Cherry Almond Granola Bars

Hello all, sorry for the lack of posts. This summer has been the craziest. Buying a new house, training for a triathlon and a marathon. Thank goodness the tri is done and the marathon will be done soon. Wow, I can't wait till it is over. On to better things....food. I have always wanted to make granola bars. I make granola all the time, so how hard could bars be? Well they are not hard at all. I love the idea of knowing exactly what is in my granola bars.

1 2/3 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/3 cup oats - crush in blender or food processor
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup dried cherries
1/4 cup peanut butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
4 tablespoons melted butter
1/4 maple syrup
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon water

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. Line a pan with parchment paper, line it so you have extra hang over both sides, this will allow you to get the bars out of the pan a little more easily. Rub a little butter on the parchment paper and the edge of the pan.

Mix together all of the dry ingredients including the nuts and fruits.

In a separate bowl mix together the peanut butter, vanilla, butter, maple syrup, corn syrup and water. Mix the wet ingredients with the dry.


Once it is all combined press it into the pan. You may want to use a small piece of parchment paper to help press it into the pan.

Bake for about 30-40 minutes. I like mine to be a little brown around the edges and a little brown on the top. Let the bars cool for at least an hour. They can be crumbly so I placed mine in the freezer for about 10 minutes before I cut them into bars. Store them in a sealed container.

I promise to be back to my blogging this month! I am actually very excited to start cooking more cool weather dishes....stews, squash and soups!

Margaritas

I tend to only drink beer and wine, but I do love a great Margarita! I hate those nasty margaritas that people make with that MIX....ewwwww. This is a very simple recipe and it makes the best Margarita, I don't think you will ever want to drink one of those mix margaritas ever again.

Recipe - this is for 1 drink
1 shot tequila- go for the good stuff
1 shot orange liqueur- I only had some cheap Triple Sec, but it still tasted great!
juice from 1 lime

We have a lime tree on out front steps. It takes a long time for the limes to get big, about 4 months, a few of them are ready for picking so I grabbed one off the tree and headed inside. It was so juicy!



Once you have all the ingredients, start pouring the drinks!

Roasted Corn Salad

Sorry for the delay in posts. It has been a very busy month over here. We moved from the West Loop to a house in Logan Square. We are super excited to have a new home. We just got internet this week so hopefully posting will pick back up! We just got a fabulous new grill, so I am super excited to start sharing some grilled treats! This is one of my all time favorite summer salads. It is based on an Elote - which is a common street food in Mexico.

This is a picture of my friend Melissa eating an Elote! This picture is about 5 years old! I was living in New York at the time and there is a delicious restaurant in Soho that serves Elote.

I really can't believe that I haven't posted this salad yet. I think I make it about 5 times each summer.

Recipe
4 ears corn- leave the husks on
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lime
3-4 ounces queso fresco- one of my favorite cheeses for salads!
3-4 green onions- chopped thinly
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 serrano pepper- chopped small

First you need to run the corn under cold water. Then grill the corn with the husks on over medium high heat for about 10 minutes. Then take the corn out of the husks and place back on the grill. Cook for about 5-6 minutes, make sure to continually turn them.


Let the corn cool a little and then cut the kernels off the cob.

Chop the onions, cilantro and pepper. Mix all the ingredients together! I hope you enjoy this salad.

Today I plan to drink the best margaritas ever on my new porch. I will post the recipe next!

Strawberry Shortcake

This is one of my favorite desserts! It is so fresh and tasty. All of the farmers markets have the best strawberries right now. I like my strawberry shortcake to have more of a biscuit for the bread. and I don't like it overly sweet, I like the fresh strawberries to give it the sweetness.

recipe

biscuits
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup milk or cream
1/4 cup yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla
Sugar for sprinkling on top

Toppings
Fresh Strawberries

1 cup whipping Cream
1 tablespoon sugar

Mix the flour, baking powder and salt together. Add the butter. Use your hands to mix this all together. You want it to look crumbly. Add milk, yogurt and vanilla. Mix it well. It should start to form a nice dough. If it is too sticky, add a little flour. Once combined place on a piece of floured parchment paper. Work the dough into a square.

It should be about an inch thick.

With a knife cut into 6 pieces. Try to cut straight down.

Brush each with a little butter and top with granular sugar. Bake at 450 for 12-15 minutes.

They will come out of the oven looking delicious! Now it's time to whip up some whip cream. I don't know why anyone would buy pre-made whip cream. It is so easy to make your own and it tastes a million times better. Simply pour some whip cream into a bowl and mix on high speed. Sprinkle in a little sugar. Keep whipping until it is nice and fluffy. taste and see if you need to add more sugar.

Chop up some strawberries and you are already to assemble.


I hope you enjoy this delicious summer treat. Also, since the biscuits aren't too sweet. I used the leftovers to make egg sandwiches for breakfast, talk about good.

Sweet Potato Chili

Usually you don't think of Chili as something you make in the summer. But this one is delicious and has a nice smokey flavor! I like making chili when I have a lot of people coming over. It is so easy for people to just scoop up. For my 30th birthday this year, my entire family surprised me with a visit to Chicago. I was in complete shock. Of course I invited them all over for dinner the next night. I wasn't sure what to make for about 15 people. I made 1 meat chili and 1 veggie chili. This chili was raved about by the vegetarians and the meat eaters. I hope you enjoy and there will be some more summer foods coming soon!

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 cup canned vegetable broth or water

1 10-ounce red-skinned sweet potato (yam), peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1 14 1/2- to 16-ounce can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 15- to 16-ounce can pinto beans, drained

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pinto-Bean-Sweet-Potato-Chili-266#ixzz0q06ei0x5

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 cup canned vegetable broth or water

1 10-ounce red-skinned sweet potato (yam), peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1 14 1/2- to 16-ounce can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 15- to 16-ounce can pinto beans, drained

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pinto-Bean-Sweet-Potato-Chili-266#ixzz0q06ei0x5

Recipe
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 medium onion chopped
2 teaspoons chili powder
2 teaspoons chopped chipotle adobo and 2 teaspoons sauce
1 large sweet potato peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 cup vegetable broth
1 can mexican-style stewed tomatoes
1/2 box of Pomi chopped tomatoes
1 15 ounce can pinto beans, drained and rinsed

Toppings
chopped fresh cilantro
crumbled queso fresco

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 cup canned vegetable broth or water

1 10-ounce red-skinned sweet potato (yam), peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1 14 1/2- to 16-ounce can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 15- to 16-ounce can pinto beans, drained

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pinto-Bean-Sweet-Potato-Chili-266#ixzz0q06ei0x5

Heat olive oil in pan add the onion and saute until golden brown. Add in chili powder, adobo and sweet potatoes. Stir until combined and then add the broth. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook for about 10 minutes until the potato starts to get tender. Add the tomatoes and beans. Simmer for at least 20 minutes. Serve with cilantro and cheese on top.

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 cup canned vegetable broth or water

1 10-ounce red-skinned sweet potato (yam), peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1 14 1/2- to 16-ounce can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 15- to 16-ounce can pinto beans, drained

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pinto-Bean-Sweet-Potato-Chili-266#ixzz0q06ei0x5

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, chopped

2 teaspoons chili powder

1 cup canned vegetable broth or water

1 10-ounce red-skinned sweet potato (yam), peeled, cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1 14 1/2- to 16-ounce can Mexican-style stewed tomatoes

1 15- to 16-ounce can pinto beans, drained

3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Read More http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Pinto-Bean-Sweet-Potato-Chili-266#ixzz0q06ei0x5

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Perfect Hamburger Buns

Hopefully you will be grilling up some tasty burgers this weekend! This is the perfect bun recipe for your burgers! Well, I have been searching for the perfect hamburger bun for along time. The buns at DMK burger bar are pretty perfect. I like a bun that isn't too bready, I want the meat and toppings to stand out, not this big bulky bun. And they should be nice and soft inside and a tad crusty on the outside...but not overly crusty! Just so you know you aren't eating wonder bread. ha! anyhow, this recipe turned out great. It is based on a recipe from King Arthur Flour. The recipes on their site are great. It is our go-to for anything flour related. I hope you have a great memorial day weekend! We are headed to northern MN for some time on the lake!

Recipe
3/4 to 1 cup lukewarm water
2 tablespoons butter
1 large egg
3 1/2 cups flour
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/4 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon yeast

Mix all ingredients together. Either by hand or in a mixer with dough hook. I used my favorite appliance, my Kitchenaid mixer!

This dough will be very soft and smooth. Place dough in a bowl. Cover and let rise for about an hour. You want the dough to double in size.

Once it has doubled. Punch the dough down and divide into 8 pieces. Shape them so they are about 1 inch thick and 3 inches wide. Once you have them all shaped cover with a light dish towel and let rise for another hour.


Once they have doubled in size, brush them with an egg wash. Egg wash is 1 egg beaten with 1 tablespoon water. You can also add sesame seeds as well.

Bake at 375 degree for 12- 15 minutes.

You will never want to buy buns again!

Pizza for Breakfast. No. Breakfast Pizza.

I have never been able to eat cold or leftover pizza for breakfast, just can't do it. But the other night I went to dinner at La Madia with my friends Josh and Colin and we had the most delicious pizza with egg and prosciutto. I immediately thought, I should make a breakfast pizza with egg and bacon. I like to make a double batch of pizza dough about every other week. It's nice to have in the fridge for quick dinners or a quick and tasty breakfast.

recipe

For the crust
1 1/2 cups flour
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 tablespoon olive oil

Toppings- these are just suggestions, feel free to get creative.
olive oil
parmesan cheese
some other cheese- feel free to use anything!
3 cloves garlic minced
4 eggs
5 slices bacon cooked and chopped
mushrooms- we put them on half, cause I don't like shrooms :(
goat cheese

Mix the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Then add the water and olive oil. Now you want to try and mix this up into a ball. Then knead it on a floured surface for a few minutes and keep working it into a ball. If you get frustrated, just put it down and let it rest for a couple of minutes.

Pour a little olive oil into the bowl you were using. Then roll the ball of dough around to get a nice coating of olive oil all over.

Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 1-2 hours.

Open it up after the hour and roll it around a little to get some air out and then reshape into a ball. Place it back in the bowl for another 20 minutes.

I usually double this recipe and use 1 dough immediately and then wrap the other up for another day. Store in the refrigerator until you are ready to use. Take dough out of refrigerator 1-2 hours before you want to use it.

Pre-heat oven to 475 degrees. Roll the dough into a pizza shape.

Poke holes all around with a fork, this will prevent bubbling. Spread olive oil, garlic and parmesan cheese all around.

Top with some more cheese!

Add eggs, bacon, goat cheese and mushrooms. Bake for 10-12 minutes. Enjoy!