Monthly Archives: July 2018

Grain-Free Nut and Seed Energy Bars

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There’s no gluten, dairy, or processed sugar in these energy bars. In fact, no grain at all. My son spends a lot of time in the woods and wanted me to come up with something that could withstand being tossed in a backpack, but he didn’t want any sweetener or grains. (I know. I think he was a changeling, I really do.) I lobbied for a small amount of honey to make the bars sturdier but kept it to a minimum. And do you know what? These are good! Really good. The chia and honey work together to glue all the yummy nuts and seeds together. I also added some dried cranberries and blueberries.

For my first attempt, I used a three-seed mix of chia, hemp, and flax. There wasn’t enough chia to hold it all together well, so I tried again, added more chia, and got it right.

Baking times may vary a little, depending on how thin you spread the mixture, and on your oven. My oven doesn’t hold heat once it’s turned off. It has a fan that blows the heat out, which is a little annoying when I try to make meringues or crackers (things that I want to dry out slowly). So you may have to play with the timing a bit. I also wanted these pretty dry and crunchy; you can give them a shorter bake time if you want them softer.

You’ll probably want to hit a natural-foods market for ingredients. The recipe uses quite a variety, and you can usually buy small amounts in bulk there. Of course, once you’ve tried these you may go back for larger quantities.

Nuts, seeds, fruit, and honey

Grain-Free Nut and Seed Energy Bars
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Makes 20 large bars
Ingredients
  • 1 cup water
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ½ cup chia seeds
  • ¼ cup sesame seeds
  • ¼ cup pumpkin seeds
  • ½ cup flax seed (or flax/hemp combination)
  • 4 cups chopped nuts (I used walnuts, pecans, almonds)
  • ½ cup dried fruit (I used cranberries and blueberries)
  • ¼ teaspoon salt (optional)
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 325 F. Cover a large baking sheet with an 11½ x 16" Silpat (or parchment)
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together the water and honey.
  3. Add seeds and let the mixture sit for 10 minutes. It should get thick.
  4. Add nuts and fruit and stir well.
  5. Spread evenly on the prepared baking sheet, It will tend to get thicker in the middle, so try to smooth it out so the edges are the same thickness.
  6. Bake for 30 minutes. Flip the bars over. (Either place another silpat and a baking sheet on top and flip the whole thing over, then cut into desired sizes - or cut into bars and flip each one over. Return to oven.
  7. Reduce heat to 250 F. and bake for an additional hour. Without opening the door, turn off the oven and let the bars sit until cool. (They should be firm. If not, you can bake for additional time at 250 F.)
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Stir seeds into water and honey. Let them thicken up!

Add nuts and fruit and stir well

Spread evenly onto silpat or parchment

You may want to have another baking sheet ready. After it’s baked for 30 minutes, it needs to be flipped over. You can place another baking sheet on top and flip (then cut bars and put it back in the oven) or cut bars and flip each one over before returning to the oven. Whichever seems easiest to you. I’m a “flip the whole mess over at once” kinda gal.

See? Wasn’t that easy? Now you can have a healthy snack whenever you need a pick-me-up. Put this on your calendar, because you won’t see something like this on my blog very often.

 

 

Two-bite Huckleberry Cheesecakes

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Sweet and tangy, these cute little mini-cheesecakes are perfect for a summer party. Serve them frozen on a hot day and watch them disappear!

Huckleberries are ripe right now, and I’m in heaven. There’s just nothing to compare to these flavorful berries. There is, however, an almost-as-good option if you don’t have access to huckleberries. Wild Maine blueberries are very similar. I bought frozen wild blueberries at the grocery store and they were delicious and reasonable. With fresh huckleberries going for $50-60 a gallon here, if I couldn’t pick them myself, I’d go for the frozen option!

Loaded with cream cheese, sour cream, and whipped topping, you’d think these little cheesecakes would be crazy-rich, but they truly aren’t. The combination of textures and the addition of lemon to the berry topping helps to confuse you into thinking you can eat twenty of these. I should know.

This may look sweet and innocent, but it will actually lure you into “just one more”.

And speaking of whipped topping, I really don’t like to use it. I much prefer real whipped cream. But I tried this with whipping cream, and the little bites were softer . . . pretty messy if you didn’t eat them the second they came out of the freezer. So I caved. I have one more cream cheese recipe coming up soon (it’s a doozy!) and I promise to use the real stuff in that one.

Have you ever used agar-agar? The berry topping can be thickened using cornstarch or agar-agar. I tried both and liked the agar-agar version slightly better. The topping reminded me a little bit of cranberry sauce (kind of gelatinous) while the cornstarch topping was more jam-like, but both were very tasty. The recipe below will call for cornstarch because it’s what most people have in their cupboard, but if you’d like to use agar-agar powder, simply add the lemon juice and water to the cooked berries and then whisk in 1 1/2 teaspoons of agar-agar powder. Cook for 4-5 minutes. Top the cheesecakes while the mixture is still warm because it will set up quickly once it cools. If it gets too thick at any point, gently reheat it.

Two-bite Huckleberry Cheesecakes
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Makes 48 mini-cheesecakes.
Ingredients
  • CRUST:
  • 1 cup graham cracker crumbs (about 7 double crackers) finely crushed
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • 2 tablespoons melted butter
  • BERRY TOPPING:
  • ¼ cup water
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon cornstarch
  • 2½ cups fresh huckleberries (or use fresh or frozen wild Maine blueberries)
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • FILLING:
  • 1 tablespoon heavy cream
  • ⅓ cup white chocolate chips
  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1½ cups powdered sugar
  • ¼ cup sour cream
  • 1 8-oz tub thawed whipped topping, divided
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 325 F. Prepare the mini tart pans by placing a small paper liner in each cavity. (48 liners in all.)
  2. Combine graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter in a small bowl. Divide between the 48 liners - about 1 teaspoon in each. Tamp down well with a shot glass or tart tamper. Bake for 9 minutes. Cool completely on a rack.
  3. In a small cup, whisk together the water, lemon juice, and cornstarch. Set aside.
  4. In a medium pot, stir together the berries and sugar. Heat on medium-low until mixture comes to a boil. Continue to cook and stir for 3 minutes.
  5. Using a slotted spoon (letting the liquid drip back into the pan) scoop 2 tablespoons of berries into a small dish and set aside.
  6. Slowly whisk cornstarch mixture into bubbling berry mixture and continue to cook at a low boil until thick - about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  7. In a small pan on low heat (or in the microwave), gently heat 1 tablespoon heavy cream and white chocolate until smooth. Allow the mixture to cool slightly.
  8. In a large bowl, beat cream cheese well. Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth.
  9. Add sour cream, melted white chocolate, and 2 tablespoons reserved cooked berries. Mix until combined.
  10. Fold in 2 cups of whipped topping, reserving the remaining cup for decorating.
  11. Fill each liner about ¾ full, leaving a little room for the berry topping. You can spoon the filling into the liners or use a pastry bag or heavy plastic bag with the tip cut off to squeeze it in.
  12. Check the berry topping to make sure it isn't hot. Warm is fine. Spoon over the filling in each liner.
  13. Freeze until ready to serve. Top with whipped topping and a berry, if desired.
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Tamp down the crust and bake. If you don’t have a tart tamper, use a shot glass!

I use a pastry bag to fill them. Leave room for topping!

Add the berry topping and freeze

So if you live on the east or west coast, get a can of bear spray and head for the hills to harvest huckleberries or wild blueberries. If you’re stuck elsewhere, look in the freezer section of any large grocery store. Our health food section has a separate freezer section, and they have organic wild Maine blueberries. Score!

Before I post my last (for now) cheesecake recipe, I’ve actually been working on a healthy treat. Yes, yes, you heard that right. Check back in soon . . . or better yet, subscribe to my blog so you don’t miss this rare occurrence!

Lorinda

No Bake Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake

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Each summer when our grandkids are visiting, we make a festive dessert. Oh, there’s always lots of chopping, cooking, and baking going on during that week, but we like to create one special sweet treat. This year we made a no-bake raspberry cheesecake for the 4th of July. Well . . . we baked the crust, but that’s all. We intended to add some blueberries to make it red, white, and blue, but we forgot. (It gets a little crazy around here with so many people in the kitchen.)

There are three steps to this dessert: topping, crust, and filling. It really won’t take that long, and if my grandkids can make this without whining, you can too!

 

Of course, I winged it and didn’t write down exact measurements. We were in a hurry (great-grandma was coming to visit) and slam-dunked it. You probably wouldn’t appreciate it if I just guessed my way through the recipe, so now that the kids have gone back to California (sob) it was carefully re-created and documented . . .  and it turned out beautifully. I added lemon zest to the cheesecake the second time around and loved the subtle flavor.

And I even cleaned up as I went! Mark that down on your calendar, because it will probably never happen again. Who knows what possessed me – but it’s awfully nice to sit here working on this blog without seeing a mess out of the corner of my eye. I understand that some people actually do this regularly. Huh. Go figure.

Do you know what I really, really miss? Raspberry ripple ice cream. Just can’t find it anywhere. This immediately reminded me of that childhood treat . . . sweet nostalgia!

If you don’t have a springform pan, you can always make a couple of deep dish pies instead, using the same steps.

No Bake Raspberry Swirl Cheesecake
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You will need a 9-inch springform pan for this recipe. (It could also be made in two deep-dish pie pans.) Plan ahead; this cheesecake is best if it's refrigerated overnight.
Ingredients
  • BERRY TOPPING:
  • 18 ounces fresh raspberries (about 3 cups, plus a few for decorating)
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • pinch salt
  • 3 tablespoons cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • CRUST:
  • 2 cups finely crushed graham cracker crumbs (about 1½ sleeves)
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 6 tablespoons butter, melted
  • FILLING:
  • 2 tablespoons heavy cream
  • 3 ounces white chocolate (chips or candy melts are fine)
  • 16 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 2 cups powdered sugar
  • 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • zest from 2 lemons
  • 1 8-ounce tub of whipped topping, thawed
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 325 F. Lightly butter the sides of a 9-inch springform pan and place a round of parchment on the bottom.
  2. In a small dish, combine the cornstarch, 2 tablespoons of lemon juice, and 2 tablespoons of water. Stir well and set aside.
  3. If desired, remove and refrigerate 9 of the nicest berries to use later for decorating. In a medium pan on medium heat, bring the remaining berries, sugar, and salt to a boil. Cook at a low boil for 3 minutes, stirring often.
  4. Slowly add the cornstarch mixture to the pan. Cook and stir until thickened, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat and allow to cool.
  5. In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter. Press into the prepared pan evenly, going halfway up the sides of the pan. (A straight-sided measuring cup works well for pressing crust up the sides.)
  6. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and place on a rack to cool.
  7. In a small pan on very low heat (or in a microwave at 15-second intervals) combine the cream and white chocolate, stirring until chocolate is melted. Set aside.
  8. In a large bowl, beat the softened cream cheese until smooth and creamy.
  9. Add the powdered sugar and beat well.
  10. Add 1 tablespoon lemon juice, lemon zest, and white chocolate mixture. Beat well.
  11. By hand, stir in the whipped topping, just until incorporated.
  12. Put half of the filling in the pie crust, spreading it to the sides. Don't smooth it; hills and valleys will make the raspberry swirl look prettier.
  13. Check the raspberry mixture. Warm is fine, but if it's still hot, place the pan in a larger pan of cold water and stir. Drizzle ⅓ cup of the raspberry mixture over the filling in the pan. Cover with remaining filling and swirl gently, avoiding the crust.
  14. Smooth the top, making it as level as possible. Pour the remaining raspberry topping over the cheesecake, cover with foil, and chill overnight.
  15. If desired, decorate with whipped cream rosettes and the reserved raspberries.
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Add sugar and a pinch of salt to rinsed raspberries and boil gently for 3 minutes

Combine cornstarch, lemon juice, and water

Add the cornstarch mixture to the boiling berries. Stir until thickened.

Combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, and melted butter.

Press into prepared pan and bake

Melt together the cream and white chocolate. Let it cool a little.

Add powdered sugar to whipped cream cheese

Add lemon and melted chocolate to the mixture

Stir in the whipped topping

Add half of the filling (don’t level it . . . leave it “gloppy”) and drizzle with 1/3 cup berry mixture

Cover with remaining filling

Swirl gently. (You don’t want to disturb that crust!)

Level the top (a small offset spatula works well) all the way to the edge. Add remaining berry mixture and smooth with a clean spatula.

Decorate with whipped cream and raspberries, or let it go au naturel.

It doesn’t really NEED adornment. I like mine straight.

 

In case you’re wondering, this is delicious when frozen, too! Trust me, I know. And it’s easier to cut and serve. Just take it from the freezer and let it sit out at room temperature for 10 minutes before cutting.

Lorinda