FINAL UPDATE -- Operation Baking GALS - Round 25

From the Operation Baking GALS
I didn't really have any updates in the middle like I did last time. I had 12 team members. Of the 12, 6 emailed to let me know what they shipped. It sounds like our soldier will be getting some wonderful treats. For my package I made more Granola, Granola Cookies (recipe below), Oatmeal Cookie Bars (recipe below), and Moo made chocolate chip cookies.

Here is what was sent by my team this time.

• CS shipped one box with two kinds of cookies.
• KC shipped one package with German chocolate cookies, sugar cookies, candy and socks along with cards from the class of elementary school children with special needs that she works with.
• PB shipped two packages each with two containers of cookies.
• SW shipped one package with Halloween sugar cookies, gluten-free molasses cookies, fudge brownies, autumn mix candy corn, hard candy & suckers, Halloween bubbles & spider rings!
• CH shipped one package in which she included caramel apple cookies, chocolate chip peanut butter cookies, Amish friendship bread, chocolate chip banana bread, skinny pumpkin muffins, Rice Krispy treats with candy corn, Slim Jims, Cracker Jacks, cocoa mixes, popcorn balls, cotton candy, and some candy (suckers, Tootsie Rolls, Laffy Taffy, jawbreakers).
• AF sent one box that included snickerdoodles, browned butter chocolate chip cookies, Laffy Taffy, Starburst, and candy corn.

I am very appreciative to all those who have signed up with me to send some "home" to the troops.

Below are the recipes mentioned above.

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Granola Cookies
from Lynn’s Kitchen Adventures
Print Recipe

3 cups granola
12 oz melted chocolate baking bar or chips

Combine granola and melted chocolate. Scoop onto greased or silicone mat lined baking sheet; refrigerate until set.

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Oatmeal Cookie Bars
from One Ordinary Day
Print Recipe

1/2 cup canola oil
1 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 Tbsp milk
2 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/2 tsp kosher salt
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 3/4 cups whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 bag of cinnamon chips
sea salt to sprinkle on top

Preheat oven to 350. Line a 13x9 pan with foil, so that the ends hang over the long sides of your pan. (Easier to lift the bars out later.) In a large bowl, combine oil, sugars, eggs, milk, vanilla, and salt. Beat on medium speed for 2-3 minutes or until sugars have dissolved. In another bowl, combine oats, flour, baking soda, and cinnamon chips. Stir until just combined. Add to liquid mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until combined. (The batter is very thick.) Transfer to prepared pan. (Use dampened fingers to spread dough into the corners of the pan.) Sprinkle sea salt on top. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden. Remove from oven and cool until firm. Lift bars out using foil “handles” and cut into bars. Store tightly covered.

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Granola and Cookies with Moo

Moo is such a great girl. . . errr teenager. She has spent most of the summer taking care of Bob. She does a wonderful job. She takes him to story hour at the library on Thursdays, takes him to our local elementary school for the free lunch program some days, and tries to make things fun for him by putting the sprinkler under the trampoline, helping him get movies from the library, and many other things. Thanks Moo!!!

In addition to taking care of Bob she is always willing to help out around the house and to try new recipes (that's my girl). Recently she has made Granola (V), Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars, and Vanilla Bean Ice Cream (II) along with several other recipes that we make regularly. She did a wonderful job with the granola. It is delicious. The cookie bars while delicious were a little (just a little) too done. Cookie bars are difficult to get right sometimes (at least in my world). There seems to be a fine line between jiggly not doneness and brown over doneness. It is difficult for me to choose which is better. Anyway. . . the best thing about Moo and recipes is she will try again. One mishap does not dissuade her from trying a recipe again--I can't always say the same for myself. The ice cream is delicious! The only thing I helped with was scraping the vanilla bean. She did everything else. This was not as thick and rich as The Pioneer Woman's version we made for the Fourth of July. I think this version would go better with stir ins. While delicious, adding the stir ins to the Pioneer Woman's Vanilla Bean Ice Cream was almost too much.

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Granola V
adapted from 24 Hour Menu
Print Recipe

1 1/2 cups uncooked old fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups rolled 9 grain flakes
1/2 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
3/4 cup almonds, sliced
3/4 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup coconut
1 stick plus 2 Tbsp butter
3/4 cup honey
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla extract

Add oats, flakes, wheat bran, brown sugar, cinnamon, almonds, pecans, and coconut together in a large bowl and mix well. Melt butter over medium heat, add in salt, honey, and vanilla extract. mix until all heated and add to oat mixture in large bowl. Stir until evenly coated. Pour onto lightly greased baking sheet and bake at 375 for about 10 minutes or until golden. Let cool and break into pieces. Store in air tight container.

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Toll House Chocolate Chip Cookie Bars
adapted from Nestle® Toll House® Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels package
Print Recipe

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks) butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 large eggs
2 cups semi-sweet chocolate morsels
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 375. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large mixer bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Grease 15 x 10-inch jelly-roll pan. Prepare dough as above. Spread into prepared pan. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Cool in pan on wire rack. Makes 4 dozen bars.

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Vanilla Bean Ice Cream
from Annie’s Eats
Print Recipe

3 cups heavy cream, or 2 cups heavy cream and 1 cup whole milk
3/4 cup sugar
pinch of salt
1 vanilla bean, split in half lengthwise
3/4 tsp vanilla extract

Pour 1 cup of the cream into a medium saucepan and add the sugar and salt. Scrape the seeds from the vanilla bean into the saucepan and add the pod to the pot. Warm over medium heat, stirring, until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the remaining 2 cups cream (or cream and milk) and the vanilla extract. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator. When ready to churn, remove the vanilla bean, and then freeze the mixture in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

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Moo Can Make It Too

Moo had a multi-day field trip with school this past week and she wanted some snacks to take with her. The day that I was going to make granola for her I ended up having a headache so I was not in the best shape to make it. What I did do was find her an easy and simple granola to make. The recipe included chopped nuts and her knife skills aren't the best so PE helped her with that. The granola turned out great! Nice simple flavor. Good with milk or on yogurt or plain. I had K1 and JBonG (if I haven't mentioned, JBonG is K2's replacement) taste it. K1 even asked for the recipe. Good Job Moo!!

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Granola IV (Crunchy Granola)
adapted from Everyday Food Storage
Print Recipe

1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup water
4 teaspoons vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup almonds, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup cashews, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup sunflower seeds, unsalted
dried fruits, if desired (tropical fruit, raisins, blueberries, cranberries, cherries, etc.)

Heat oven to 280. Combine brown sugar and water in a 4 cup microwave proof cup. Microwave on high 5 minutes, or until the sugar is completely dissolved. Remove from microwave and stir in vanilla and salt. In a large mixing bowl, mix oats and nuts. Add the brown sugar mixture. Mix thoroughly. Spread onto 2 cookie sheets and bake for a total of 45 minutes or until golden brown. After 25 minutes, stir and put back in the oven for the rest of the time. When granola has cooled completely, add dried fruits.

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Just Because You Eat It Doesn't Mean You Are One

Granola that is. You can read the various definitions of granola at Urban Dictionary. I work with some individuals who would proudly wear the label of granola (in varying degrees of definition 1 and some more closely tied to definition 5 ). For this post I am speaking of the granola you eat. I LOVE granola. I have since I was little and my mom would make it. I have purchased it a few times here and there because I enjoy mixing it with my yogurt; however, I do not enjoy paying for the stuff.

I have been working up to making granola for a few months. The main reason being I had to build up my stash of grains and nuts. I purchase many of the items from Azure Standard. On most items I get a better price than I would from a warehouse club store. I have also really enjoyed the spices I have purchased from there. They are so bright in color and smell amazing compared to the spices I was replacing. Sometimes I am willing to pay a little extra for items because I believe the quality is better from Azure. I also like the availability of organic items.

Recently I have been trying out different recipes with varying ingredients and I have found that it is pretty hard to mess up making granola. I have three recipes to share with you and you will see they are similar.

Granola I was delicious with yogurt or with milk. I really liked the addition of the peanut butter chips. Granola II Moo took to school and I take it as a good sign that her teacher wanted the recipe. I tasted a bit and I think next time I will cook it longer. I like crispy granola and Granola II was closer to a soft bar texture. Granola III was excellent with milk or eaten plain. PE liked it for a snack while he was out hunting turkeys. In my cooking that is they highest compliment. . . when PE tells me something is delicious without my prompting.

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Granola I
from Sparky
Print Recipe

12 cups oats (any mixture of quick cooking and regular)
4 cups of dry ingredients (chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, almonds, craisins, coconut, etc.)
(I used 1/2 cup oat bran, 1/2 cup wheat bran, 1/2 cup chai seeds, 1 cup slivered/chopped/whole almonds, 1/2 cup flax meal, 1 cup peanut butter chips)
1 cup canola oil
1 cup honey

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all dry ingredients. Combine honey and oil and heat in a small pan or in the microwave until hot. Pour over dry ingredients and stir to combine. Spread onto three baking sheets. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove from oven and cool completely. Enjoy!

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Granola II
adapted from Mommy's Kitchen
Print Recipe

3 cups uncooked old fashioned oats
1 stick + 1 Tbsp real butter
2/3 cup honey
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 tsp salt
1 Tbsp cinnamon sugar
1/4 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup oat bran
2 Tbsp flax seed
1 Tbsp chia seeds
3/4 cup almond pieces (optional)
1/2 cup mini chocolate chips (optional)
1 cup dried cranberries (optional)

First melt the butter in a 3 - quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the honey and salt and briefly heat with the butter. In a separate bowl mix together the oatmeal, wheat germ, nuts, brown sugar, cinnamon sugar, dried cranberries, chocolate chips, and nuts add them as well. Turn off the heat and add the oatmeal mixture. Stir until everything is coated. Pour the mixture onto a lightly greased baking sheet. Spread the mixture out evenly and bake it at 375 for 10 minutes (watch carefully) It will be a golden brown color. Remove from the oven and let cool. Break into pieces and store in an airtight container.

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Granola III
adapted from Tammy's Recipes
Print Recipe

6 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup oat bran
1/2 cup wheat bran
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1 cup any combination chopped walnuts, almonds, pecans, golden flax seeds, or raw sunflower seeds
1/2 cup nonfat dry milk
1 cup dried cranberries
2/3 cup honey
2/3 cup vegetable oil
2 Tbsp water
1 1/2 tsp vanilla

In a large bowl combine oats, brown sugar, wheat germ, coconut, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, Craisins, and nonfat dry milk. Combine honey, oil, water, and vanilla. Add to oat mixture and mix thoroughly. Turn into two large shallow greased baking pans or cookie sheets. Heat in 300 oven for 30-40 minutes or until lightly toasted. Stir twice during heating. Let cool for 15 minutes after removing from the oven and then stir again. Store in tightly sealed container.

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Treats for PE's Work

Each year I try to make treats for the ladies at PE's work. They are always so friendly when I come in and they treat Bob like a king (Bug and Moo are treated like members of the high court) and I want to make sure they know I appreciate them. I was going to try something new this year but was informed that I HAD to make the Sticky Popcorn. They had already been asking PE when I was going to send it. Last year I sent Sticky Popcorn and the Holiday Party Mix so I felt like I needed to send two things so I made Sticky Popcorn and Microwave Caramel Corn.

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Sticky Popcorn
from Sparky
Print Recipe

16 cups air-popped popcorn
1 cup butter
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 tsp vanilla

Sort popcorn. Combine butter, corn syrup, and sugar in heavy saucepan. Bring to soft ball stage. Add vanilla and pour over popcorn. Spread popcorn on wax paper to cool.

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Microwave Caramel Corn
adapted from Your Homebased Mom
Print Recipe

16 cups air-popped popcorn (sorted to remove unpopped kernals)
1 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup Karo syrup
1/2 cup butter

Cook sugar, syrup and butter in a glass bowl in microwave on high for one minute. Stir and repeat for a total of five minutes. Should be hot and bubble.

Add:
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 to 1 tsp vanilla

Mix until foamy. Put popped corn into a brown grocery bag. Pour syrup into bag. Stir to coat. Fold bag over. Place in microwave and microwave for one minute and shake. Repeat. Microwave 30 seconds and shake. Repeat. Sprinkle with cinammon sugar if desired and shake again. Pour popcorn out to cool on wax paper.

**Melt white chocolate chips/almond bark AND/OR chocolate chips AND/OR peanut butter chips AND/OR butterscotch chips and drizzle over cooling popcorn. (White chocolate and butterscotch and chocolate chip & peanut butter.

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Holiday Party Mix

In previous years I have made this Holiday Party Mix. This year I did not make it because I couldn't locate any holiday baking morsels (you know the white chocolate chips with green and red swirls). Since I couldn't do it the way I wanted, I just didn't make it (selfish, aren't I). I am thinking I will suck it up and use some other swirled morsels and make a batch for something or other because the stuff is tasty.

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Holiday Party Mix
from Sparky
Print Recipe

9 cups corn cereal squares
4 cups popcorn
1 1/2 cups dry-roasted peanuts
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 2/3 cups (10 oz pkg.) morsels
1 pkg. (7.5 oz) milk chocolate-covered pretzels

Preheat oven to 250°. Grease large roasting pan. Mix cereal, popcorn, and peanuts in large bowl. Pour into prepared pan. Combine brown sugar, butter, and corn syrup in medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Boil, without stirring, for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in vanilla extract and baking soda. Pour evenly over cereal mixture; stir to coat evenly. Bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Cool completely in pan, stirring frequently to break apart mixture. Stir in morsels and pretzels. Store in airtight container.

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