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Saturday, December 17, 2011

Yummy Saturday

This year, I decided to give some homemade, edible holiday gifts instead of store bought items. After brunch this morning, I spent the remainder of the afternoon in the kitchen making some scrumptious treats.  I made homemade granola and homemade peppermint & wintergreen white vanilla chocolate bark.  Both were extremely easy to make and both turned out absolutely delicious. I am going to put both items into cute tins tomorrow and some of my holiday gifts are done!

Granola: perfect for breakfast with milk or fruit, on top of yogurt, with ice cream, or even on its own


Granola in the oven

  • Ingredients for 6 servings
    • 3 cups of Quaker oats
    • 1 cup slivered almonds
    • 1 cup cashews
    • 1/4 cup + 2 tablespoons of dark brown sugar
    • 1/4 cup + 2-3 tablespoons of maple syrup
    • 1/4 cup of vegetable oil
    • 3/4 teaspoon of salt
    • handful of raisins
    • handful of dried cranberries
    • tablespoon of cinnamon 
  • Directions
    • Preheat oven to 250 degrees
    • In a large bowl, combine the oats, both types of nuts, and brown sugar
    • In a separate bowl, combine the maple syrup, oil, and salt
    • Combine both mixtures
    • Pour onto a large baking sheet (spray with non stick cooking spray prior)
    • Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15-20 minutes
    • When just 20 minutes left, take out and pour cinnamon on and stir
    • Remove from oven and transfer into bowl  
    • Add raisins and dried cranberries
    • Combine together
    • ENJOY
The finished product


Peppermint & Wintergreen White Vanilla Chocolate Bark: perfect whenever and wherever
  • Ingredients for about 2 pounds of bark
    • Crushed peppermint and wintergreen candies, to yield 1 cup
    • Approximately 8 cups of white vanilla chocolate chips
    • 2 tablespoons of water
    • 1 tablespoon of vegetable oil
Crushed up candies (and they can be crushed even smaller)

  • Directions
    • Place unwrapped peppermint and wintergreen candies in a plastic bag and hammer into small chunks
    • Melt the chocolate in a microwavable safe bowl with the water and oil
    • Stir so all chips are melted together
    • Combine the crushed candies with the chocolate
    • Pour mixture onto a cookie sheet layered with parchment paper
    • Place in the refrigerator for approximately 45 minutes or until firm
    • Remove from cookie sheet and break into pieces
    • ENJOY

The finished product

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