Oatmeal Date Walnut Bars, for when a craving strikes

Ye olde sweet tooth was calling last night. So I used some pantry staples and soon found myself with a lovely treat in less than an hour - gather ingredients, mix batter, bake, enjoy ... :)

Oatmeal Date Walnut Bars

1/2 cup butter, softened
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 egg
generous sprinkling of cinnamon
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
generous pinch of kosher salt
1 cup flour
3/4 cup quick-cook oats
1/2 cup date bits
1/3 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat oven to 350F. Grease an 8"-square baking pan.

In a large bowl, mix together butter and brown sugar; stir in egg, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Stir in flour and oats. Stir in dates and walnuts.

Press batter into prepared pan and bake 30 minutes or so, until bars are golden and a tester inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool, then cut and serve.

Makes 9-12 bars, depending upon how you cut them.

"Ann Arbor Tailgates" - Cookbook for a Cause

Buy a cookbook and help the homeless.

Alpha House - a shelter for homeless families in Washtenaw County - has published a cookbook just in time for holiday shopping: Ann Arbor Tailgates: Your Favorite Recipes. It features stories and photos in addition to recipes, and it is most entertaining.

You get to meet Super Fan I, whose game uniform includes a superhero's mask created as an homage to the famous Wolverines' helmets; he offers recipes for "To Hell with Notre Dame" Gumbo and "Smash the Spartans" Apple Cake. There's also Go Bleu Cheese Spread and Go Blue Martinis, perfect for cheering on The University of Michigan's Maize 'n' Blue.

If you know someone who likes to cook, let me assure you that it's not possible to have too many cookbooks. If you know rabid football fans, those folks need this cookbook for new tailgating ideas. If you know someone who likes to entertain, there are great party recipes, from dips to chilis to desserts. Truly, this cookbook would make a great gift for anyone!

Ann Arbor Tailgates costs only $20, and $15 of that is a charitable donation which may be tax deductible. And just look how easy it is to buy copies:

1) Click on this link and buy it online. Or,

2) Contact Helen Starman, Director of Development at Alpha House: 4290 Jackson Road, Ann Arbor, MI 48103 (734)822-0220. The cookbook can be picked up at no extra charge or mailed to you or your gift recipient for $3.50/copy.

Alpha House needs all the support we can give it, as it's really so much more than a shelter. As Executive Director Nicole Adelman states in her introduction to the cookbook:

"More than providing just a bed and a roof, our goal is to support families in securing and maintaining their own homes."

And how successful is the amazing, dedicated staff in helping their remarkably strong and resilient clients to achieve this? "In 2010, 100% of the families who left Alpha House in our Home Based Support Program were still housed one year later."

Okay, enough nudging! Let me show you one of the great recipes you'll find in your new cookbook.

It took me a long, long time to decide what to cook for this post; there were so many choices, and we all know that decisions are not my strongsuit. Something rich and hearty, like Poppy Seed Ham and Cheese Rolls? Something lighter, such as Mediterranean Eight-Layer Dip featuring hummus and vegetables? Something as sophisticated as Kahlua-Espresso Truffles, or something more family-friendly like Strawberry Pretzel Salad? Or something wildly different, namely the Vodka-Infused Gummy Bears? (I know I've piqued your curiosity! You've gotta buy the book now!)

What to make? What to eat?

It came down to which ingredients I had on hand. And so the winner was Baked Potato Chips, contributed by Maize Marvel: hand-cut potatoes baked in just a touch of olive oil, sprinkled with kosher salt and black pepper and served with a green onion dip.

This simply-prepared snack was so amazingly (a-maize-ingly???) good! I'd baked only one potato's worth of chips, then promptly ate them all by myself. I was sorely tempted to slice up another potato to make a second batch, but I decided that gluttony was not an attractive trait. I particularly liked the slightly overdone caramelized bits - they were crispy and extra flavorful; and I was generous with the pepper, so the chips were a bit spicy, too, which was a perfect complement to the creamy, zesty dip.

Helen Starman - whom you'll be calling to order copies of the book - offers the following: "I am so excited that you made the potato chips – I love them ... the chips are so tasty and addictive"!

So, I've given you one recipe. To get the others, buy a cookbook and help the homeless while doing your holiday shopping.

Baked Potato Chips with Green Onion Dip
(slightly adapted from the recipe submitted by Maize Marvel)

Chips:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large Yukon Gold potato, sliced very thinly
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 325F. Brush the oil over a baking sheet, then place the baking sheet into the oven for 10 minutes.

Lay the potato slices onto the hot baking sheet without overlapping them. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, then bake for 10 minutes. Rotate the baking sheet and bake for another 10 minutes, then flip the chips over and bake them for another 5 minutes or until done to your liking.

Dip:

1/3 cup sour cream
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 large green onion, chopped
sprinkle of garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice

Mix all ingredients together and serve with the chips.

Bacon-Parmesan Popcorn

Popcorn is the official state snack food of Illinois. I'm not much of a popcorn fan - I can eat it, but don't really care if I ever do. However, I know I'm in a distinct minority with regard to my lack of affection for this treat.

Michigan will be playing Illinois this Saturday, so it only seemed appropriate to feature popcorn in today's post. But I had to glam it up a bit. I debated whether to make a sweet or savory version, or whether to make cute little football-shaped popcorn balls.

And then I had an epiphany.

I'm offering something completely fabulous which features an utter lack of redeeming nutritional value (which is, of course, why it's so fabulous!). Even though I can usually live without popcorn, I think I could actually start craving this.

Today's recipe is for Bacon-Parmesan Popcorn.

Yup - salty, crunchy, cheesy, and with bacon. Supreme snack food!

This is ideal for tailgating or for watching the game at home. It's a great treat for any occasion, from watching the Oscars to watching a movie. Truly, how can you go wrong with anything that has bacon???

Pass the popcorn, please ....

Bacon-Parmesan Popcorn

1 3-ounce packet low-sodium microwaveable popcorn
4 strips low-sodium bacon
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon all-purpose seasoning (i.e.: Mrs. Dash)
1/3 cup very finely grated Parmesan cheese

Prepare popcorn according to package directions, then place into a large mixing bowl.

Meanwhile, place bacon into a large skillet and cook, turning occasionally, until very crisp. Remove bacon from skillet and crumble; reserve the bacon fat.

Add oil and crumbled bacon to the bacon fat; pour over the popcorn and toss to combine. Sprinkle seasoning and Parmesan over the popcorn, and toss to combine well.

Makes approximately 8 cups of popcorn.

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Blueberry muffins are a universal favorite! Who wouldn't want to celebrate them today, on National Blueberry Muffin Day?

Not only do these muffins showcase one of Michigan's finest fruits, but they're sweet and delicious and perfect at any time of day. Breakfast? A great way to start the morning! Lunch? They can certainly make a fabulous dessert. Tea time? Evening or midnight snack? Absolutely ideal!

This recipe makes a very tender muffin, loaded with gorgeous blueberries. And the cinnamon streusel makes a lovely, fragrant topping so that the muffins aren't quite so plain.

Just as National Strawberry Shortcake Day didn't need my promotional assistance, National Blueberry Muffin Day can hold its own, too, I think. So I'll stop blathering now, and just let you enjoy your muffin in peace ....

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

Muffins:
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup sugar
1 large egg
1-1/2 cups unbleached flour
1-1/2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup half-and-half
3/4 cup blueberries

Streusel:
1/3 cup flour
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/3 cup quick-cook oats
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 cup butter, melted

Preheat oven to 325F. Line a 12-cup muffin tin with paper liners.

Make the muffins: In a large bowl, cream together butter and sugar; stir in egg. Mix in the flour, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir in the cream, then gently mix in the blueberries. Divide the batter among the muffin cups.

Make the streusel: Combine the flour, brown sugar, oats and cinnamon. Stir in the butter. Divide the mixture among the muffins by placing a blob of it on top of each.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the muffins are golden and a tester comes out clean. Let the muffins cool, as they're a bit fragile and need to set before being removed from the tin.

Makes 12 muffins.

If It's Saturday, There May Be Time to Putter in the Kitchen

Ya know, one might just think that I have nothing better to do with my time and my money than to eat out, to shop for groceries, and to cook/bake.  Well, admittedly that little entity known as "my job" does, occasionally, intrude upon these pasttimes ... good thing I consider my co-workers to be extended family then, so I'll keep showing up!  And money always helps if you want to keep eating.  So weekends should be a good time for puttering in the kitchen with all my free time -- ha! -- though it doesn't always happen.  This past week, though, was ideal.

I spent my entire Saturday (well, the entire weekend -- but Sunday's adventures will be another post) fixated upon food ... I'm sure you're shocked, just shocked!  Starting on Saturday morning as I caffeinated while Tom and Jeremy slept, I baked the first batch of brownies for Jeremy's graduation party.  Oh, haven't you heard???  Jeremy earned his G.E.D.!!!  We've already started celebrating, but officially there will be festivities in June, right around the time he gets to wear that cap 'n' gown I never -- and he never, either -- thought he'd get to wear.

Many of my invitees keep kosher, but will eat products that have come from my little treyf ([TRAYf] = non-kosher) kitchen if they're dairy or pareve ([PAHRv] = neither meat nor dairy).  And so, because I swear by Nigella Lawson's motto "Never knowingly undercatered," I have begun the baking/freezing to ensure having sufficient treats to induce diabetic comas in my guests and fellow celebrants.  The first contribution to my buffet was pareve brownies using Earth Balance butter substitute -- the only tolerable product I've found, both flavor- and consistency-wise.  I also used non-dairy chocolate chips ... who knew that the generic brand I can buy at Kroger, rather than something like Ghirardelli -- are pareve???  It actually says so on the package ... wow.  Otherwise, the recipe is a standard-issue brownie recipe which makes the house smell amazing and which produces moist cake-like brownies that are rich and delicious ... truly, I mean it!  If you didn't know they were pareve, you wouldn't know they were pareve.

Afterwards, Tom and Jeremy and I made a long-awaited -- ever since catching an enticing glimpse of a sign in the window that a new Indian market was coming -- trip down to the Om Market on Nixon Road, a new haven of temptation near my house which must have done some research to know that I need a source for goodies that is within walking distance rather than across town.  Owned by the Patel family that also owns The Wine Seller, they were still stocking shelves and organizing the store when I was there, during its first week open.

But what a selection of wonderful items!!!  Freezers with naan and parathi and samosas and other vegetarian treats that I could take to work for lunch (where meat is not permitted).  They even carry the Pillsbury breads which I find endlessly amusing -- the Doughboy on packages of roti!  I know it makes me seem like the proverbial Ugly American to buy them, but I still chuckle every time I see them ... and yes, I am well aware that I have a perverse sense of humor.

There were shelves -- long, long shelves -- of so many spices that even I, who have an entire freezer door-full of spices (and which Jeremy will readily confide are mostly Indian -- cumin, coriander, fenugreek, garam masala ...), didn't recognize all of them.  There were bags of savory snacks, chivra, loaded with lots of little crisp and crunchy goodies.  There were kits and jars of sauces for preparing foods if you're not much of a cook, and lots of ingredients for those of us who thrive upon cooking (especially Indian food, one of our particular favorites!).  And there's lots more space to fill, too, though I can't imagine what else the store could possibly stock ... maybe bindis, since I'm reduced to just the boring brown ones and could use an infusion of sparkle for my forehead ...?  Food-wise, there is abundance and variety.

But best of all, the Patel family -- Mom, Dad, and one of their sons -- simply couldn't have been more friendly and more welcoming, with radiant smiles and extraordinary generosity of spirit.  (Sad to say, when I've shopped at other Indian markets I've been essentially ignored and treated as a stranger who doesn't seem to belong ... and that's the most polite way I can phrase it publicly.)  They offered samples of jalebi -- a beautifully bright orange sweet that is a kinda/sorta syrup-coated funnel cake; I'd never seen it before, and they were happy to let all three of us enjoy a taste.  Mrs. Patel walked right up to Tom as he examined what appeared to be a bag of itty bitty popcorn, to explain that it was popped sorghum that was particularly good coated with butter and salt and eaten as a snack.  Although I like to think that I know a fair amount about Indian food and cooking, I am happy -- thrilled, giddy, ecstatic! -- to know that I can ask any question, seek out information, and be welcomed at the Om Market.  I will absolutely be a regular, and one of their best customers!

And so, what did I make with my purchases of red lentils and coconut milk???  Why, a fabulous lentil soup with spinach, of course!

Curried Lentil Soup

1 tablespoon oil

1 onion, chopped fine

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1/2 teaspoon seasoned salt

2 teaspoons hot curry powder

2 teaspoons garam masala

1 teaspoon cumin

1/2 teaspoon turmeric

1/2 teaspoon coriander

cayenne, to taste

pinch of saffron (buy cheap saffron at Middle Eastern markets -- $4-5 for less than a cup; it's machine-processed, but who cares???)

3 cups water

1 cup split red lentils

1 15-ounce can coconut milk

1 cup tightly packed baby spinach leaves

Heat the oil in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat.  Add half the onion and half the garlic, and cook for 2 minutes.  Add the rest of the onion and garlic, the salt, seasoned salt, curry, garam masala, cumin, turmeric, coriander, cayenne and saffron; cook for 1 minute, then slowly add the water and stir to combine everything well.  Add the lentils, bring to a boil, then cook on low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Add the coconut milk and cook for another 15 minutes.  Add the spinach, and cook just until the leaves wilt.  Serve hot.

I served the soup with some paneer-filled parathi (freshly heated for just a few minutes on each side in a frying pan) and a fabulous snack mix that Jeremy had picked out for me, which I happily stirred into my soup but which Jeremy ignored and Tom ate sparingly as an acompaniment; it had lots of crispy nibbly things and some raisins and just a hint of spice ... sigh ... and perfectly complemented the soup.  I could eat entire bags of that stuff, and have even made my own; believe it or not, the numerous varieties of chivra are even better than Cheetos, one of my very favorite snacks despite their appalling lack of nutritional (or any other kind of) value.

So, I got to bake, I got to cook ... my house smelled fabulous, absolutely fabulous!!!  Sunday was another adventure, but in a commercial kitchen and with good ol' fashioned soul-satisfying Jewish food.  I'll leave you with that tantalizing tease, until next time ....

Note: This post was added to the Kahakai Kitchen "Souper Sundays" Round-Up ... what a great idea, encouraging me to make more than just chicken soup for ailing loved ones!!!