No Bake Peanut Butter Cheerio Jumbles

Maybe you all have or know this recipe already and I'm being redundant by posting it, but just in case you don't, here it is. It is just Scotch A Roos with Cheerios instead of Rice Krispies and no frosting, but absolutely worth making.

I remember going to a park once while we were visiting the Clarks and Aunt MaryAnn pulled some of these out. Years later, when we stayed with the Clarks for a few weeks as Preston was starting law school, these were made several times. I believe Matt titled them, "Awesome." I tried to come up with a more descriptive name. Anyway, they are pretty awesome. Lauren and Andrew are big fans, and Preston thinks these are the only decent use for Cheerios.


No Bake Peanut Butter Cheerio Jumbles

1 c sugar
1 c white corn syrup
1 c peanut butter
6-7 c Cheerios

Mix sugar and corn syrup in a saucepan and bring to a full boil. Take off heat, add peanut butter and mix. Add Cheerios and mix. Drop by spoonfuls onto a cookie sheet and cool.

Cinnamon Oatmeal Raisin Bars

These bars are tasty. They are similar to baked oatmeal, but hold together well. They are made with simple, healthy ingredients and it makes a large panful. I might try using honey or brown sugar in place of the maple syrup next time, but the maple syrup ones were delicious. I  haven't had great success with homemade granola bars, but I think these are a good substitute.


Cinnamon Raisin Snack Bars  from Real Food Real Deals via SunMaid

2 eggs
1/3 cup milk
1/2 cup applesauce
2/3 cup maple syrup
1 t. vanilla extract
3 cups rolled oats
2 t. baking powder
1.5 t cinnamon
1/2 t salt
1 cup raisins (I didn't use Sun-Maid...gasp!)

Combine wet ingredients in one bowl and dry ingredients in another bowl, then combine. Stir in raisins, then transfer to a greased 9 x 13 pan. Bake at 375 for 30 minutes. Cool for a few minutes before cutting into bars.

Fresh Tomato Spaghetti Sauce

I finally made a couple things worth sharing.  I'll start with this one since you may also be looking for a way to use your abundant tomatoes. We had a bowlful, so I broke one of my own cooking rules and made spaghetti sauce from scratch. It wasn't too bad to make and the sauce turned out pretty well. Lauren had thirds.

Since I had tomatoes and basil in the garden, I doled out the 99 cents for fresh parsley (by the way, what else do I make with fresh parsley?).  The recipe is from food.com, but I don't feel like looking for the link. I found it by doing a Bing search for spaghetti sauce with fresh tomatoes.


Fresh Tomato Spaghetti Sauce

4 lbs fresh tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 medium onions, chopped (I'd peel them too)
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup fresh basil, chopped
1/4 cup olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
4 sprigs parsley
1 tablespoon sugar
grated parmesan cheese

Heat olive oil in a large iron skillet or heavy saucepan. Add onion, basil, garlic, and salt; saute until onion is tender, 5-7  minutes. Add tomatoes, parsley, and sugar; heat to a boil; reduce heat and simmer, uncovered for about 2 hours, stirring often, or until sauce has thickened. Remove parsley. (Edited to add: at this point, I used an immersion blender to mostly puree the sauce so it was smoother and more like jarred spaghetti sauce.) Serve over spaghetti or other Italian pasta and top with Parmesan cheese.

I read another recipe that said to add half a carrot to reduce the acidity of the tomatoes and add some sweetness, so I did that, and I thought the sauce was almost too sweet. If you do that, I would reduce the sugar a bit.

Five recipes worth making

I have been super lazy about meal planning and cooking lately, doing lots of last minute, what do we have around meals. I am usually good to fix breakfast and I'm always up for baking something delicious, but when it comes to dinner, I just haven't felt like cooking, and I am struggling to eat very healthy.  All I want is anything sugary and carby.  The following recipes have all been hits, though, and bonus: they're all pretty easy and healthy.


1. 12-Minute Chicken and Broccoli from Gimme Some Oven.  This popped up on my facebook feed on one of those days when I hadn't planned anything. It definitely took me more than 12 minutes to make, but not by much and I have made it several times since. It is delicious and I almost always have chicken and broccoli around. I think I have used chicken thighs each time I made it just because they were on hand and they are delicious.

2. Creamy Cauliflower and Cheddar Soup found on Tasty Kitchen. After the initial chopping, this was easy, and soooo good. Preston and I ate the entire pot in one sitting. Yes, I know that means we ate a whole cup of cheese between the two of us, but it also means we ate a whole head of cauliflower between the two of us. It was worth it. I paid too much for cauliflower today so we can have it again tomorrow.

3. Bean Curry from Mel's Kitchen Cafe. I have made this a number of times and I like it every time. It is deliciously different from the usual stir fry or beans and rice dish.  It does have one expensive ingredient - garam masala - which cost me around $6 a jar, but it should last for years and you can't really just skip it. I think it is worth the investment. You could also make your own, but then you would have to buy a jar of cardamom, which is $15 a jar, so you choose. I always add the cauliflower and highly recommend it.

4. Pumpkin Bars from Pennies and Pancakes.  I knew I had to make these the first time I saw them and I finally did last week with cream cheese frosting. They were so good. Definitely the best way to use a can of pumpkin. I already want to make them again, but I'm trying to resist. Although with whole wheat flour, applesauce instead of oil, and a whole can of pumpkin, maybe I can convince myself that they are a healthy snack. I only frosted about half and even the plain bars were delectable.

5. Whole Wheat Bread from An Oregon Cottage. I got tired of the other bread I had been making and have been looking for a good alternative. I am still trying new recipes, but this is the one I keep coming back to. I sometimes use honey, but more often use brown sugar and up the water just a touch. I let it rise in a warm oven, then turn in on and bake for 38 minutes. I am planning to start baking several batches a week to fill up the freezer and this is probably the recipe I will use.

Split Pea Soup

Did you know that one serving of split peas contains 98% of your daily value of fiber?  That'll get things moving. Split peas are also a good source of protein, potassium, and many other vitamins and minerals. Basically, you should be eating them.

This is the best split pea soup I've had. It's also easy to make and cheap.

It looks like split pea soup. Surprise!

Split Pea Soup
from the Taste of Home Cookbook

1 small onion, diced
1 T oil
4 cups water
1 can (14.5 oz) or about two cups chicken broth
1.5 cups split peas, rinsed
1 cup cubed cooked ham
3 bay leaves
1.5 t salt
1/2 t dried rosemary
1/4 t dried thyme
1/4 t pepper

Saute onion in  large saucepan until tender. Add the rest of the ingredients, bring to a boil, then lower heat, cover, and simmer 45 minutes to an hour until peas are tender. Discard bay leaves before serving.