Oh, Oh, Oh, Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

I am a runner. To me, this constitutes as a reason to eat energy bars; that and they taste good. But energy bars are slightly expensive to eat every day, so I decided to make some of my own. I followed a basic recipe with guidelines for the fruit and nuts, and then added two scoops of protein powder. They have a very cakey texture and are pleasantly moist. The flavor is good too, but not exactly like the store-bought bars. I baked them for longer than the original recipe said, but that is most likely just my oven. I will add the guideline recipe below, but remember that it is just a guideline and you can add more or less mix-ins.  Hopefully the weather in you neck of the woods is looking Springy and warm. Have a good weekend!

~thechildcooks

Oatmeal Breakfast Bars

1 1/4 cups oatmeal

1/2 cup chopped nuts

3/4 cups dried fruit

1 teaspoon spice(more or less depending on the spice)

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

Protein powder

Preheat oven to 375F and line a 9×9 pan with parchment paper. Mix dry ingredients in a bowl. Mix wet ingredients and add to the dry ingredients. Stir and let set for 15 minutes. Bake in oven for 30-45 minutes. Bars will be moist, but golden brown. Cut while hot, then let cool and enjoy.

It’s Sourdough Time!

Does anyone else find the smell of yeast fermenting lovely? Image via Wikipedia

That’s right, ladies and gentlemen, it is that time of the week where you realize that your starter must be attended to. Earlier this week I made some sourdough biscuits with whole wheat flour(they were more like rolls, and they disappeared before I could remember to take a picture)and today I mixed up the beginnings of my all-purpose sourdough bread recipe. I made just a few alterations to the recipe so far. Instead of using all all-purpose flour, I pulsed a cup of rolled oats so that it was fine, but still oaty enough to give the bread some texture; I also added a small handful of whole rolled oats. I also added about 2 tablespoons of cornmeal(I don’t really know I this will affect it at all, I might add more to the final dough). I then used about 1 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour to get the full 2 1/2 cup of flour needed for the first dough. While I had the food processor out, I also whipped up some instant oatmeal mix. And then, I had the idea to make lentil flour. That did not work; lentils are hard little buggers and I wound up with a coarse/fine mixture of the actual lentil and their skin-like covering. Oh well, it was worth a try to see what happened, though the ringing in my ears from the food processor is slightly annoying(just kidding). Over and out!

~thechildcooks

P.S. Don’t forget to go over to the Sock It To Me Design Contest and look for my design. Find out more here.

Whole Wheat Sourdough Biscuits/Rolls(They are whole wheat becuase last time I refreshed my starter, I added a half cup of whole wheat flour)

1/2 cup sourdough starter

1 cup milk

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tablespoon sugar

3/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Prep all your ingredients ahead, this will help to make things move faster. Place half the flour onto a flat surface. Pour the starter mixture on top. Now, add the salt, sugar, baking powder and baking soda to the flour and mix till blended. Pour the rest of the flour mixture on top of the starter. Now, start to knead in the flour to the starter. Knead just till the dough is mixed. Do not over knead. Roll out the dough to a 1/2 inch thickness. Cut out the biscuits. Place in 9-inch baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise for 1/2 an hour. Bake in a 375F oven for 30 -35 minutes.

Homemade Instant Oatmeal 

From Tammyrecipes.com

2 cups quick-cooking oats, pulsed slightly in food processor
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sweetener (dry — like sugar, brown sugar, raw sugar, sucanat, etc.)
1/2 cup powdered (dry nonfat) milk

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container or bag.

To prepare oatmeal: Mix 2/3 cup of dry mixture with 1 cup boiling water in a bowl, stirring to remove lumps. Let stand 1-2 minutes and serve. I would suggest adding your favorite mix-ins(i.e. berries, raisins, yogurt, jam…) and adjusting the sugar to your specific tastes.

Cookies:Chocolate-Oatmeal Chewies

I made cookies tonight and the lucky recipe was chocolate-oatmeal chewies. They are supposedly very good, but I would not know as I sadly do not enjoy chocolate. As I had to get ready for school, my mother got the last batch out of the oven and was freaked out. I forgot to tell her that I put some of the marshmallow scraps in; they had turned the cookies black(Halloween marshmallows) and oozed all over. They looked like someone had doused them in lighter fluid and then light a match. They still tasted good despite their roadkill apperearance. I will try to get pictures on later.The recipe is from the Betty Crocker Cookie Book.

Chocolate-Oatmeal Chewies

Makes App. 4 Dozen Cookies

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup milk

1 egg

2 2/3 cup quick cooking or old-fashioned oats

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup baking cocoa

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Heat oven to 350F. Beat sugar, butter, milk and egg in a large bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed or a spoon. Stir in remaining ingredients.

Drop by rounded teaspoonful about 2 s apart onto an ungreased cookie sheet. Bake for 10-12(more like 13 or 14 for me, but it could be my oven) or until no indentation remains when touched in center. Cool 1-2 minutes; remove from cookie sheet to wire rack. Enjoy!