Category: Cooking and Baking

Ham & Bell Pepper Sandwich

Sandwiches and Wraps



It’s the time of year when it feels like I’ve packed a million school lunches and we’re all sick of sandwiches.  I have a few things I do to add variety, but I hadn’t made these bagel sandwiches in a long time.  When I sent them to school with my kids last week, they all came home raving about them.


Ham and Bell Pepper Sandwiches Ingredients:
whole grain bagel cream cheese 3-4 slices Black Forest ham thinly sliced green bell peppers Soften cream cheese and spread on both sides of a bagel.  Layer ham on one half of bagel, and cover with thinly sliced green peppers.  Place other half of bagel on top and enjoy!


My 16 year old son loved his so much that he texted, begging me to bring three more identical sandwiches to him at school, and reported after school that everyone wanted him to share.  My ten year old who declares any green food as gross actually ate his and has requested them ever since.  The girls loved them too.  They are simple, pack well, and taste great.  With only four ingredients, they’re easy to plan and shop for, and for kids to prepare themselves.

Have a great day!

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Cranberry Granola

Breakfast



Last month I spent a wonderful morning with a couple of dear friends making granola.  As the snow fell outside we chatted and learned a new recipe.  I liked it so much that I stopped at the store on my way home so I could make a couple more batches before my kids got home from school!  I’ve made it several times since then, and it’s become a new favorite.

Cranberry Granola 6 cups old fashioned oats 1 cup sliced almonds 1 cup pecan pieces 1 cup sweetened shredded coconut 1 cup frozen cranberry concentrate (check labels to get 100% juice and find the one that has the most cranberry juice in it. I could only find blends but they’ve worked fine) 1 cup brown sugar (packed) 1 Tablespoon cinnamon 1 cup dried cranberries In a large mixing bowl combine oats, almonds, pecans and coconut.  Set aside.  In a medium saucepan combine 1 cup cranberry concentrate, brown sugar and cinnamon.  *Don’t mix the concentrate with water – just scoop it straight from the container into your pan. Heat to a simmer to fully dissolve sugar.  Pour over oats mixture and stir until evenly coated with the juice mixture.

Cover 11×17 cookie sheet with parchment paper.  Spread granola evenly over pan and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.  Remove from oven and stir in cranberries.  Return to oven for 8-10 minutes or until granola begins to look golden brown.

{Your kitchen will smell heavenly while it bakes.}
Cool on cooling rack and transfer to airtight container.


My kids love to snack on it plain or eat it with milk.  My favorite way to eat it is with a scoop of plain greek yogurt and fresh berries.

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Coffee Cake Cookies

Desserts

I wish I’d kept count of how many years my friend Marilynn has been hosting her annual cookie exchange.  Over the years it’s become a holiday tradition for everyone who attends, and we all look forward to it.  After at least 8 years of exchanging cookies, lots of recipes have been used and this year I really wanted to find something new, something none of us has made before.

I found this recipe for Coffee Cake Cookies on Pinterest and decided to give it a try.  The idea of making a cookie that is like eating just the top layer of a coffee cake sounded delicious!  Because I don’t prefer store-bought cookie dough I decided to combine recipes and make my own version.  9 dozen cookies later, I can promise you’ll love them!

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These cookies require three steps:  the cookie itself, the crumb topping, and the brown sugar glaze, so they take a bit of time to make, but are totally worth it.

Ingredients:

Cookie dough:
1 cup softened butter 1 cup granulated sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 1 large egg 2 – 1/2 cups flour 1 Tb baking powder Crumb Topping:4 Tb. butter 1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1/2 cup flour Brown Sugar glaze:
1/2 cup packed brown sugar 1 tsp. vanilla 1 – 1/2 Tb. water To make the dough:In a mixer, beat butter with sugar.  Add vanilla and egg and mix well.  Add flour and baking powder and mix until combined.  Dough should be soft but shouldn’t stick to your fingers.
Roll cookie dough into 1-1/2 inch balls and place on cookie sheet 3 inches apart.  Flatten cookie dough with the heel of your hand.

To make crumb topping:
With a hand mixer, combine butter, brown sugar and flour until crumbly.

For glaze:
In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, water and vanilla and stir until smooth.  Glaze should be easy to drizzle but not runny.  If it’s too thick, add a few drops of water until consistency is right.  If it’s too runny, add another spoonful of brown sugar.

To prepare cookies:
Bake at 375 for 5 minutes.  Remove cookies from oven and gently press the back of a spoon into the center of each cookie to make a subtle indentation.  Sprinkle approximately 1 Tb. crumb topping into indentation of cookie.  Return to oven for 5-7 minutes, or until edges of cookies are just beginning to turn golden brown.  Remove from oven.  Let cool on cookie sheet for 2-3 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack.  Drizzle with brown sugar glaze and allow to completely cool.  Enjoy!

Makes 2 1/2 dozen cookies.

Recipe adapted from Oh, Bite It.

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