Butterscotch Oatmeal Cookies - the ugliest cookie you'll ever love

 

First prep 12 oz of Buttersworth original hard candies.    Unwrap, put them in a gallon ziploc bag, put bag into an old pillowcase or fold into a dishcloth, and pound with a mallet or the bottom of a heavy sauce pan:   

 

 Preheat oven to 350 degrees

 Cream together:

 2 sticks butter, at room temperature 

1 cup brown sugar

Then add: 

2 eggs

1 T vanilla

1 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

When well combined add in:

2 cups flour

1 cup rolled oats

Then add: 

12 ounces hard butterscotch candies (prepared as described)

Drop by the tablespoon onto parchment lined sheet pans, 3" apart.    Small balls, socially distanced.   These cookies seriously spread, y'all.      

Bake ~10 minutes.   If your oven is uneven, turn the pans halfway.   

Let the cookies cool on their tray, undisturbed.      Then store cooled cookies between layers of parchment.    

Banana Carrot Oatmeal Muffins

As we dive into a new school year, quick breakfasts are a big help for busy mornings.     I made a BIG batch and wrapped most individually for the freezer!

 

3 sticks butter, softened

4 cups sugar (I did 2 white, 2 brown)
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cloves

1/4 tsp allspice  

3 T ginger (yes tablespooon)

1 teaspoon cinnamon

6 eggs
1 Tablespoon baking soda
2 teaspoon baking powder


10 super ripe bananas, smooshed















2 carrots, grated








1 1/2 cups plain kefir* 


* or buttermilk, or milk and a little sour cream or a mix of milk and plain yogurt or even just milk ...



2 cups rolled (old fashioned) oats
4 1/2 cups all purpose flour











Cream together butter, sugar, spices and baking soda/powder.       Add eggs, then bananas, then kefir.    Mix in grated carrots.     

 
Then mix in flour and oats WITH A LIGHT HAND. Scoop into muffin papers - these are "medium" tulip papers, and my overflowing scoop was probably 3 oz.    Sprinkle with raw sugar if you can find yours ... 



 Bake at 425 for 10 minutes, then about 25 minutes at 350.    The hot oven start helps give them better lift and a slightly crunchy top.   







40 yummy muffins for my freezer and busy mornings!  

Peanut Butter Breakfast Cookies

I wanted to develop a quick, high nutrient, HIGH PROTEIN and whole grain breakfast cookie for those busy mornings ... note this isn't a diet item, but more of a trying to eat something to stick with me on days I really don't feel like eating / don't have time.  



Cream together until much lighter in color:

1 pound (2 cups) Jif creamy peanut butter
1 stick butter, softened
1/2 cup white sugar
1 cup brown sugar

add:  5 large eggs, mix well


then add:

1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 cup whey protein powder (unsweetened)


When well mixed, add:

3 cups rolled oats


then:

1 cup chocolate chip cookies
1 cup peanut butter chips


Scoop with a one ounce (2 Tbsp) scoop onto parchment paper - I put 8-9 each on a half sheet pan, but apparently they could have been spaced a bit closer.     Bake at 35- for about 12 minutes.   



I got 52 cookies with the one ounce scoop - nutrition info per cookie:   165 calories, 9g fat, 8g protein, 16 g carbs, 2g fiber

Freezer Berry Crisp

A quick dessert from ingredients on hand - and a VERY flexible recipe to boot. Any combination of berries (actually almost any soft fruit) will mix well. Just adjust the sugar added to the tartness of the fruit.

Berries, from your freezer. I used blueberries:















Cranberries, and some mixed berries - about 8 cups in total:















I added about a cup and a half of sugar (less if it hadn't included all those tart cranberries) and a splash of vanilla:

















Meanwhile in another part of the kitchen:

Butter was melted:

Leftover, stale storebought cookies were tried and sentenced to execution by spatula:

Then mixed with about three cups of oats and the butter. (I didn't sweeten because of the cookies. If you're using all oats, add a bit of brown sugar)

Pour the berries into a 13 x 9 pan, followed by the topping. Bake at 375, 35-45 minutes.

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream!

Picture it: baked oatmeal

Same recipe as earlier in the week, EXCEPT: I only had three peaches, but added 1 1/2 pints of blueberries. No ginger this time, and no cinnamon sugar topping. Serve for breakfast - warm (microwaved) with a bit of milk.

Baked Peach Oatmeal

This was a contribution to a ladies' brunch. It turned out very good, but I was running behind and forgot to take a picture of the end product before I ran out to the car to leave for the event.

5 large peaches

1 stick butter, melted

4 cups rolled oats (old fashioned oats)

4 large eggs

1 1/2 cups milk

3/4 C brown sugar

~ 1 tsp vanilla

~ 1 tsp cinnamon

~ 1 Tbsp fresh ginger

some fresh nutmeg

Cinnamon Sugar topping (optional)

I baked this in my Le Creuset casserole. It's great for potlucks because it easily keeps the contents warm for a thirty minute drive and the time on the buffet line. If you aren't taking it to an event, a 13 x 9 dish would work fine.




Preheat oven to 350. Peel and roughly chop the peaches. Throw them into your casserole dish. Add a splash of vanilla, a teaspoon of cinnamon, a grating of nutmeg and some ginger. I used fresh ginger. (I keep it in my freezer, unwrapped, and it lasts for months.)



Melt the butter (I did so in the microwave). Stir in milk, and then eggs. Stir in oatmeal, and then combine this mixture with the peaches. I then sprinkled a Pampered Chef cinnamon sugar sprinkle on top. Bake for about 30 minutes.

Oatmeal Raspberry Bars

I'm moving this week, so I don't have much access to kitchen or computer, so the leftovers are long ago consumed for each recipe this week, but hopefully still useful!

OATMEAL RASPBERRY BARS

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 sticks (3/4 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3 cups old-fashioned oats
3/4 cup seedless raspberry jam (I've substituted homemade strawberry jam at least once)

Preheat oven to 375°F.
Spread 3/4 cup coconut evenly on a baking sheet and toast in middle of oven, stirring once, until golden, about 8 minutes, then cool.

Blend together flour, sugars, and salt in a food processor, then add butter and blend until a dough begins to form. Transfer to a bowl and knead in oats and toasted coconut until combined well.

Reserve 3/4 cup dough, then press remainder evenly into bottom of a buttered 13- by 9-inch metal baking pan and spread jam over it. Crumble reserved dough evenly over jam, then sprinkle with remaining 3/4 cup (untoasted) coconut.

Essence of July: Peach Blueberry Crisp

~ 12 peaches, ripe to very ripe
1 pint blueberries
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
few grates of nutmeg

2 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter

Peel, pit and chop peaches. (don't worry about the size - I had pieces from marble to golf ball size). Add the blueberries (washed, of course). Stir in the vanilla and cinnamon and pour into an 8 inch square pan.

Melt butter in the microwave. Stir in brown sugar and a tsp of salt. Mix in oats, and spread over fruit. Bake at 350 for about 40 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream.

Note that this is NOT a very sweet dessert. I actually like the leftovers for breakfast - lots of fruit and oatmeal. If your family is accustomed to sweeter dishes, you might want to double the sugar.