimal toasting and non sticking.

YIELDS    4-5 CUPS        TIME    40 MINUTES

Ingredients

2 cups Coach's Oats (or other whole, unrefined oats)
1/2 cup pumpkin puree
1/2 cup *real maple syrup
1/4 cup raisins
1/4 cup chopped, dried apple
1/4 cup pepitas/roasted pumpkin seeds
1 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
2 tablespoons coconut oil
stone baking pan or a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper


Preheat oven to 300F.

In a large mixing bowl, or bowl of your stand mixer with cookie paddle attachment, combine pumpkin puree, maple syrup, coconut oil and spices. Mix for 1 minute till combined.  Add remaining ingredients, mix till combined. Spread onto cookie sheet, place in oven and cook for 25-30 minutes until fragrant and toasted, tossing with a spatula once.

Remove from oven and let cool. Enjoy with plain, fat free yogurt. 

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Chocolate Cherry Chunk Bars #RecipeRedux

Question, what do you feed a mob of hungry kids at 3:17 p.m. after "working really hard all day long at school"?

Answer:  Home made Chocolate Cherry Chunk Bars served with a big glass of ice cold milk and sealed with a kiss.  Love mom.

You all know by know that store bought granola bars are not health food right? Right. Well, anything made in Mystery, Who Knows Where and packaged in a box with an ingredient list only chemists can decipher is probably not something we should be eating, however convenient it may be. I hate that excuse. Sure it can be argued that there are a few healthier varieties of packaged snacks out there but the whole year or more shelf life thing of a granola bar disturbs me.


I literally tossed a handful of ingredients in a bowl, mixed, pressed into a baking dish and bam. My house smells like toasted, cinnamony oats and nuts and warm cherries. Oh, they were really yummy too.


Snack emergency, solved.

The best part, you can use whatever nuts, seeds and dried fruit you have in your pantry. Substitute almond butter for sunflower seed butter if there is a nut allergy issue. Pureed dates or maple syrup can be used instead of honey. The possibilities are endless.

Chocolate Cherry Chunk Oat, Nut and Seed Bars

TIME     30 MINUTES        YIELDS     14-16 BARS

You Will Need:

1 1/2 cups of whole grain oats
1 1/2 cup chopped almonds, cashews or other nuts
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup dried cherries
1/2 cup local, Organic honey
*1/4 cup hemp hearts (optional)
1 cup almond or sunflower butter
1 teaspoon ground (Saigon) cinnamon
1 teaspoon real vanilla
1 cup semi sweet or dark chocolate chips
parchment paper or coconut oil for brushing pan 

Preheat oven to 350F. Prepare an 8 x 11 baking dish with parchment or brush with coconut oil. 

Coarsely chop nuts. Add them and remaining ingredients except chocolate chips to a large bowl and mix to combine. 

Press the mixture into the prepared pan using your hands or a spatula. Cook for 15 minutes then pull out of oven and sprinkle with chocolate chips, cook for another 15 minutes. Yes, you can just mix them into the batter if you please. We thought they looked fun and had more chocolate 'power' with them scattered on top. 

notes

Hemp Hearts are full of protein with 10 grams of complete plant-based protein per 30 gram (3 tablespoons) serving size. Hemp Hearts are also a great way to add omegas or EFAs (essential fatty acids) to your diet. Hemp Hearts contain more protein and Omega-6 & 3 and less carbs than a similar serving of Chia or Flax.

You can eat them right out of the bag and add them to baked goods, yogurt, smoothies, salads and more.



I love Coaches Oats which are much healthier than quick cooking varieties yet faster than steel cut.

An InLinkz Link-up

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Chiarezza Parfait and a giveaway!

More often than not these days I have negative zero interest in preparing breakfast at all, especially one that takes any sort of preparation. I've been sticking to my Shakeology concoctions on the days I work but like a variety in my diet and a sit down breakfast on my days off.






Chiarezza sent me some of their cereals to review and I couldn't be more impressed. Not only was it delicious, it's as simple to prepare as heating some of my almond vanilla milk, pouring a bit of the cereal into the bowl, stir, wait, eat. Perfect.


The bits of Organic dried fruit gave it the perfect amount of sweetness and the texture was surprisingly thick and creamy. Chia seeds expand the longer you let them sit in liquid and so the consistency is up to you. Any liquid will do, water or your favorite milk product. I like coconut milk, almond milk and hemp milk.

Add some fresh fruit and you have a beautiful and healthy breakfast to fuel you for hours.

A completely revolutionary way to have cereal, Chiarezza’s all Organic cereal is an exceptional way to start your day. It is free of so many unnecessary filler ingredients. After you eat this, you’ll never go back to eating “regular old” cereal again.

The base is made from all Organic dried fruits and seeds so you start your day like a Superstar without crashing like yesterday’s one hit wonder.

Chiarezza is giving away a full size bag of their Forbidden Fruit cereal to one lucky

Simply Healthy Family fan. 

You can eat this completely raw by adding cold water, or you can add hot water or milk (whichever kind you like). Each pouch contains 8 servings. If you’re wondering how that can be, it’s because the ingredients are filling and powerful. The chia seeds will expand and it’s ready in 5-7 minutes after adding liquid.

Raw. Wheat Free. Dairy Free. Tree nut free. Peanut free. Dairy Free. Egg. Free. Soy Free.

Ingredients: Organic chia seeds, organic hemp seeds, organic mango, organic buckwheat, organic banana flakes, organic goji berries. 

a Rafflecopter giveaway

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Mini Tarts with Cherry-Fig Compote

“I received free samples of Breton Gluten Free Original with Flax and Breton Gluten Free Herb and Garlic from Dare Foods Incorporated mentioned in this post. By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by Dare Foods Incorporated and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.”

What do you bring to a last minute dinner party when you have zero desire to go to the store, mostly because it will interrupt your already planned day of being lazy, maybe doing some Pilate's and getting in at least an hour of afternoon pool time. I know, I have it rough. Well, I know we will be having wine during and after dinner so I thought some cute mini tarts filled with a fig-cherry compote would be a fantastic idea. Maybe I'll stop and pick up a bottle of port to go with them.

note to self: don't eat all of the tarts before dinner even though your house smells heavenly.

I can do this.







I've remade these from an older recipe of mine for fig bars using mostly oats and flax for the crust. This time I tried using Breton's Gluten Free Crackers with Flax for half of the mixture and they turned out great. Don't look at me like that, I had to try one.... o.k. two you know, just to make sure they were blog and dinner party worthy. The things I do for you people!

Compote (French for "mixture") is a dessert originating from 17th-century France made of whole or pieces of fruit in sugar syrup. Whole fruits are cooked in water with sugar and spices. The syrup may be seasoned with vanilla, lemon or orange peel, cinnamon sticks or powder, cloves, ground almonds, grated coconut, candied fruit, or raisins.  

The French invented compote believing that fruit cooked in sugar syrup balanced the effects of humidity on the body. The name is derived from the French word compote, meaning mixture. Compote was originally served as an afternoon snack with sour cream and biscuits. During the Renaissance, it was served chilled at the end of dinner. 

Pulse the oats and Breton Gluten Free Flax crackers into a flour.

Snip the little stems off of the figs.

Coat a mini muffin pan with cooking spray. Using a small spoon, scoop a small amount of the dough into the muffin tin pressing down with your fingers to form a hole in the center, leaving some dough on the bottom and up around the edges of each cup.

Mini Tarts with Cherry-Fig Compote

Mini Tarts with Cherry-Fig Compote

TIME     30 MINUTES       YIELDS    12 MINI TARTS

Filling:


6 ounces dried Figs (preferably Organic)

4 ounces dried Apricots OR dried Cherries (preferably Organic)

2 tbsp. chopped almonds

2 drops anise extract (optional)

1 tbsp  local, Organic honey (local honey help with outdoor allergies!) 

2 tbsp. water

2 tbsp. orange juice OR lemon juice

1/4 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground ginger


Snip off the figs' stems, and put them, the apricots, almonds, water, honey and spices into the food processor. Pulse to a coarse paste. Spoon out of food processor and set aside in a small bowl.

Crust:

1 cup regular or quick oats 

1/2 cup whole oats

12 Breton's Gluten Free Crackers with Flax

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 ounces unsweetened apple sauce

1 tablespoon local, Organic honey

1/3 cup water

Directions: 

 Preheat oven to 375 F. Combine the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Stir in the wet ingredients, mixing well to a thick consistency.

Place 1 cup of  oats and the crackers into your food processor or blender. Pulse until you have a flour.  

Coat a mini muffin pan with cooking spray. Using a small spoon, scoop a small amount of the dough into the muffin tin pressing down with your fingers to form a hole in the center, leaving some dough on the bottom and up around the edges of each cup.
Spoon the fig mixture into each cup. 

Bake at 375F for 15-20 minutes until crust is golden brown. Let cool on a wire rack before removing tarts. Serve warm or at room temperature with afternoon tea or with wine for dessert. 

Now, off to quickly fold some laundry, if that's possible with the amount of laundry we have in this joint. Second thought, forget the laundry. Off to do 45 minutes of Pilate's which brings me to my happy place and then go sit by the pool.


Have a great weekend my friends!






   

    An InLinkz Link-up
   

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Moroccon Cous Cous with Orange Muscat Champagne Vinegar

 What to make for dinner when you don't feel like making dinner.

I decided that I wasn't going to talk about how amazingly delicious this cous cous was. I'm also not going to tell you how simple it is even though it looks all fancy and exotic and some what like an elaborate, artistic masterpiece. I'm also not going to even mention the fact that besides being sweet and tart and complex and lovely, it is light and healthy and nutritionally perfect. No meat necessary. Mum's the word.

Instead, I decided that I was going to talk about balloons. And motherhood. But mostly about balloons.

Every kid loves balloons right? Begs for them at the store. Plays with them at birthday parties and happily marches around the house with one tied to their wrist, squealing in delight.

Not. In. This. House. We have a balloon hater in this house. No, that does not even begin to describe the chaos, turmoil and complete madness that consumes our home when a balloon enters it.

Is there a certain word for severe balloon phobia? There must be, there's a phobia for everything. Does anyone know what the word for fear of balloons is?

My sweet little 4 year old, Nolan, is utterly and completely terrified of balloons for some reason. I thought he'd have gotten over it by now, hopefully he will someday I mean he's only 4... and 1/2. In the beginning I didn't think much of it, 'eh, he's just a little kid, he'll get over it. I mean how often do you run into balloons in every day life? Well let me tell you.

Birthday's, obviously. So a year has gone by since the last birthday party balloon fiasco I didn't think anything of getting some balloons for Jack's 6th birthday a few weeks ago. Bad idea. BAD. Good grief, you can not imagine the torture this poor 4 year old boy went through because of a couple of regular ol' balloons! I spent All morning trying to sympathize, coax, reassure and rationalize with an insanely out of control 4 year old that there was no reason to be afraid of a balloon.

Why is he afraid?

It starts at the store. He's afraid the string is going to come loose and it's going to blow away. You should see his poor little face, genuine fear I tell you. Then, in the car {good Lord, the car ride home!} he completely stiffens up and stresses and cries out in panic the entire time that they are going to blow out of the (closed) windows. Jack, his 6 year old brother who's birthday is causing all the ruckus, is of course perfectly intent on further torturing his little brother; what are brothers for? Jack holds onto his balloon string with one hand while tapping it with his other so that it bops Nolan in the back of the head (3rd row seating) just to aggravate the situation.

Then baby Mona happens to get her hands on Nolan's balloon and with her chubby baby hands begins squeezing the balloon which makes that squeaky balloon sound (which kind of irks me too) and that really sets off poor Nolie. I mean at this point I'm a little unnerved. I don't like seeing my baby this upset. I'm thinking o.k. we're in the drive way, things will get better. No. We get inside and the ceiling fan is on...............................

Have you ever seen a 4 year old have a nervous breakdown? Come completely unglued.  Not pretty. Of course I had to take away the balloons, right? There was no rationalizing with him at this point. This of course upset the birthday boy, Jack.  So,

Give Jack back his balloon.

Take away Jack's balloon after further torture treatment ensues in hallway.

Put both boys to bed to give it a rest (my sanity, not the boys).

Listen to Nolan cry for 20 minutes about how he needs his balloon.

Put the balloon back in Nolan's room and tell him to take a nap and the balloon will be just fine.

Listen to Nolan cry for another 45 minutes about how the balloon is going to pop.

Finally, I pop. I take the balloon out of the room and well, pop it. No more balloons in this house ever!

So today, we stop by Sonic for a treat and what does the car hop/waitress bring to our car window?

A stinking balloon!

Go back up to the beginning of this story and this is what I dealt with all stinking over again today.

I don't get it. He is scared to death of them but is equally upset if I let it fly away or pop it.

The morale of my story is:  Sometimes you just don't have the energy or give a crap to make dinner.

Unfortunately, I hate take-out and boxed meals even more than making dinner when I'm exhausted. So, I come up with a fuss-free, throw together dinner that is still healthy and delicios-O. Cuz that's how I roll. Makes mamma happy.

This is one of those meals. I promise.

So, super simple and you just won't believe how tasty.

Keep things like slivered or sliced almonds, currants or raisins, mixed dried fruit, kalmata or green olives, a variety of canned or dried beans, cous cous, quinoa and millet in your pantry and you will always, always have

the makings of a last minute, throw together dinner.



I would really appreciate it if you could take the time to vote for me to be

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Adapt this recipe how you like it! Here's what I used this time.

Ingredients:

1 cup cous cous

1 cup chicken broth (or water, I like the vitamins in home-made chicken broth)

1/2 TBSP extra virgin olive oil

1-14 oz. can chick peas (garbanzo beans), drained and rinsed

1 cup grape tomatoes, sliced

1/2 cup slivered almonds, Raw

1 yellow bell pepper, chopped

1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped

1/4 cup currants

1/4 cup flat parsley , chopped

1 tsp. cinnamon

*1/2 tsp. Mediterranean seasoning

sea salt to taste

Kalmata olives

I found this Orange Muscat Champage vinegar at Trader Joe's. No perservatives, all natural. You could also use: 1/4 cup O.J. 1/4 cup Muscat grape juice (white grape juice), 1 tbsp. champagne vinegar, 1 tsp. sugar

* use garlic powder, onion flakes, rosemary, thyme, red pepper flakes etc. I'm loving Braggs Organic 21 seasoning and Sea Kelp delight seasoning.  

Throwing it all Together:

Bring broth to a boil. Add olive oil and cous cous, stir, remove from heat and cover. Let sit for at least 5 minutes while you get everything else in order.

In a large bowl throw all other ingredients together and toss to combine.

Add cous cous. Toss.

That's it! Bam! Dinner in 10 minutes.

Serve with grilled fish if your really hungry. Serve with a glass of wine if you deserve one. I know I do!

This post is linked to:

La Bella Vita's  Seasonal Saturday's
E Kat's Kitchen  Friday Potluck
Fun with Food Friday

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Home Made Banana-Chocolate Crisp Granola Bars {and a Secret-Under Cover Give Away!}

I'm always thinking of healthy, home made snacks I can throw together for myself and the troops. I love a good snack that is loaded with good ingredients. One that will keep you feeling satisfied and energetic (not too energetic when it comes to the kids, there's a fine line...) and most importantly, one that is grab and go! Go. Go. Go. We are always on the run here; play dates, park outings, sports, practices, errand running, Dr. appointments and so on and so forth. There's nothing worse than being out and about with cranky hungry kids (and mommies) and having to go through a drive-thru or stop and a 'convienience' market for a processed, uber unhealthy, over priced snack. *yuchh! 

At the very least I try to grab a re-usable/home-made bag {snack bag} of mixed nuts and dried fruit and maybe some cheese sticks to take with me. Keeping a bag of mixed nuts in your cars center console will come in handy for emergency snacking and help you keep off that weight and save money! All good things in my book.

Then there's the issue of healthy school snacks. You know how I feel about that right?  Passionate.
I've mentioned my thoughts on sending processed and sugary snacks to school for my kids. It really, really isn't very hard to make home made granola bars, whole grain cookies or fruit bars. They come in so many forms your bound to find one that works for your family.

Also, again at the very least send fruit (yes, your kids will eat it if they are hungry and they know that holding out and whining will get them 'fruit' gummies or twinkies). Some of our favorite school and at home snacks are; Whole fruits, veggie medley with hummus or buttermilk-poppy seed dip,  mixed nuts and dried fruit, cheese sticks, Greek yogurt with pumpkin seeds and dried fruit, whole grain crackers with nut butter etc. These all work for you too! All are wonderful mid-afternoon pick-me-up's!

There are lots of  simple, school box friendly snacks for you right........ here on my blog. Go on, try one!

Let me know what you think and your favorite ideas for school snacks, I'd LOVE to know!

The secret to these granola bars is this cereal. It's very gently kissed with chocolate.

Who doesn't want to be kissed by chocolate?

I'm not talking about the 'other' chocolaty cereals that are loaded with sugar.

This brown rice cereal is just ever-so-slightly sweetened and a whole grain to boot.

Secret Under Cover Give Away!

O.K. If any of you can tell me what type of  plant I have dangling in the background I will send you TWO of my home made, super cute reusable snack bags! (pics coming soon)

 {To the first person with the correct anwnser!}

For the Banana-Chocolate Crisp Granola Bars

You Will Need:

1 cup slivered almonds
1  cups cashews, coarsely chopped
1 cup banana chips, chopped
1 1/2 cups rolled oats (I use Coach's Oats)
1 1/2 cups {chocolate flavored} brown rice crisp cereal
* 1 cup brown rice syrup (sold at Whole Foods and other “natural” stores)
1/4 cup Grade B maple syrup
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract



Putting them together:

Preheat the oven to 350°. Spread the oats, almonds and cashews on a cookie sheet and toast them in the oven for  8-10 minutes, or until they start to brown a bit. Remove from oven and let cool.
In the meantime, line a 9 x 13 baking dish with parchment paper and set aside {can use butter or coconut oil}. Now, mix the rice cereal, banana chips and cinnamon in a big bowl. Add the oats and nuts once they’ve cooled.

In a small saucepan, heat the syrups, salt and vanilla extract over medium-high heat, stirring constantly to avoid burning. Once the syrups come to a gentle boil, continue to cook for an additional 3-4 minutes until the syrup begins to thicken, then pour it over the oats and nuts mixture. Mix everything together so that the syrup evenly coats everything in the bowl.

While it’s still warm, pour the contents of the bowl into your prepared baking dish. Using a rubber spatula, pat everything down so it’s nice and compacted (I did this again after about 10 minutes to make them nice and compressed). Let cool to room temperature. You can also put them in the fridge for a bit since this’ll make cutting easier.

Cut them into square or rectangles as you please.  Store them in a airtight container in the refrigerator.

recipe very slightly adapted from Bitchen Camero
 
 

 
*Brown Rice Syrup

 
* brown rice syrup = rice syrup = rice bran syrup = rice malt = yinnie syrup  

Notes:   Health buffs like this because it contains complex sugars, which are absorbed more slowly into the bloodstream.  It's about half as sweet as ordinary table sugar. Some rice syrups include barley malt, and may pose a problem for people with gluten allergies.  Substitutes:  maple syrup (substitute 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons liquid for each cup of brown rice syrup) OR molasses (substitute 1/2 cup for each cup of brown rice syrup) OR barley malt syrup (substitute 3/4 cup for each cup of brown rice syrup) OR honey (substitute 3/4 C honey plus 2 tablespoons liquid for every cup of brown rice syrup)
 
The Cooks Thesaurus

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