Spicy Pretzel Recipe

My son had a market day at school where the kids sold something homemade.  While we were brainstorming ideas, we came across a recipe for spicy pretzels.  We never had it before so we thought we would try the recipe out.  It turned out to be a very tasty snack that was easy to make and required no baking.

You can find the original recipe here.  First, you'll need to make your seasoning.  In a small bowl, mix together 1 teaspoon ground cayenne pepper, 1 teaspoon lemon pepper, 1 1/2 teaspoon garlic salt, 1 package (1 oz) dry ranch seasoning mix, and 3/4 vegetable oil.  In a large ziploc or bowl with a cover, pour 1 and a half 15 oz bags of mini pretzels.  Add the mixture to the pretzels, seal, and shake.  The recipe suggests marinating for 2 hours before serving and to shake occasionally.  We let ours sit overnight for best results.

A great recipe to make with the kids and you can definitely add less cayenne pepper to your preference.    

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Fruit and Nut Energy Bars Recipe

I found a very easy recipe for energy bars in a magazine, so I decided to try and make it for the kids.

I made several tweaks to the recipe, since I couldn't find certain ingredients at the grocery store, such as shelled sunflower seeds.

Funny story - I ended up buying pumpkin seeds instead.  It wasn't until after I had mixed all of the ingredients together did I realize I bought UNSHELLED pumpkin seeds!  I had to dig through the mixture to pull out all of the unshelled pumpkin seeds.

So I ended up completely omitting any kind of seeds.

The bars still turned out fine.

For some reason, my kids don't like freeze-dried fruit, so they picked it off, but these bars make for a tasty, healthy snack!

Fruit and Nut Energy Bars

Ingredients:

• 1 cup walnuts
• 1/4 c shredded coconut
• 1 c old-fashioned oats
• 1/4 t salt
• 3 c pitted prunes
• 1/3 c freeze-dried mangoes

Directions: 

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit
• On a rimmed baking sheet, spread walnuts in an even layer and bake for 5 minutes.
• Add coconut to the baking sheet in an even layer, and bake for 3 minutes.  Let cool.
• In a food processor, combine the oats and salt until finely ground.  Transfer to a small bowl.
• Add prunes to food processor and process until smooth.
• Add oats and walnuts, and pulse about 15 times. 
• Pour mixture into parchment-lined 8x8 pan.  Press evenly.  
• Top with freeze-dried mangoes.  Press lightly to adhere.
• Refrigerate at least 20 minutes before cutting into bars.  

You can find the original recipe here from Real Simple.

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Easy Energy Bar Recipe

  

Ingredients:

(1) cup Creamy Peanut Butter
(2) bags of mini marshmallows
(1) stick of unsalted butter
(10) cups of Rice Krispies cereal
(1) cup of diced dried apricots (Mediterranean works best)
(2) cups of cranberries
(1) cup dry peanuts
(1) cup Quaker Oats quick 1-minute oats


Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Coat a large roasting pan with oil spray, and add the Rice Krispies, Quaker oats, apricots, cranberries, and peanuts. Toast in the oven for 3-5 minutes at 300 degrees.

While the cereal mixture is toasting, slowly melt the butter in a large sauce pan, then add the marshmallows and peanut butter and mix over low heat until smooth.

Remove the mixture from the oven, and then pour the butter/PB/marshmallow mixture over the cereal mixture and mix thoroughly.  The marshmallow mixture gets thick and sticky very quickly, so you'll need to mix quickly and use a lot of elbow grease so that the cereal mixture is evenly coated.

Transfer everything to another large prepared roasting pan (that has been sprayed with cooking spray) and press firmly using a prepared wooden spatula or wax paper.  

Allow to cool, then cut into rectangles or squares with a greased knife. 

You can tweak the recipe to your liking, such as adding raisins, sunflower seeds, or other types of dried fruit.

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Chocolate + Pistachio-Covered Mandarins

For a really quick, easy, and delicious treat (that even the kids can help make) - try these Chocolate and Pistachio-Covered Mandarins!

I once made Chocolate-Covered Mandarins sprinkled with Sea Salt, and they were delish.

This time, I used pistachios instead of sea salt, AND, I kept them in the freezer for an icy cool treat.  They are so yummy (and IMO, so much better) frozen!

Simply take mandarin slices (I froze them first for 20 minutes) and dip them in chocolate (I used 1 c chocolate chips + 1 T coconut oil and heated on high for 60 seconds in the microwave).  I dipped the mandarin slices in the chocolate, sprinkled with crushed pistachios, and popped them back in the freezer.

So good, especially on a warm day!

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Breakfast Cheerios Bars

These Cheerios Bars are great for both breakfast or as an after school snack.

I made two different varieties - one with White Chocolate Chips + Cranberries, and another with Chocolate Chips + Chia.  You can really add anything you want!

Breakfast Cheerios Bars

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c sugar
• 1/2 c honey 
• 1/2 c creamy peanut butter
• 3 c Cheerios™ cereal
• 1/2 c white chocolate chips or chocolate chips
• 1/2 c dried cranberries or 1/4 c chia 

Directions:

• Line 9x9 pan with parchment paper.
• In a microwave-safe bowl, heat sugar and honey for 2 minutes on high in microwave.
• Stir in peanut butter until mixture is smooth.  
• Mix in Cheerios and white chocolate chips + dried cranberries, or chocolate chips + chia 
• Press mixture evenly in pan.
• Let cool for 1 hour.
• Cut into squares.

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