Granola

Granola

8 cups quick oats
1 c wheat germ
1 1/2 c brown sugar
1 c coconut
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 t cinnamon

Mix together in a large bowl.

In a small bowl combine-
2/3 c oil
1/3 c water
2 teaspoons vanilla

Pour over oatmeal mixture and mix just until combined. Spread in a large cookie sheet.

Bake at 300 degrees for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, stirring occasionally (about every 20 minutes). Bake until lightly toasted and coconut is lightly browned.

When cool, mix in:
2 cups raisins or any dry fruit
1 c sunflower seeds or any misc. nuts

Store in an airtight container.

Eat with milk or sprinkle over yogurt or ice cream.

Butterfinger Dessert

Butterfinger Dessert

*This recipe has been in my family for a long time- we love it! It is a great summer dessert because its cold and light.

Crust
4 crushed butterfingers
1 C crushed saltine crackers
1 C crushed graham crackers
1/2 c butter
1/2 c sugar

Filling
3 (3oz) packages instant vanilla pudding (not cook n serve)
2 C cold milk
4 C vanilla ice cream (softened, about half a "box")

Topping
1 9 oz. cool whip

Melt the butter and mix remaining crust ingredients until moistened. Reserve 1 c for topping and press the remaining into a 9X13 pan.

Beat the pudding and milk. Add ice cream and beat to smooth. Pour over crust and level.

Cover filling layer with cool whip. Sprinkle reserved 1 c of crust over the top. Serve chilled.

*Notes- I ommit the 1/2 c sugar in the crust and it is still plenty sweet. You can also use nutter butters instead of butterfingers in this dessert.

Orange Pull Aparts

Orange Pull Aparts

Ingredients:

2 Pkg. Buttermilk Biscuits

1/2 C Butter (1 stick)

1/2 C Sugar
1/4 C Corn Syrup
1 Tablespoon TANG

Directions:
Heat last four ingredients in a saucepan until butter melts.

Pull biscuits apart and place in a greased round pan (bundt or angel cake).

Pour syrup over rolls. Bake at 350 for about 12-15 minutes.

Turn pan over on large platter. Enjoy! :)

Festive Pretzels

Here is a quick, fun, EASY holiday treat. We ended up making a TON of these and giving them away in cute little bags to our neighbors.

One bag of pretzels (squares or knots)
Two bags of kisses
Two bags of hugs
One bag M&M's

Directions:
Turn your oven on warm.
Place the pretzels on the cookie sheet.
Place the kisses and hugs on the pretzels.



Put in the oven for about 5-7 minutes (The kisses will look sort of watery).
Place an M&M in the middle of the kiss and press it gently down.
Allow to cool completely before removing from the cookie sheet.



Tips

You can use different combos of hugs and kisses- we used dark chocolate kisses (they took a little bit longer to melt).

We used candy cane kisses to get the red and white effect.

Hugs melt faster than the hugs do so if you are doing both, either do them at seperate times or do them on seperate pans.

Rainbow Salad

Rachel on Signing Time tells a story about "Rainbow Salad, my favorite treat to eat," so we decided to give it a try. This isn't so much a recipe as a suggestion/idea. This is such a fresh and delicious treat. We love to make this fruit salad with whatever fruit we have on hand. What makes it fun is brainstorming what to use from every color of the rainbow. Here is the rundown of this particular salad (in case you can't see everything in the picture)

Red: raspberries, strawberries
Orange: cantaloupe
Yellow: bananas
Green: kiwi, apples
Blue: blueberries
Purple: "red" grapes, "black"berries

Granola Bars

Here are some simple granola bars! Mmm... my kids devour them in less than a day. They are great for a breakfast or a snack. I found the original recipe at All Recipes but altered it a little bit. :)

These are my pictures! :)

Granola Bars

2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup wheat germ
1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour
3/4 cup raisins, chocolate chips, or nuts (optional)
1/2 c coconut

3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup honey
1 egg, beaten
1/2 cup vegetable oil (or 1/4 c oil and 1/4 c applesauce- this is what I used and the bars are stay moist for longer)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Generously grease a 9x13 inch baking pan.

2. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, brown sugar, wheat germ, cinnamon, flour, raisins and salt. Make a well in the center, and pour in the honey, egg, oil and vanilla. Mix well using your hands. Pat the mixture evenly into the prepared pan.

3. Bake for 18 to 20 minutes just until the bars begin to brown at the edges. Cool for 5 minutes, then cut into bars while still warm. Do not allow the bars to cool completely before cutting, or they will be too hard to cut.

Quick Donuts

Quick Donuts

Ingredients:
5 teaspoons yeast
1 cup lukewarm water
3 tablespoons sugar
1 egg, well beaten
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/3 cup melted butter
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon salt
2 1/2 cups flour (more if dough is sticky)
oil for frying

Maple Glaze:2 tablespoons butter, softened2 tablespoons maple syrup or maple extractpowdered sugar (enough to make it the consistency you prefer)

Mix yeast, water and sugar. Wait until bubbles form in mixture. Add egg, butter, cinnamon, vanilla, salt and flour. Mix to form dough. Knead dough for 1 minute. Roll out dough and cut donuts using donut cutter or large drinking glass. Allow to rise for 30 minutes on floured surface. Fry in oil until golden brown. Oil should be approximately 350°. Coat with maple glaze or any topping of your choice (chocolate, cinnamon sugar, etc.).

These are a great Sunday afternoon treat! Mmmmm!!!

Soft Pretzels

Soft Pretzels Ingredients
1 1/4 cups water
1 tablespoon yeast
1/4 cup brown sugar
4 + cups flour

Dipping Solution
1/4 cup baking soda
1 1/2 cups hot water

melted butter

Directions
Dissolve yeast into warm water. Add sugar, then flour & mix well---do not knead as this toughens the dough. Mix just until combined well. Let rise until doubled, at least 20 minutes. Roll into long ropes. Twist into pretzel shapes, then dip into prepared dipping solution (baking soda dissolved in hot water). Place on well-greased cookie sheet and bake at 500°F for 4-6 minutes until golden brown. Dip face of pretzel into melted butter and sprinkle with kosher salt.

Our family LOVES these pretzels- they are as good as the soft pretzels you get at Sam's Club. Sorry, no pic right now but next time I make them I will post one! Also, you can subsititue whole wheat- I did about half and half and they were excellent. They did need a bit more time to rise but worked very well.