Peanut Butter Oatmeal Bars

Another comfort food for the Robber which he requested that his mother make for him when she came out to visit (she did make these). Nana used to make these a lot when the Robber was a wee lad, but had to stop when her seventh child had severe nut allergies. Still the Robber remembers them fondly, and jumped at the opportunity to have these in our non-nut restricted kitchen.

Ingredients:

For the bars:
1 C. flour
1 C. quick oatmeal
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 C. butter or margarine
1/2 C. sugar
1/2 C. brown sugar
1 egg
1/3 C. peanut butter
1/4 C. milk
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1 package (2 cups) chocolate chips

For the frosting:
1/4 C. powdered sugar
2 T. peanut butter
2-3 T. milk

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 F and grease a 9 x 9 glass pan.

2. In a small mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, baking soda and salt.

3. In a separate bowl, cream together butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in eggs, peanut butter, milk and vanilla. Stir in the combined dry ingredients by hand.

4. Spread mixture in prepared pan and bake for 18-20 minutes. When bars are freshly out of the oven, sprinkle the chocolate chips on top and spread evenly as the chips melt.

5. For the frosting, combine all ingredients and blend thoroughly. Drizzle over the top of the melted chocolate and swirl while still melted if desired.

Momofuku Crack Pie

This pie was nominated best pie in New York City in 2009, which is when I ran across it at pieloveyou and thought certainly I will have to make this pie for myself. How could you not make something called a crack pie if you are living in San Francisco? I mean really? Except that it requires that you first make cookies, and then crust, and then pie... and you know that all is too much even if your name is Momofuku. I put it off and put it off and put it off until finally in a bit of residency whatnot stress-relief I needed to be heroic in my pie making and vowed to make it. I only made half the recipe for the cookie and the pie, which I will record here, but the original recipe makes two pies. This pie is actually as delicious as people make it out to be-- I would call it salted caramel in a pie more than a pie-- and worth the effort but very rich. Don't bother whipping cream or getting icecream to serve with it, it packs all the punches on it's own!

Originally printed in the LATimes but comes to me from PieLoveYou:

http://pieloveyou.blogspot.com/2010/05/momofuku-crack-pie-22.html

Ingredients for the cookie:

1/3 C. all-purpose flour

1/16 tsp. baking powder

1/16 tsp. baking soda

1/8 tsp. salt

1/4 C. softened butter

1/6 C. light brown sugar

1 1/2 T. white sugar

1/2 beaten egg

1/2 C. rolled oats

 

Directions for the cookie:

1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees.

2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer using the paddle attachment, or in a large bowl using an electric mixer, beat the butter, brown sugar and sugar until light and fluffy.

4. Whisk the egg into the butter mixture until fully incorporated.

5. Stir in the flour mixture, a little at a time, until fully combined. Stir in the oats until incorporated.

6. Spread the mixture onto a 9-inch-by-13-inch baking sheet and bake until golden brown and set, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to the touch on a rack. Crumble the cooled cookie to use in the crust.

 

Ingredients for the crust:

1 crumbled cookie recipe

2 T. butter

2 tsp. brown sugar

1/16 tsp. salt

 

Directions for the crust:

1. Combine the crumbled cookie, butter, brown sugar and salt in a food processor and pulse until evenly combined and blended (a little of the mixture clumped between your fingers should hold together). 

2. Press the crust into a 10" pie plate to form an even layer along the bottom and sides. Set the prepared crust aside while you prepare the filling.

Ingredients for the filling:

3/4 C. sugar

1/2 C. light brown sugar

1/8 tsp. salt

1/6 C. milk powder

1/2 C. butter, melted

1/2 C. heavy cream

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

4 egg yolks

 

Directions for filling and pie assembly:

1. Preheat the oven to 350F.

2. In a large bowl, whisk together the sugar, brown sugar, salt and milk powder. Whisk in the melted butter, then whisk in the heavy cream and vanilla.

3. Gently whisk in the egg yolks, being careful not to add too much air.

4. Scoop the filling into the prepared pie crust gently.

5. Bake the pie at 350F for 15 minutes, then reduce the heat to 325 degrees and bake until the filling is slightly jiggly and golden brown (similar to a pecan pie), about 10 minutes. Remove the pies and cool on a rack.

6. Refrigerate the cooled pie until well chilled. Serve the pie cold.  

Roasted Apricots with Almond Topping

This recipe I had saved from last year and kind of cobbled together between two recipes for a little summer picnic with our new friends A&C&R H. I served the desserts with whipped cream with just a touch of almond flavoring in it and found it very satisfactory. It will be hard to keep me from making these again, they are so easy and delicious hot or cold.

Note: I bought enough apricots for there to be 3 apricots per ramekin, but I ended up with way too much filling and had to bake the extra in a little pie plate. Not that that was a bad thing... and it used the extra topping up...

Melded together from Martha Shulman and Smitten Kitchen:

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/06/25/health/nutrition/25recipehealth.html?ref=nutrition

http://smittenkitchen.com/2008/06/breakfast-apricot-crisp/

Ingredients:

8 medium-size or 12 small apricots (2-3 apricots/ramekin)

3 T. sugar

1 T. flour

1 tsp. fresh nutmeg

4 T. butter, melted

6 T. turbinado sugar

1/2 C. oatmeal

1/2 C. all-purpose (1/2 wheat ok)

Pinch salt

2 tablespoons almonds, sliced or slivered, raw or toasted

Directions:

1. Butter 4 6 oz. ramekins. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 

2. Remove apricot pits and slice into quarters, or smaller slices as desired to fit ramekins. Combine with 3 T. sugar, 1 T. flour and nutmeg. Set aside.

3. Make topping but combining melted butter and turbinado sugar. Stir in oats, then flour, salt and almonds.

4. Distribute apricots among ramekins and top with topping. 

5. Bake 20-30 minutes. You can serve warm with vanilla icecream or almond-flavored whipped cream, although this is also very tasty cooled and eaten with plain yogurt (or more icecream or whipped cream!) for breakfast. 

Approximate nutritional info per ramekin: 78 calories; 4 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 5 milligrams cholesterol; 11 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams dietary fiber; 11 milligrams sodium; 2 grams protein. 

S. Olsen's Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

My visiting teacher HW made these for me a few months back and gave me extra to take back to the Robber, which I did, and which he loved and I loved as they were excellent. So when I wanted to make some cookies to take on the plane to Thailand I thought of this recipe and got it from HW. I don't know S. Olsen, but that is the name that came with the recipe so there you have that. I have had quite a bad attitude about cookies in general lately and specifically my ability to make cookies and was hoping that this recipe would rescue it. However, when I was mixing the dough it was terribly dry and not nearly wet enough and I was despairing as I hadn't any milk and I was barely able to form small cookies together, not the big giant ones Heather had made. Alas! And yet-- oddly enough-- the cookies, baked, were quite soft! And the Robber ate them all over Thailand. Who knows. I think if I do make this again I will skip all the silly heaping-ness of the dry ingredients and see if that helps the too dry-ness of the dough out for me. Also, the big Guittard chocolate chips are really a must.

A gift from HW.

Ingredients:

1 C. margarine or butter

1 C. packed brown sugar

1 C. white sugar

2 eggs

1 tsp. vanilla

2+ cups flour (heaping the cups, for a total of 1/8 - 1/4 C. more flour)

1 heaping tsp. salt

1 heaping tsp. baking soda

3 heaping C. instant oatmeal

2 C. large milk chocolate Guittard chocolate chips (comes in the silver bag)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. 

2. In medium mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, baking soda, and oatmeal. 

3. In a large bowl, cream together margarine/butter and sugars until fluffy. Beat in eggs and vanilla.

4. Add in dry ingredient mixture to creamed mixture 1/3rd at a time, stirring thoroughly by hand. Stir in chocolate chips.

5. Scoop on to cookie sheets in desired size. Bake for 10-12 minutes at 350F. Take the cookies out of the oven when the edges are slightly tanning and the middles don't look quite done. Let cool for a few minutes on the sheet before transferring to a wire rack for complete cooling. Will be quite soft when done. 

Rhubarb Crisp Icecream

This was a lot of prep work, but so good! The Robber loves rhubarb crisp so I thought why not try and take it up a level and make rhubarb crisp icecream? Well, the Robber always would rather have the simpler version of things, but he certainly wasn't complaining! What I like about this recipe is that the brown sugar icecream is a nice base that you could add a lot of different fruit-nut-whatever to and come up with something delicious. It goes along with my new philosophy that cooking is like street style fashion. You don't have to love the whole outfit.... just you know. Something. Right.

Note: The caramel for the nuts takes less than ten minutes to make, so don't try to make it while the oats are in the oven, because then your caramel will get overdone while you wait for the oats. Yes. This is what happened to me.

From Eggs on Sunday:

http://eggsonsunday.wordpress.com/2009/05/27/rhubarb-crisp-ice-cream/

Brown Sugar Cinnamon Ice Cream

Ingredients:

1 C. whole milk

1/2 C. granulated sugar

Pinch of salt

2 C. heavy cream

1/3 C. packed light brown sugar

1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon

5 large egg yolks

1/2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Warm the milk, granulated sugar, and salt in a medium saucepan. In a large bowl, whisk together the cream, brown sugar and cinnamon; set a mesh strainer over this bowl and set aside.

2. In a separate medium bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Once the milk mixture has warmed, slowly pour it into the egg yolks, whisking constantly to temper the yolks. Transfer the entire custard mixture back into the medium saucepan.

3. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with a heatproof spatula, until the custard mixture thickens enough to coat the spatula. Pour the custard through the mesh strainer into the bowl containing the heavy cream, brown sugar and cinnamon. Stir to combine, then stir in the vanilla. Set into an ice bath to cool thoroughly.

4. Freeze in your ice cream maker, adding the stewed rhubarb (see below) and oatmeal praline (see below) during the last few minutes of churning. Add the rhubarb first, making sure it’s swirled throughout the frozen ice cream, then add the oatmeal praline.

Makes a generous quart.

Stewed Rhubarb

Note: This recipe makes a little more than you need for the ice cream. Stir in as much as you like while the ice cream is churning, and save any extra to top the ice cream or to stir into yogurt, etc. I also used slightly less sugar than originally called for, as I didn’t want the end product to be too sweet when combined with the sweet ice cream base.

You can make this ahead and refrigerate it.

Ingredients:

12 oz. rhubarb

2/3 C. water

1/2 C. sugar

Directions:

1. Wash and trim the ends of the rhubarb. Cut into 1/2-inch pieces. Place in a medium saucepan with the water and sugar; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, for 5 minutes or until the rhubarb is tender and cooked through. Turn off the heat and let cool to room temperature.

Oatmeal Praline

Ingredients:

3/4 C. rolled oats (not quick-cooking)

1/2 C. sugar

Pinch of coarse salt

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and line a baking sheet with foil. Spread the oats evenly on the sheet and bake in the oven, about 10 minutes, or until they’re fragrant and toasted. Remove from oven; transfer the oats to a bowl and return the foil to the baking sheet.

2. Spread the sugar evenly in a medium, heavy-bottomed skillet. Cook over medium heat, watching carefully, until the sugar begins to liquefy and darken around the edges. When it begins to do this, you can stir it gently with a heatproof spatula to moisten and melt the remaining sugar crystals.

3. Continue gently stirring and tilting the pan until all of the sugar is melted and the caramel begins to smoke. When it’s turned a deep golden color, turn off the heat and immediately add the oats to the skillet.

4. Stir the oats quickly but gently to coat them all with caramel, then scrape them onto the foil-lined baking sheet. Spread them out as best you can, sprinkle with the salt and let them cool completely. Once they’re cool, you can break them into smaller chunks by either pulsing them in a food processor or placing them in a large ziptop bag and smacking them with a meat mallet or rolling pin (I opted for this latter method.)

Makes about 1 cup.

Scottish Oat Scones

Never mind me, just stocking up on more scones to last me through the PICU. These are from Epicurious, and per the reviewers, I doubled the sugar and only used about 1/3 C. of melted butter and omitted the cream of tartar and they were still plenty sticky. Most of the reviewers omitted the raisins, but I had them so I threw a whole cup in. We'll see how they turn out!

From Epi-land, oh so grand:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Scottish-Oat-Scones-1585

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C. all purpose flour

1 1/4 C. old-fashioned oatmeal

1/4 C. sugar (I doubled this)

1 T. baking powder

1 tsp. cream of tartar (I omitted this)

1/2 tsp. salt

2/3 C. unsalted butter, melted (I used about 1/3)

1 egg, beaten to blend

1/2 C. raisins (I doubled this)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450°F. Grease cookie sheet.

2. Combine first 6 ingredients in large bowl. Mix together butter, milk and egg in another bowl. Add to dry ingredients and stir until just moistened. Mix in raisins.

3. Shape dough into ball. Place on lightly floured work surface. Pat out to form 3/4-inch-thick circle. Using sharp knife, cut into 12 wedges. Transfer to prepared cookies sheet.

4. Bake until light brown, about 12 minutes. Cool slightly on rack. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cool completely. Store in airtight container.)

(I of course froze these after the mixing step in individual scones without patting out.)

Maple Oatmeal Scones

Just because I had some aging blueberries. Not that this recipe calls for them, but why not throw them in? One of the few Annie's scones recipes I haven't tried yet. Don't worry, there are only two more to go in the bunch. Also I froze them all, but the batter with the blueberries was delicious. Naturally because I froze them I didn't try the glaze, and probably won't since I will bake them one at a time with the other frozen scones, but I include it below.

Here's the link:

http://annies-eats.net/2007/05/07/maple-oatmeal-scones/

Ingredients:

For the scones:

1 ¾ c. all purpose flour

½ c. whole wheat flour

½ c. quick cooking oats, plus additional for sprinkling

1 T. baking powder

1 T. sugar

1 tsp. salt

½ lb. (2 sticks) cold, unsalted butter, diced

¼ c. cold buttermilk

¼ c. pure maple syrup

2 eggs, lightly beaten

(Approx. 1 1/2 c. fresh blueberries)

1 egg beaten with 1 tsbp. water for egg wash

For the glaze:

½ c. + 2 T. confectioners’ sugar

¼ c. pure maple syrup

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400°.

2. In a mixing bowl, combine the flours, oats, baking powder, sugar and salt. Blend in the cold butter with an electric mixer on the lowest speed and mix until butter is in pea-sized pieces. (If using a stand mixer, use the paddle attachment.) Combine the buttermilk, maple syrup and eggs and add quickly to the flour and butter mixture. Mix until just well blended. The dough may be sticky.

3. Dump the dough onto a well floured surface and be sure it is combined. Flour your hands and a rolling pin and roll the dough ¾ to 1 inch thick. You should see lumps of butter in the dough. Cut into 3-inch rounds with a plain or fluted cutter and place on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Brush the tops with egg wash.

4. Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the tops are crisp and the insides are done.

(I didn't roll these out, I just dumped portions on to pieces of plastic wrap, gently teased them into round 1 inch thick shapes, and wrapped up the plastic wrap and stored them all together in a freezer bag.)

5. To make the glaze, combine the confectioners’ sugar, maple syrup, and vanilla. When the scones are done, cool for 5 minutes, and drizzle each scone with 1 tablespoon of glaze. Sprinkle with some uncooked oats for garnish.

Blueberry Buttermilk Pancakes (with or without oatmeal)

This week I have been reveling in fruit. I bought strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, mango, kiwi-- green beans, tomatoes. I have been eating fruit by the bowlful for breakfast and dinner, plain or mixed in with Greek yogurt or whipped cream. Amazing. But I also had some left over buttermilk and so many blueberries that when I perused my Gmail draft of recipes to try and saw this buttermilk blueberry combo option I decided to give it go. Also, I'm trying this new thing about making food in advance and freezing it-- aka my great scone project, more on that to come-- and Ms. Shulman swears you can do it with pancakes like Annie does with scones so I thought I'd make some for lunch and freeze the rest. We'll see how that turns out.

In the meantime, these were good-- nice and fluffy as I find all of Ms. Shulman's pancakes are. Still, they weren't my favorite as I think I've decided I don't much like the buttermilk/wheat flour combination. It makes the wheat taste grittier to me in a way I don't like. If I try these again I will probably just use regular milk. I also added an additional 1/2 cup blueberries, like I do to everything that wants berries in it. I just think more is better in these cases. Also I just mix them in directly, not dropping them in delicately as she describes.

Ms. Shulman also has a version that is exactly identical to this one, only it adds 1/2 cup rolled oats and 1/2 cup milk in addition to the buttermilk. She also wants you to let the batter sit for one hour or refrigerate overnight and I was much too hungry to wait. The links to both from the NYTimes are below:

Without oatmeal:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/15/health/healthspecial2/15recipekids-pancakes.html?ref=kidsedition

With oatmeal:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/12/10/health/nutrition/10recipehealth.html

Ingredients:

1 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 T. sugar
1/4 tsp. salt
2 large eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 T. canola oil
1 cup (1 1/2 cup in my case!) fresh or frozen blueberries

Directions:

1. Preheat a griddle.

2. Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda, sugar and salt.

3. In another bowl, whisk the eggs, then add the buttermilk and whisk together. Whisk in the vanilla extract and the oil.

4. Add the flour mixture to the wet ingredients and quickly whisk together. Do not over-beat. A few lumps are okay.

5. If necessary, spray the hot griddle with pan spray. Drop by half ladlefuls (three to four tablespoons) onto the hot griddle. Place six or seven blueberries on each pancake. Cook until bubbles begin to break through, two to three minutes. Turn and cook for about 30 seconds on the other side, until nicely browned. Remove from heat and continue until all of the batter is used up.

6. Serve hot, with butter and maple syrup.

Yield: 12 four-inch pancakes

Advance preparation: These freeze well for several weeks. If making ahead, make stacks of three or four, wrap them in plastic, then freeze in a freezer bag.

Oatmeal Raspberry Scones

So I made these fresh this morning and then had half a scone at the little picnic R. and I had at Ontario Beach. It was terribly windy and we huddled on the floor of a gazebo to eat. The convicts were out, tearing down a fence, and it soon became apparent that their work place was going to be primarily right in front of us. We stayed for a little while, but after so many offers to join our party, decided to leave. The adventure at least afforded me the opportunity to try out little tastes of all the scones I have made thus far, and I have to say that this was one of my favorites. The oatmeal and the raspberry work well together, the texture is nice, the scone filling, and the nutmeg gives the scone the little extra kick I so dearly love.

From Joy the Baker, originally from Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, by way of Annie's Eats:

http://annies-eats.net/2010/03/12/oatmeal-raspberry-scones/

Ingredients:

1 large egg

½ C. cold buttermilk

1 2/3 C. all-purpose flour

1 1/3 C. old-fashioned oats

1/3 C. sugar

1 T. baking powder

½ tsp. baking soda

½ tsp. salt

Pinch of nutmeg

10 T. cold unsalted butter, grated on a large grater or cut into small pieces

¾ C. fresh or frozen raspberries

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

2. Combine the egg and buttermilk in a liquid measuring cup. Stir together; set aside.

3. Whisk together the flour, oats, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl. Add the butter to the bowl and toss. Cut the butter into the flour mixture with a pastry blender or fork until the mixture so that the mixture is crumbly. Pour the egg and buttermilk mixture into the dry ingredients and mix with a fork just until incorporated (the mixture will be sticky). Fold in the berries just until incorporated (be particularly gentle if using fresh berries).

4. Gently knead the dough 6-10 times, just until it comes together into a sticky dough. Portion the dough out into 8-12 scones, depending on the size you prefer, and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. (A large dough scoop is a good tool, but not necessary.) (I just pressed the dough into a floured pie pan, cut it into eighths, put it in the freezer for 30 min., baked one, and froze the other seven individually in plastic wrap.)

5. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to a cooling rack and let cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

Steel-Cut Oatmeal and Blueberry Muffins

I've been on this new-breakfast-food kick ever since looking at an NYTimes slideshow of breakfast foods, always my downfall. I even went through and made a little Gmail draft list of all the recipes I want to try, with links to all of them. This is one I tried because I had blueberries that were going to go bad if I left them in New York for two weeks. But first I have to ask-- what is the big deal with being "steel-cut"? I feel like everyone else on the planet has figured out this secret rage and I have not. Sad. :( I just made these with regular old oatmeal and I think they were just fine. Hmmmmph world.

That being said, they lacked just a little pizazz. I can't quite put my finger on it. More vanilla? Some cinnamon? The oatmeal background made a nice neutral-ness for the delicious blueberries, but what if you are making these in California where you can't get East Coast blueberries? Then what? I think go with adding some cinnamon.

The good news about these were that they had great texture and felt healthy as they went down, so you will probably at least enjoy eating them no matter what. I am likely to make these again, with modification.

Complete recipe by Martha Rose Shulman here: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/03/04/health/nutrition/04recipehealth.html?_r=1&ref=recipesforhealth

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups whole-wheat flour
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 eggs
1 1/3 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 cup cooked steel-cut oats (I used 1/2 cup dry oats with 1 cup water to make my oatmeal)
1 cup blueberries tossed with 1 teaspoon flour

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees with the rack positioned in the upper third. Oil, spray or butter 12 muffin cups.

2. Sift together the flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt. In another bowl, beat together the eggs, buttermilk (or yogurt and milk), canola oil, maple syrup and vanilla. Quickly stir in the dry ingredients with a whisk or a spatula. Do not beat, just mix, stirring up from the bottom until you can no longer see flour. A few lumps are fine. Fold in the cooked oats and the blueberries.

3. Spoon into muffin cups, filling them to just below the top. Place in the oven, and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until nicely browned. Remove from the heat, and allow to cool for 10 minutes before unmolding. Cool on a rack, or serve warm.

Yield: Twelve muffins, depending on the size of your muffin tins.

Advance preparation: These keep for a couple of days out of the refrigerator, for a few more days in the refrigerator, and for a few months in the freezer.

Nutritional information per muffin (based on 12 muffin yield): 197 calories; 1 gram saturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 3 grams monounsaturated fat; 32 milligrams cholesterol; 30 grams carbohydrates; 3 grams dietary fiber; 310 milligrams sodium; 6 grams protein

Cardamom-Scented Oatmeal Pancakes with Apricots and Almonds

From the Minimalist Blog at the NYTimes. Mark Bittman has this way of convincing you that really, oatmeal cardmom apricot almond pancakes aren't any harder than the usual kind. And don't they look even more delicious in the picture?

I don't always fall for what he passes off as "minimal," but this one taunted me into trying it this Sunday morning. I brought extras to my little teacher development class for a lesson and they were generally well received, although I don't think anyone is a permanent convert from the regular pancake.

I recommend following his suggestion and serving with honey, although maple syrup works too but it has a tendency to overpower the subtle flavors more than the honey. They are not too sweet alone and would also be overpowered served with very sweet fruit like pineapple or canned peaches. Fresh bananas and milk might be a better choice. These would well for a small brunch with friends.

If I made this again, I might increase both the cardamom and the apricots.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 cup rolled oats
1/3 cup chopped almonds
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1/2 cup milk
2 cups cooked oatmeal
1/3 cup chopped dried apricots

Vegetable or olive oil, for frying
Honey, for serving.

Directions:

1. Heat the oven to 200 degrees. Combine the flours, oats, almonds, baking powder, cardamom and salt in a large bowl.

2. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg and milk; stir in the cooked oatmeal and the apricots until just incorporated. Add the oatmeal mixture to the dry ingredients and stir gently; don’t overmix. The consistency should be that of thick pancake batter; add a little more milk or whole-wheat flour as needed.

3. Put a large skillet or griddle over medium heat. When a few drops of water dance on its surface, add a thin film of vegetable oil and let it become hot. Spoon out the batter, making any size pancakes you like. Cook until bubbles form on the top and pop, 2 to 3 minutes. Carefully flip the pancakes and cook until they’re browned on the other side, a couple of minutes more. You may have to rotate the cakes to cook them evenly, depending on the heat source and pan. As they finish, transfer them to a plate in the oven while you cook the remaining batter. Serve with honey.

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Mark Bittman's Rhubarb Crisp

I first saw this recipe in the New York Times two days before my wedding and liked it so much that I emailed it to Bob and asked him if I could make it for him when we were married. Then marriage was so good I didn't get around to it until the last full day we were together, when I put it together in between running errands and crying. Thank goodness it was worth it, possibly one of the most tasty foods I have ever put on a plate. Even better was that Robber loved it so much too, so perhaps I shall make it again for him when he comes in August. This is so fast and easy to make.

Ingredients:

6 tablespoons cold butter, cut into small pieces, plus more for greasing pan

2 1/2 to 3 pounds rhubarb, trimmed, tough strings removed, and cut into 1 1/2-inch pieces (about 5 to 6 cups)

1/4 cup white sugar

1 tablespoon orange or lemon juice

1 teaspoon orange or lemon zest

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon, or to taste

Pinch salt

1/2 cup rolled oats

1/2 cup pecans.

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Grease an 8- or 9-inch square baking or gratin dish with a little butter. Toss rhubarb with white sugar, orange or lemon juice and zest, and spread in baking dish.

2. Put the 6 tablespoons butter in a food processor along with brown sugar, flour, cinnamon and salt, and pulse for about 20 or 30 seconds, until it looks like small peas and just begins to clump together. Add oats and pecans and pulse just a few times to combine.

3. Crumble the topping over rhubarb and bake until golden and beginning to brown, 45 to 50 minutes.

Yield: 6 to 8 servings.

Note: I left out the pecans and just used a simpler topping, this was fine. I also used the orange flavoring, this was delicious! I 1 and 1/2d this recipe and still cooked it in the 8 x 8 pan for the same amount of time and was well pleased with the result.

Oatmeal Date Drop Scones

So folks. I've been remiss in my Vegetable bloggings. Don't think that because the blog stopped in October that the vegetables stopped. In fact, the opposite occurred. I cooked so many vegetables and other yummy dishes that I skipped a few days that then I was behind and gave up temporarily on the blogging. But I'm back again! With the beautiful non-vegetable recipe that I've made twice: once at Melville for Michelle's birthday dinner and again for dinner with the missionaries here. I'm not a big fan of dates, but this recipe creates a wonderfully balanced scone that complements just about any meal. Fresh dates are the best. Dried cherries or chocolate chips can also be substituted for the dates.

The original recipe is posted on Epicurious from the March 1990 issue of Gourmet. Find it here:
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Oatmeal-Date-Drop-Scones-10330

Ingredients:

3/4 cup milk
1 large egg
3 tablespoons light brown sugar
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 1/4 cups cake flour (not self-rising)
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1 tablespoon double-acting baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
1/2 cup chopped pitted dates

Directions:

In a bowl whisk together the milk, the egg, the brown sugar, and the vanilla until the mixture is combined well. In another bowl stir together the flour, the oats, the baking powder, the baking soda, and the salt and blend in the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Stir in the dates and the milk mixture until the mixture just forms a sticky dough. Drop the dough by 1/3-cup measures onto an ungreased baking sheet and bake the scones in the middle of a preheated 400°F. for 15 to 18 minutes, or until they are golden. (Alternatively the scones may be dropped onto a hot greased griddle and cooked over moderate heat, turning them, for 15 to 18 minutes, or until they are golden on both sides and cooked through.)