Cereal Bars

Cereal bars, look better than they taste


I know, a bit blurry, but here you see them in all their gooey glory






I let Mr. Duds sniff them from outside, and he seemed to think they were just fine.

It has been so long. I'm really sorry about that. Let's catch up. Oh fine. You're right. How could I be so lazy and neglectful? I know, I know, my last post was March.  Since March, I got caught up on work.  Rather, the last two months of the semester steam rolled me into the ground and left me drying on the asphalt. Work. Sigh. Love it. Hate it. As soon as my semester wrapped up, and not a minute later, I boarded a plane and went on a 3 week long holiday. My god it felt good. More on that later.

Today is all about cereal bars. I never blog the recipes that turn out awful (you are so welcome), but I think it's good to remember that recipes fail dozens of time. Even when they fail, I'll still consume the outcome. Sometimes the recipe is just wrong. Other times, I didn't have the correct ingredients and substituted an ingredient because I was too lazy to go to the store to buy it. Honestly, I cannot fathom driving to the store for a single recipe. It is just not how I roll.

I have a coworker that teaches sports nutrition. She had her students bring in power bars, and snacks, that fit the nutrition bill and that were still made up of real food. I imagine as a sports nutritionist, one would constantly deal with questions about maxing out protein, and which whey powder is recommended. Yesterday, I was eating my plain toasted oats cereal when I turned the box over and read a recipe for cereal bars. I had all the ingredients: dried fruit, nuts, peanut butter, brown sugar, toasted oats plain cereal. However, there was one ingredient that I was a bit iffy on: corn syrup.

The recipe for cereal bars is quite simple. You add the dry ingredients to a bowl, and then you boil together the wet ingredients. Once the wet ingredients are hot and mixed, you pour them over the dry ingredients, stir everything together, and then press them in a 8x8 greased pan. You let them cool, and once cool, you can cut them into small squares. This sounded like a good alternative to granola bars.

I made a few adaptations. I used pistachios instead of peanuts. I used dried plums instead of apricots, and I used brown sugar, peanut butter, and molasses. I added coconut flakes.  I even had corn syrup, but I couldn't bring myself to add it. I'm no brown sugar advocate, but to me, corn syrup is...is....there it is. I couldn't figure out why nutritionally corn syrup had been brandished to the "it's not real food" pile. It's broken down and absorbed similarly to glucose and fructose. But then it's also obtained through a complex multi-organic-chemistry process that makes it seem much more notorious than blackstrap molasses, or brown sugar. Corn production is heavily subsidized as an agricultural commodity which makes corn syrup and high-fructose corn syrup the cheapest sweeteners to make. Corn syrup and high fructose corn syrup are found in foods that I would categorize as unhealthy: sugar-sweetened beverages, sodas, sweets and other shelf-stable baked goods, fake syrups, fruit-flavored yogurt masquerading as healthy food, some baked bread products. The list could go on. I want to note that other sugars could be just as notorious, so I'm not trying to single out corn syrup. But I did want to talk about why I immediately felt hesitation when I saw it as an ingredient.

So I tried to simmer together brown sugar, peanut butter, and molasses. It quickly became clear that this concoction would not work as the glue that I was supposed to be making. So, I added the corn syrup. The result: a super sweet, not-so-bad, cereal bar if you want your cereal to taste like cookies with plums, peanut butter, and pistachios. Now, I finally understand why granola bars have about 5 types of added sugar. Next time you crack open a granola bar, take a look at the ingredients list. The following are all types of added sugars: brown rice syrup, evaporated cane juice syrup, honey, evaporated cane juice crystals.

I think I'll avoid granola bars, and also cereal bars for the foreseeable future. I will stick to my stick-to-my-ribs oatmeal which is made by heating up plain oatmeal, adding fruit, milk (or soy milk), nuts, cinnamon, nutmeg, and sometimes honey or brown sugar (1 tsp at the max). Adding that much sugar to make something which is supposed to be healthy (breakfast or a snack) is just plain wrong.

Now if you want to improve, suggest upon, or build a better version here is the basics recipe:

(Not so good) Cereal Bars
Recipe from Target's Market Pantry Toasted Oats 
Yield: Almost 2 dozen 1.5" by 1.5" squares.

Ingredients:
4 cups toasted oats cereal
1 cup dried apricots, chopped (sub in any kind of dried fruit
1/2 cup peanuts
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup peanut butter (can sub in crunchy or smooth peanut butter)
1/4 cup packed brown sugar (can sub in crunchy or smooth peanut butter
Optional add ins:
A few tbsps of different kinds of nuts, flax seeds, or coconut flakes.

Directions:
1. Spray an 8" by 8" pan with a little oil.
2. Stir together the dry ingredients
3. Stir together the wet ingredients in a small saucepan. Set the saucepan over medium heat, and combine until boiling. I would make sure and cover the pan so you don't get hit with any spurts out of the pan. Let it simmer for 1 minute and then pour over the dry ingredients. Stir everything together and press into the pan. Let it cool completely before cutting. If you cannot wait like me, then at least put the knife in a little bit of oil to let it cut smoothly.

Spicy roasted bell pepper peanut sauce

This summer, I had a few opportunities to eat at Epiphany Cafe in downtown Tuscaloosa, AL. Epiphany sources and features Alabama grown produce on their menu (they also go local with their beers, meats, and dairy too). I like sampling the small plates, as they are generous portions to share. Now, I'm not a foodie critic, and I rarely write about restaurant meals, but this place just floors me each time. For someone that cooks a lot, I'm impressed when restaurant meals are something that I would not prepare at home. I want to be impressed. A quick glance at their menu, shows a description of foods and flavors - they really work it. 

Last week, they had a special 3-course menu for restaurant week: hay-smoked scallops served with coin-thin sliced cucumbers and drizzles of soy sauce, flash-fried and crunchy fish with radishes and slivers of dainty grassy chives served over potatoes, and to finish off the meal a rich (I would think brown sugar) pound cake featuring Chilton County peaches. All this for 30 bucks - no splitting though. I ate all of it. 

Each time I've gone, I try to sample new things. They tend to change the menu frequently. One dish that has stuck with me, and that I absolutely adored was a roasted okra with a red bell pepper coulis. If you love okra, you've got to try it roasted. 

After settling in and unpacking the kitchen, one visits the farmers' markets. There was a lot of good looking late summer produce around. Pretty purple and green okra pods, hot peppers, tomatoes, dimpled and firm summer squash, flowers, basil, eggplants. I knew I had to recreate that okra dish. I didn't want to view the menu to see what flavors I had loved so much, I wanted to go off memory, and what we had around. Turning the oven on in the middle of summer here was not the best idea, but so be it when you want roasted okra.  

I made a roasted bell pepper sauce/chutney, and served it over just roasted okra, and topped it with some fresh basil. I served mine alongside some couscous, which proved a bit boring, but was a key sauce soaker-upper. This is a delicious dish. Choose young fresh okra. If the okra is too mature, the seeds will be an unpleasant crunch, and the skins can get too tough and fibrous. Young pods should be 3-4" in length or smaller. 

Spicy roasted bell pepper peanut sauce served with roasted okra and couscous

Serves: 4, or 2 hungry people; recipe inspired from Epiphany Cafe, Tuscaloosa, AL

Ingredients:

1-2 red bell peppers 

1-2 hot peppers, or jalapeños 

2 cloves garlic

2-3 tbsp olive oil

1-2 tbsp water

2-3 tbsp parsley, cut off stems

juice of half a lime

1 tbsp soy sauce

large handful roasted peanuts

Roasted okra:

1-2 lbs okra (count 1/2 pound per person)

olive oil

Couscous:

1 cup couscous

1 cup boiling water

Directions:

Turn the broiler on high, and lay out a few red bell peppers and hot peppers on a pan. Broil them until they are nicely charred. Rotating every few minutes until the skins look blistered. Once they are done, set in a heat-proof bowl and cover with a plate. You can set them in the fridge to speed up cooling down time. Boil 1 cup water for the couscous. When the water boils, add the 1 cup dry couscous, stir, and turn off the heat. You can leave the sauce pan with the couscous on the same burner. I think it helps it dry out more quickly. Now, the okra.  

In the same pan, lay out freshly washed okra. Drizzle with olive oil, toss to cover evenly, and roast in the oven at 375º F/ 190º C for about 25 minutes or until baked. Now, the sauce.

In a blender, add roughly chopped parsley, garlic cloves, olive oil, water, the juice of half a lime, 1 tbsp soy sauce, and roasted peanuts. Make sure the bottom of the blender has about 1/2 inch of liquid or more. Blend on low setting, incorporating all the ingredients. Depending on your blender, you might need to scrape the sides of the blender down to incorporate any fly aways. Now, the peppers.

Once the peppers are cool enough to handle, remove the waxy papery skins, and discard the membranes and seeds. Use plastic gloves (or 2 sandwich plastic zip locks) to prep the hot peppers. Once, I rubbed my eye after ignoring the "use rubber gloves" and it was painful enough that now I try and protect my hands from the capsaicin found in peppers. Add the peppers to the blender. Blend until incorporated. Set aside until ready to use. 

Turn out the roasted okra in a nice serving dish. Spoon some of the spicy roasted bell pepper peanut sauce on top, garnish with basil leaves, and serve alongside the couscous. Voilá, lekkere eten! Een echt super lekkere hoofdgerechten die Jeroen Meus jaloers vindt zijn. 

Chevdo or Indian hot mix with spicy cornflakes and peanut snack

Chevdo is ubiquitous breakfast food in any south Asian household. It shows up at breakfast and snack times; it is carried on trips and packed with lunches often served with masala chai or coffee. It's basically spicy hot cornflakes or rice flakes, fried or toasted, and mixed together with hot peanuts, fried lentils, fried gram flour vermicelli (sev), rice crispies, and loads of red chili. I like it simple and healthy: a bit spicy, crunch from cornflakes, and pan-roasted peanuts balanced with toasted fennel, raisins, and pumpkin seeds. A ready made red chili garlic powder makes this really easy, but could easily be replaced with red chili, dried garlic powder, ground sesame powder, and lemon zest (or citric acid) or try this version here. If I'm not consuming chevdo in the morning along with my coffee, I really love it as a pre-dinner snack with a cold spicy Saison Dupont, or a citrusy witbier (wheat beer) such as Hoegaarden. It's great with masala tea or coffee as well.

Chevdo
South Asian or Indian spicy cornflakes with peanuts, raisins, and fennel seeds.

Ingredients:
1-2 tbsp peanut oil
1/2 cup or more raw peanuts
1 tsp whole fennel seeds
1/4 cup raisins
2 tbsp pumpkin seeds
4-5 cups cornflakes
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp turmeric
1/4 tsp lemon zest
1 heaping tbsp dry garlic chili powder (such as this one from Deep foods, also called thechaa
Optional: popcorn, rice crispies, fried lentils, vermicelli (sev), toasted rice flakes (poha).

Directions:
In a heavy bottom pan (such as one to boil pasta) heat up 2 tbsp of peanut oil over medium heat. Once hot add in peanuts and roast over medium low heat for about 10 minutes. I used to never use the oil but I found the spices would all fall to the bottom,  after trying it both ways, I'm happy using between 1-2 tbsp.

*Once the peanuts are done, turn the heat to low and then add raisins, they will plump up quickly. Add the pumpkin seeds, and fennel seeds. Add 1/4 tsp turmeric and salt and stir around. Add in 4 cups of corn flakes and stir together. Add in the dry garlic chili powder and the lemon zest, along with the last cup of cornflakes. Stir everything together. Tossing the pan back and forth is a good way to mix everything up without breaking the cornflakes.

*Note: My mother corrected my directions which have been updated from the original version. She is a minimalist at heart, so she could see no reason to dirty another pan which the original version had. I opt to roast the fennel seeds, raisins, and pumpkin seeds separately, but her chevdo is truly the better one so I updated my directions to reflect moms. Bus? Tik hé?