Dark Chocolate Pretzel Granola Bars
I have a family brimming with athletes; there are triathaloning uncles, cyclist aunts, a few who even go to iron man extremes, there are high jumping cousins, long distance winning boys and record setting girls. This weekend is the Pittsburgh Marathon, where over 30, 000 people will race through our beautiful city, up hills, over bridges and across the three rivers. Paul and I, along with our hounds, will be there to cheer on my sister as she continues the family tradition of athleticism and runs the half-marathon! In the spirit of pre-race carb loading, (and middle of the race snacking for the loyal fans), we offer you these delicious dark chocolate-pretzel granola bars. These granola bars are infinitely more delicious and healthy then their store-bought peers. I like to make a big batch of granola bars and freeze them individually wrapped. So while others race, jump, bike and swim, we will be happily cheering and snacking on these tasty bars!
To make these bars extra delicious we use a locally made secret ingredient: honey puffed spelt from our friends at Clarion River Organics. These sweet and smokey puffs are my favorite morning cereal. I have been known to buy bags of them by the dozen for fear of running out. I dipped into my stockpile for these bars, and it was well worth it!
Yield: 8-10 bars
Ingredients:
- 2 cups rolled oats
- 1/4 cup pecans, roughly chopped
- 1/4 cup butter
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup peanut butter (sweetened or natural, whichever you prefer)
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 3/4 cups puffed rice cereal (I used honey puffed spelt)
- 3/4 cups roughly chopped pretzels, about quarter sized
- 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips
Steps:
- Preheat oven to 375.
- Spread oats and pecans on a baking tray and roast until golden brown, about 10-12 minutes.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, whisk together butter, sugar, maple syrup and peanut butter. Once mixture is warmed through and combined, remove from heat and add vanilla and salt.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together oats, pecans, puffed rice cereal, pretzels and chocolate chips. Add the warm peanut butter mixture and stir to coat everything.
- Transfer the mixture into a foil lined 9 x 9 baking pan. Lay a piece of oiled parchment or foil on top of the bars and pat down firmly.
- Freeze for 20-30 minutes (or allow to cool at room temperature an hour). Cut into bars and enjoy. Store in the freezer individually wrapped for maximum convenience and shelf life.
Chewy Coconut Honey Granola
Madeline's grandparents from Indiana arrived for a visit this week. It was lovely support to have in the midst of our coordination and response to Hurricane Mathew. With grandparents here to watch Madeline in the early morning hours, we made a big batch of Chewy Coconut Honey Granola to feed the early risers. This Chewy Coconut Honey Granola is our favorite here in Haiti. It is dead simple to make, and a fantastic balance between sweet and salty with a satisfying chew.
Easy Guava Jam Bars
November means fall back home; the smell of mulled cider, pumpkin picking, and trick-or-treating. Feeling nostalgic for the tastes and colors of fall, while sweating in the 90s here in Haiti, we created a Caribbean-fall dessert, Easy Guava Jam Bars. These easy to make, and addictive bars combine the warm spices of cinnamon and allspice with the tropical sweetness of fresh guava jam. It is a stunning match of tart bright guava enveloped in a warmly spiced buttery crumble.
Buckwheat Buttermilk Pancakes
Buckwheat Buttermilk Pancakes are a healthy, delicious, and easy weekend breakfast with warm malty flavors not usually found in your run of the mill pancakes. The whole buckwheat flour gives these pancakes a rich brown flecked color and hearty nuttiness which pairs beautifully with tangy buttermilk and caramelly maple syrup and molasses. The result is a perfect pancake texture, dark earthy flavor, and enough nutritional goodness to make you feel good about slathering your Buckwheat Buttermilk Pancakes with butter and maple syrup. This recipe is adapted from King Arthur Four's wonderful Whole Grain Baking.
Chocolate Maple Granola with Quinoa and Cranberries
This week I took a stand against the breakfast industrial complex. Sunday for breakfast, I thought I’d go carnivorous, and ate a plate heaped high with Amish summer sausage. In honor of meatless Monday, I thought I’d swing vegetarian, and polished off a bowl of leftover garlicky lentil salad with goat cheese. Tuesday at 6am, I started to worry that I might not be getting my daily serving of fruits and vegetables, and munched away on snow peas, carrots, and bell peppers while I was getting ready for work. Don’t worry, I also ate string cheese for protein! This morning I was out of time and thinking that I might want to dip towards the sweet side, unfortunately things got a bit sticky when I tried to juggle spoonful’s of Nutella while driving. Paul, no stranger to my breakfast rebellions, calmly continued eating his grape nuts. Now that I’ve gotten that all out of system, I am ready for a spiffed-up breakfast classic. So when I got home from work today, I made a big batch of Chocolate Maple Granola with Quinoa and Cranberries. This chocolaty, crunchy granola is somewhere between breakfast and dessert, a good place to be in my mind, and with the combination of nuts, oats, and quinoa, provides a complete protein rich meal that keeps me energized through the whole day.
Maple Granola
When getting ready for guests, we often whip up a batch of our favorite granola. Its a crowd favorite, easy to make in large batches, and it smells great baking (while you rush around cleaning up the house)! As side benefits, it stores well in the freezer for several months, makes an excellent last minute host gift, and serves as a handy snack.
