Raspberry Energy Bar and Cross Country Running

It takes a certain type of young man to run cross country, I think.  Not only does it take a good bit of physical strength and endurance, but mental tenacity while training and running for miles in hot, humid Savannah weather, too.   Under the passionate dedication of Coach MacKay, my two older boys had the amazing opportunity to run on the Savannah Arts Academy team this year. The team won the regional title and will be heading to the State meet in a few weeks.  Go Panthers!

These homemade whole grain raspberry energy bars made with wheat germ, oats, flax seeds and berries are a wonderful nutritious filler before the race.  And they taste wonderful, too!

Raspberry Energy Bar

Cooking oil spray
2 cups whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 sticks butter, cut into 16 pieces and softened (2 tablespoon divided)
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup walnut pieces
1/4 cup light brown sugar
2 tablespoons ground flax seeds
3/4 cup sugar-free raspberry jam
3/4 cup fresh raspberries
1 tablespoon lemon juice

 Preparation 

Preheat oven to 375° F. Line a 13 x 9-inch pan with foil by spreading two sheets of foil perpendicular to each other over the pan, with extra foil hanging over the edges. Grease the foil with cooking spray.

Whisk the flour, wheat germ, granulated sugar and salt in a large bowl. Beat in 14 tablespoons of butter with an electric mixer on low until the mixture looks like wet sand, about 1½ minutes. Reserve 1¼ cups of the mixture for the topping and put the rest into the pan. Use the bottom of a measuring cup to press it into an even layer. Bake the crust until the edges begin to brown, about 14-18 minutes.

Mix the reserved flour mixture with the oats, nuts, brown sugar and flax seeds. Add the remaining butter and pinch the mixture with your fingers into small clumps. In a separate bowl, lightly smash the raspberries, jam and lemon juice together. Spread the berry mixture over the hot crust and sprinkle the crumb streusel on top.

Bake until golden brown, about 22-25 minutes. Let the bars cool completely in the pan. Remove bars from pan by lifting up the foil edges. Cut into 24 squares.

Airsoft War and Simple Bar Cookie Recipe

"I looked toward Birnam, and anon methought

The wood began to move."
Macbeth Act 5, Scene 5

My little homestead is located in the midst of tall Georgia pines, a perfect rustic place for a large group of boys to gather and have an airsoft war.  

The weather couldn't have been better last Saturday: cool mid-60's with zero humidity.  It was exactly right for these southern boys in their full camo gear.   The whole day was spent running through the woods in teams or shooting at targets of chip bags, drink cups, and empty pizza boxes during their breaks.  

A few hours after their pizza lunch was devoured, I made these simple bar cookies.  Once the word circulated that the cookies were out of the oven, the forest began to move, and camouflaged soldiers abandoned their posts and forts for these warm chocolatey cookie bars.  

I couldn't be happier seeing my son and his friends romp in the woods, drinking in the fresh air.  Sure beats playing video games indoors, right?  And hearing them saying thank you's in between bites of these cookies really warmed my heart.  It was a great day.  

This recipe times two fed 20 hungry boys.  

Print This Recipe!

Simple Bar Cookies

Makes one jelly-roll pan 17 1/2" x 12 1/2" x 1"

or Half Sheet Pan

1 C (8 oz) Unsalted Butter, softened
1 C (7 oz) Granulated Sugar
1 C (7oz) Brown Sugar
2 Eggs
1 tsp Vanilla

2 C (7.5 oz) Oatmeal, ground in food processor
1 ¾ C (8.5 oz) Flour, all-purpose, unbleached
1 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
½ tsp Salt

2 C total of your favorite baking chips (I used white chocolate, peanut butter chips, milk chocolate, and Heath bar chips)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F

Combine together in a small bowl the ground oatmeal, flour, baking powder, soda, and salt.  Set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, cream together with a hand mixer the softened butter and both granulated and brown sugars until smooth.  Add eggs and vanilla until well blended.  Using a rubber spatula, fold in dry ingredients until just combined.  It's ok if small patches of flour remain.  Do not overbeat.

Spray or grease the jelly roll pan with vegetable oil.  Spread evenly the cookie dough.  You can use a sheet of plastic food wrap over the dough to spread the dough.  Peel off the plastic wrap.  Sprinkle generously with baking chips of your choice.  Press down.

Bake until golden brown, about 22-24 minutes.  Cool for 5 minutes and cut to desired size.

March for Life Dinner Boxes

About 50 of my church family members take a trip to Washington DC each January.  No, it's not a pleasure trip, though everyone has a great time on the bus.  They go to join and to participate in the March For Life with other 400,000+ marchers .  

This year marked the 40th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision.  

As my staff and I were packing 50 dinner boxes for the marchers to eat on their way to DC, words from an article I had read written by John Piper kept popping in my head, and I questioned: 

Does being in the womb disqualify person-hood?

Does undeveloped reasoning disqualify person-hood?

Why is it that some fetuses undergo surgeries to be saved and others do not?

How is it that our law protects bald eagle eggs but not human embryos?

It's a strange world, really.  

 Chocolate Peanut Butter Mound Bars tucked in dinner boxes were a huge hit among the marchers on this trip.
Click here for recipe!

It's my honor and privilege to make dinner boxes for the IPC Marchers each year.

Here is the standard March For Life Dinner Box Menu:

Fried Chicken Sandwich with Basil Aioli

Garden Salad with Savannah Mustard Dressing

Fresh Fruit Salad

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

Chocolate Peanut Butter Mound Bar

Kosher Dill Pickle Spear

Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies for Snack

Pizza Making Party with the Girl Scouts and Recipes

A few weeks ago, a fellow homeschooling mom and leader of the Savannah Girl Scouts troop (#30273) contacted me to see if I would be willing to give a tour of my church's kitchen to the girls. I was delighted for the opportunity!

Independent Presbyterian Church is located just across from the birthplace of Juliette Gordon Low, the founder of Girl Scout USA. It is a common sight on Bull Street to see troops paying a visit to their beloved founder's home year around.

Since it wouldn't take but several minutes to tour the IPC kitchen, I thought it would be fun to make some homemade pizzas and surprise the girls with a special dessert using their famous cookies.

Choose your favorite topping! (I told the girls the most interesting pizza I've eaten was topped with squid and garlic!) From plain cheese to pepperoni, roasted peppers and onions, we all had a great time talking and assembling our own personalized pizzas.

It's just something about cooking and sharing food together...memories are made and friendships forged. I've made more friendships through cooking in the kitchen than anywhere else!

After devouring our pizzas, we had our Girl Scout Cookie Cake Bars! Girl Scout Samosas and Tagalongs can be used as toppings for this recipe. Many thanks to Kevin and Amanda for this super easy and yummy recipe!

Girl Scout Tagalong (or Samosa) Cookie Cake Bar by Kevin and Amanda

For Recipe and beautiful step-by-step photos, Click Here

Homemade Pizzas

*I usually triple this recipe for my family of 6 so we have left overs. These pizzas are great re-heated in toaster oven!

Print This Recipe!

Simple Pizza Crust

Makes 1 large or 4-6" personalized pizza crusts

1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 cup warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)

1 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 cups bread flour, more for dusting
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F, lower the oven rack to bottom third

In a medium bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water, using your hand.

Stir in flour and salt and knead until smooth, 4-5 minutes. Dough should be supple and not sticky. Form it to a smooth ball, place it in a bowl greased with 2 tablespoon of olive oil.

Cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double in size.

Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and stretch or roll into a round. If the dough is hard to stretch or roll, let rest for a minute. Resume stretching to the size to fit your pan or make personalized pizzas.

Place a sheet of parchment paper over a baking pan. Lay stretched dough discs on paper.

Spoon on marinara sauce (recipe below), spread with desired toppings and bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes (longer if making a large pizza) , or until golden brown. Let baked pizza cool for 5 minutes before serving.

Simple Marinara Sauce

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 garlic cloves, grated
1/2 teaspoon dried organo
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1/2 teaspoon dried pepper flakes
1 (32-ounce) cans crushed tomatoes
1 dried bay leaves

1/4 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

In a large casserole pot, heat the oil over a medium heat. Add the garlic, dried oregano, basil, pepper flakes and sauté garlic and herbs until just beginning to sizzle and heat. Add the crushed tomatoes, bay leaf and grated parmesan cheese, and simmer uncovered over low heat until the sauce thickens, about 45 minutes. Remove and discard the bay leaf. Season the sauce with more salt and pepper to taste.

Recipe can be doubled. Portion the sauce and freeze in quart-size bags for future use.