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Honey Date Nut Bars

April 8, 2018 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

Last week we had family in town for Easter. I had every intention of cooking a couple of vegetarian dinners but ultimately did not cook one single meal at home. I have no regrets though! Ultimately, the time I would have spent cutting vegetables or creating a sauce was spent having amazing conversations. I love cooking but I love quality time with family even more.

A couple of days before our guests arrived, I made these nut bars. I am definitely a grab and go breakfast kind of person. Even as a child, I did not eat a big breakfast. I’m so glad I had these on hand because they provided all of us with a quick, light breakfast or snack when we needed it. You’ll notice that there isn’t any fruit or chocolate in this recipe. It is so hard to find a granola or nut bar without these ingredients which is why I decided to create one of my own. If I really want chocolate, I’ll go grab a cookie. For a light, grab-and-go breakfast, I’ll stick with these nut bars.

Tips:

A candy thermometer is recommended for getting the honey to temperature. However, you can also let it get to a rolling boil and then drop a small amount of the hot liquid into a cold cup of water. The honey should become firm and when you pinch it with your fingers it should have very little give.
If you aren’t a fan of almonds or macadamia nuts, feel free to sub out for your favorite combination, just keep the measurement ratios the same as what is given in the recipe.

Honey Date Nut Bars

Makes 12 bars

2 cups roasted, unsalted almonds

1 cup roasted, unsalted macadamia nuts, broken into large pieces

3 pitted medjool dates, chopped

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup pepitas

2/3 cup crispy rice cereal

Directions:

Put almonds, macadamia nuts, pepitas, dates, rice cereal and salt into large bowl and set aside.

In a medium sauce pan, bring honey and vanilla to a rolling boil, stirring constantly until you reach 300°F.

Pour hot honey mixture over nut mixture, stirring to quickly mix the two.

Spread nut mixture evenly over parchment paper lined 9×9 pan. Let cool completely before cutting and serving.

One Bowl Dark Chocolate Cake

March 28, 2018 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

Sometimes the timing is so bad it is actually perfect. One year ago I was taking my daughter to daycare for the first time and preparing myself to go back to work after having been home with her for the first few months of her life. Those crazy postpartum hormones were still raging and I needed a distraction so I wouldn’t cry all day while being away from her. I had thought about blogging for quite a while and had been encouraged to do so by friends (some of them hadn’t even known it was on my mind). So I did it. I took an old recipe out of my grandmother’s recipe box and I started my food blog. It was a bit scary and I wasn’t sure how I would find time to continue with it once I went back to work, but I did it. I took that first step, made that first post. Here I am, one year later, still going and going stronger than I thought I could. Aren’t friends amazing?! They knew I had it in me and encouraged me to go for it. I huge thank you to those ladies as well as my husband for supporting me on this journey.

Now let’s get to today’s recipe. What is a birthday without cake?! I love it when you can toss all ingredients into one bowl and come out with something delicious so that’s what I did here. One bowl, guys! Fewer dishes to wash when you’re cleaning up. This is a two layer cake that I made a little bit fancier by spreading ganache between the layers and covering the frosting with sprinkles. To me, sprinkles just scream “LET’S CELEBRATE!” I hope you’ll join me in celebrating one year of blogging with a slice of this chocolate cake!

Tips:

1)There is no need to do a crumb coat of frosting here since the sprinkles will hide the few crumbs you might otherwise see in the frosting.

2)If you’d like to simplify the layering a bit, make a little extra of the cream cheese frosting and use that instead of the ganache in between layers of cake.

3)When applying the jimmies (sprinkles), put cake dish on a baking sheet to help catch any that fall off as you go.

One Bowl Dark Chocolate Cake

Cake Ingredients:

2 cups flour

2 cups sugar

1 cup dark cocoa powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

1 cup milk

¾ cup mayonnaise

3 eggs

1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

¼ cup water, lukewarm

Ganache Ingredients:

3oz dark chocolate chips

3oz heavy cream

Frosting Ingredients:

8oz cream cheese, softened

1/2 cup unsalted butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

3 cups powdered sugar

10oz rainbow jimmies

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two 9″ round cake pans with parchment paper.

In a large mixing bowl, stir together flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Slowly add in milk. Mix in mayonnaise, eggs and vanilla until well combined. Pour in water and mix until fully incorporated.

Pour equal amounts of cake mixture into cake pans. Bake for 30 minutes or until a test stick can be inserted and removed clean. Once cakes are baked, let cool 20 minutes before removing from pans. Let cakes finish cooling on a wire rack.

Once cakes are fully cooled, you can make the ganache. place chocolate ships in a medium bowl. In a small sauce pan, heat cream to a simmer. Pour cream over chocolate ships and let sit for 5 minutes. Whisk mixture until fully combined and smooth. Let cool another 5 minutes. Cut domed tops off of each cake. Place first layer of cake on a serving platter of your choice. Pour ganache over bottom layer of cake and spread until it is evenly coated. Place top layer of cake on ganache.

For the frosting, mix cream cheese and butter on medium speed in a mixing bowl. Stir in vanilla and add powdered sugar one cup at a time. Once all ingredients are fully combined and smooth, cover cake in frosting. Using your hands, gently press jimmies onto sides and top of cake. Remove any unwanted jimmies that fell onto the dish as you decorated the cake.

Baby Bella Shepherd’s Pie

March 13, 2018 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

I’m not Irish, not even a little bit. I know this because my dad has written not one but TWO books on our genealogy. What a treasure those books are. To know where you’ve come from and to have stories (some first-hand) about your family members is such a unique gift. Despite my lack of Irish heritage, my parents have always encouraged exploring cultures through food. What better way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day than by taking a new twist on a classic Irish dish?

Shepherd’s pie is one of those ultimate comfort foods. Am I right? It is so rich, warm and flavorful. Traditionally, this dish is made with lamb but s a vegetarian, I had to make my own version. I subbed the meat with a ton baby bella mushrooms but kept the basics for the sauce. To make this a bit healthier and to add a level of sweetness, I swapped the potatoes for sweet potatoes. The result turned out to be glorious! I could have eaten half the casserole dish by myself!

Tips:

To save time the on the day you plan to make this, chop all your vegetables the night before.
Be patient. It takes some time for the liquid to reduce but give it the time it deserves so you don’t end up with soup under the sweet potatoes.

Baby Bella Shepherd’s Pie

Topping:

4 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and cubed

½ cup unsalted butter

¼ cup half & half

Filling:

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 medium yellow onion

3 large carrots, cut into ¼” slices

2lb baby bella mushrooms, stemmed and quartered

1 Tablespoon minced garlic

1 Tablespoon fresh thyme

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon ground black pepper

3 Tablespoons all-purpose flour

1 ½ cups peas

1 cup vegetable broth

1 cup dry red wine

2 Tablespoons tomato paste

Directions:

Place sweet potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Boil potatoes until they are fork tender. Drain potatoes and move them to a large mixing bowl. Mix on low speed with butter and half & half until potatoes are smooth and creamy. Set aside.

Preheat oven to 400°F. In a large pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook until translucent. Add carrots, cook an additional 2-3 minutes. Add mushrooms, garlic, thyme, salt & pepper. Cook until mushrooms start to sweat. Sprinkle flour over vegetable mixture and stir until evenly coated. Add peas then pour in vegetable broth and wine. Stir in tomato paste and increase heat to bring pot to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer until liquids reduce to a gravy-like texture.

Pour vegetable mixture into a greased 9”x13” casserole dish. Spread sweet potatoes over vegetables, making sure potatoes reach the edges of the dish. Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool slightly before serving.

Chili Lime Roasted Cashews

March 7, 2018 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

I am a grazer – I tend to eat smaller meals and add in snacks throughout the day. In theory, this is a healthier way to eat. But that theory goes out the window if you’re reaching for chips or candy all day long. I need something new that isn’t over-processed. A snack like cashews is ideal because the protein helps me feel full without eating a huge portion.

The biggest issue I have with the seasoned nuts I find in my local stores is that the salt and seasoning tends to be over the top. Yes, I want flavor but I don’t want to still taste my snack an hour after eating it. I kept the spice mild so you won’t get overwhelmed here but you can easily take things up a notch if you want to.

Tips:

These are full of flavor but not necessarily spicy. If you want to add more heat, increase the amount of cayenne pepper into the blend.
Don’t skip out on stirring the cashews periodically during the roasting process – this helps to give them an even roast.

Chili Lime Roasted Cashews

2 Tablespoons fresh lime juice

½ teaspoon honey

1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon paprika

¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper

¼ chipotle chili pepper

¼ chili powder

1 lb raw cashews

Directions:

Preheat oven to 250°F and line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. In a medium bowl, whisk together lime juice and honey. Add in all seasonings and whisk until well blended. Stir cashews into spice mixture until they are evenly coated. Spread cashews on lined baking sheet and roast for 30 minutes, stirring every 5-10 minutes. Cashews will take on a golden, reddish color but should not blacken. Spread roasted cashews on paper towels and allow to fully cool before eating.

Five Spice Citrus Salad

February 25, 2018 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

It has been such a long and rainy winter here in San Antonio. I’m not used to needing a heavy coat for more than a day or two at a time, let alone weeks at a time. I find myself daydreaming about bright colors and warmer climates. I won’t be going on a tropical vacation any time soon so my next best bet is eating bright, flavorful fruit.

We are currently right in the middle of prime orange and grapefruit season. There are so many varieties of citrus available and I took full advantage of that for this recipe. I love the variety of colors as well as flavors from these fruits. Given the tartness that sometimes comes along with citrus, I wanted to contrast that with a little bit of sweet and a little bit of spice. The result is a perfect dish to serve with brunch or eat as a snack.

Tips:

Place some paper towels under the edges of your cutting board, this will help to catch any juice that runs off the edge as you’re cutting the fruit.
Feel free to mix and match your citrus fruits to your liking or based on what is available seasonally. The main idea is variety.

Print Recipe

FIVE SPICE CITRUS SALAD

The perfect salad to take advantage of seasonal citrus.

Ingredients

6 oranges (I used blood oranges, tangelos, sumo citrus)
3 grapefruit (I used one large and two small)
1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
1/4 cup feta cheese, crumbled
1 Tablespoon fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon Chinese five spice
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions

Cut citrus fruits into ¼' slices, removing seeds as they are found. Cut rinds off of slices then place slices on paper towels to absorb excess any juice. Move citrus slices to a serving platter and top with pomegranate, feta and mint. In a small bowl, mix together honey, Chinese five spice and vanilla. Drizzles honey mixture over citrus salad as desired.

Curried Chickpea Salad Sandwich

February 19, 2018 by Sarah Baade 1 Comment

I’m generally good about eating dinner leftovers for lunches at work but lately we haven’t been making big meals for dinner. We’ve been keeping it light with smoothies or salads. Frankly, these don’t make good leftovers. So, I’ve been needing to come up with easy dishes to make on the fly for my lunches.

Since going vegetarian, chickpeas have become a staple in my pantry. I’ve added them to soups and salads, made hummus. I’ve tried a few chickpea salad sandwich recipes but found them to be a little bit bland. I want flavor! If you can’t find what you’re looking for create it yourself, right? I created my own sandwich and added curry to kick it up a notch. No more boring sandwiches in my brown bagged lunches!

Tips:

If you’re needing to take the gluten free option, use your favorite GF bread, turn it into a lettuce wrap or just skip the bread altogether. Frankly, this is just as delicious eaten by the fork-full.
I used a hot curry powder for a stronger flavor but feel free to use whatever curry powder you happen to have on hand and then reduce or add amount based on your desired flavor.

Print Recipe

CURRIED CHICKPEA SALAD SANDWICH

Servings: 4 sandwiches

Ingredients

1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 1/2 teaspoons hot madras curry powder
15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup finely chopped red bell pepper
salt & pepper to taste
8 slices whole grain bread
optional garnishes: lettuce, red onion

Instructions

In a small bowl, mix together yogurt and curry powder. In a medium mixing bowl, mash chickpeas with a fork until they are a bit crumbly, some chunks are okay. Add carrots, bell peppers and curried yogurt to chickpeas, stir until well combined. Add salt and pepper to taste. Scoop equal amounts of mixture onto 4 slices of bread. Add desired garnishes and then top with remaining slices of bread.

Boozy Truffles

February 7, 2018 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

Let’s talk Valentine’s Day. Whether you love it or hate it, this holiday is great for making and eating sweet treats! It shouldn’t come as a surprise to anyone but food is definitely my favorite way to celebrate a holiday. My typical go-to is cake or cookies but I wanted to change it up this year. One of the things I love about these truffles is that you can customize them just by changing up the flavor of liqueur. I know we just finished up Christmas and all of its peppermint glory but who says we can’t use that flavor all year round? I absolutely love peppermint with dark chocolate so I went for it! I also wanted to do something more unique for a white chocolate flavor which brought me to horchata. You could make these truffles as a gift for your valentine but you could also just treat yourself – you deserve it!

Tips:

If you aren’t much of a drinker, don’t invest in a full-size bottle of liqueur. Just skim the section of single serving bottles (you know, like the tiny bottles they have on airplanes or in hotel minibars).
The white chocolate filling is a bit sticky and challenging to work with. Do yourself a favor and leave them in the freezer right up until you are ready to dip them in the dark chocolate coating. You could even pull just a few out at a time as you go. Trust me, they are worth the extra effort though!

Boozy Truffles

Dark Chocolate Filling:

¾ cup dark chocolate chips

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 Tablespoons liqueur – I used a peppermint coffee flavor

White Chocolate Filling:

1 cup dark chocolate chips

1/3 cup heavy cream

2 Tablespoons liqueur – I used an horchata flavor

Dark Chocolate Coating:

1 ½ cups dark chocolate chips

1 ½ teaspoons vegetable oil

Decorative garnish – I used crushed peppermint pieces and gold colored sugar sprinkles

Directions:

For dark chocolate filling, place chocolate chips in a medium heat safe bowl. In a heavy saucepan, bring cream to a low boil. Pour cream over chocolate chips and let stand for 5 minutes. Whisk liqueur into cream and chocolate mixture until mixture is blended together and smooth. Cover bowl and refrigerate for 2 hours or up to 1 day. Repeat this process for the white chocolate filling.

Once fillings are chilled, shape into 1 inch balls then place on a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. Place in freezer for 1 hour.

For the dark chocolate coating, place chocolate chips and vegetable oil in a microwave safe bowl. Heat in the microwave, stirring every 30 seconds until completely melted.

One at a time, dip chilled ball of filling into coating mixture, making sure each one is completely coated. Place each truffle back onto the parchment paper lined cookie sheet and sprinkle with decorative garnish. Once all truffles are garnished, refrigerate until coating is set or you are ready to serve them.

Wild Rice Bowl With Tahini Sauce

January 29, 2018 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

Meatless Monday has developed into a meatless few months for me. To be honest, I’m still deciding if this will be a permanent change or not but I am enjoying the challenge of cooking differently. It would be all too easy to just dive into lots of pasta or cheese but I don’t think my stomach would appreciate that. Instead, I’m trying to focus on new flavors to complement a vegetable based menu.

Roasting is such an easy way to cook vegetables that I tend to return to that method again and again. This time I added wild rice for a more interesting texture and slightly nutty flavor. Lastly, I’ve started to explore making sauces as an easy but incredibly effective way to change up the flavor profile. I hope you enjoy my first attempt at a rice bowl!

Tips:

If your family is picky about vegetables, season each type of vegetable individually and organize them on your pan by vegetable. It will be easier for everyone to choose more of their favorite or less of their less favorite vegetable.
I realize wild rice can be an acquired taste, feel free to sub out for another type of rice or quinoa if you prefer.

Wild Rice Bowl with Tahini Sauce

Serves 4

Bowl Ingredients

8oz uncooked cups wild rice

2 sweet potatoes

1 lb Brussels sprouts

1 lb white mushrooms

3 teaspoons olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Sauce:

2 Tablespoons tahini

¼ cup olive oil

2 Tablespoons balsamic vinegar

Pinch of salt

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425*F. Cook rice according to package. While rice is cooking, cut sweet potatoes into 1 inch cubes. Cut Brussels sprouts in half and cut mushrooms into quarters. Place all vegetables in a large bowl with olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss until vegetables are evenly coated. Transfer vegetables to a baking sheet and bake for 25-30 minutes or until sweet potatoes are fork tender and vegetables are starting to brown in spots.

For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until well blended. Serve vegetables over rice and drizzle sauce over bowl as desired.

Blueberry and Pesto Quinoa Bowl

January 18, 2018 by Sarah Baade Leave a Comment

Alright, it’s confession time. I absolutely ate my way through the holidays. I mean, I went all out with sweets and wine and homemade Chex mix (because we all know the homemade stuff is at least a million times better than the stuff that comes in a bag). No treat went uneaten. I’m not even sure what got into me because moderation with food is typically not a challenge for me. But I did it, and I did it joyfully!

What’s done is done and now it is time to get back on the wagon of eating a balanced diet. I ate salads all last week for lunch because I actually do love vegetables but I was bored by Friday. I was eating the same mixture of ingredients that I always reach for when making a salad. I need some variety if I‘m going to stick with eating healthier. As usual, I also want to make this easy on myself so I looked through my fridge and pantry for ingredients I already had on hand. This quinoa bowl gave me a change of pace in terms of both texture and flavor but was also incredibly easy to make.

Tips:

To make this an even faster recipe, feel free to use a premade pesto from the store rather than making the one included in this recipe.
You can absolutely portion this out ahead of time for lunches. Just hold off on adding the pesto until you are ready to eat it.

Blueberry and Pesto Quinoa Bowl

Serves 2

Bowl Ingredients:

4 cups raw baby spinach

1 cup cooked quinoa, cold

2 Tablespoons pepitas

½ cup feta crumbles

¾ cup fresh blueberries

Pesto Ingredients:

1 ½ cups basil leaves

2 Tablespoons pine nuts

1 ½ teaspoons garlic, minced

¼ teaspoon salt

1 Tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Directions:

Place spinach in bottom of a large bowl. Top with quinoa then pepitas, feta and blueberries.

For the pesto, combine all ingredients in a blender until smooth. Drizzle pesto over quinoa bowl as desired.

Lemon Iced Ginger Cookies

December 26, 2017 by Sarah Baade 2 Comments

I used to think sugar cookies were the ultimate iced Christmas cookie. They are certainly a classic but let’s be honest, they are really just sugar on sugar no matter how beautifully they are decorated. Why not add some flavor to the sweetness? Over the last few years I have developed a love for ginger bread. That spice blended with a bit of sweet icing is absolutely delicious. Add in a hint of lemon and I’m hooked; you’re going to have to hold me back from eating the entire batch of cookies!

Tips:

If you prefer a thin glaze instead of icing, add extra milk to the icing until it is the consistency you desire.
If you need to approach this recipe in steps, tackle the cookies one day and ice them the next day.

Lemon Iced Ginger Cookies

Ingredients:

3 ½ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons ground ginger

½ teaspoon ground cloves

½ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1 cup packed brown sugar

1 cup granulated sugar

4 tablespoons butter (softened)

3 large eggs

¾ cup molasses

Icing:

Zest of 1 lemon

3 tablespoons milk (I used unflavored almond milk but you can use whatever type of milk you prefer.)

1 ½ cups powdered sugar

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, ginger, cloves, salt and baking soda.

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat brown sugar with granulated sugar and butter. Add eggs and molasses. Mix in dry ingredients 1 cup at a time.

Scoop tablespoon-sized mounds of cookie dough and place on the parchment paper. Leave 2-inches between the cookies. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Remove the cookie sheet from the oven and transfer the cookies from the parchment to cooling racks.

Once cookies are cooled completely, add icing ingredients to a small bowl and whisk until powdered sugar fully mixed into milk (there should not be any lumps). Spread icing over cookies as desired.