Fluffy Lemon Bars

Ingredients:

CRUST:

1/4 C. oat flour (I just used oats ground in my food processor)

1/4 C. wheat flour - I actually used a little less than 1/4 c. then filled the rest of the cup with....

2 Tbsp ground flax

1 C. raw almonds, ground to a fine meal in a food processor)

1/4 C. light agave nectar

1 tsp ground cinnamon

1 Tbsp canola oil

TOPPING:

1 Tbsp unsalted butter, room temperature

2/3 C. light agave nectar

2 large egg yolks

Juice & freshly grated zest of 2 lemons

1/2 C. barley flour (I used all-purpose)

1 C. evaporated milk

3 large egg whites

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Lightly oil an 8x8-in baking pan with canola oil spray. (This actually made REALLY thick bars, so if you prefer your lemon bars to be thinner, I'd use a 13x9-in pan.)

To make the crust, mix all the crust ingredients together in a bowl. Press the crust mixture into the prepared baking pan and bake for 15 minutes, or until slightly browned. Set aside.

To make the topping, in a large bowl whisk together the butter, agave nectar, and egg yolks. Add the lemon juice, zest, flour and evaporated milk. Whisk until well blended. In a separate bowl, beat the egg whites with an electric mixer set on medium speed for approximately 1-2 minutes, until stiff (but not dry) peaks form. Gently fold the egg whites into the lemon mixture until combined. Pour the mixture over the prepared crust and bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until the top begins to turn golden and the filling is set. 

Remove from the oven and cool on a cooling rack completely before cutting into bars. Store covered in the refrigerator.

Recipe taken from "Baking with Agave Nectar"  by Ania Catalano. Adapted by Jen.

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Muffins

Ingredients for Muffin Mix:

* 3 cups whole wheat flour

* 1 cups ground flaxseed

4 cups all-purpose flour

3 cups sugar

2 Tbsp baking powder

2 tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp nutmeg

Combine and store in an airtight container.
*If you don't want to use whole wheat flour or flaxseed, just use 8 cups all-purpose flour. 

Directions for Muffins:

Ingredients:

2 3/4 Cup Muffin Mix

1 egg beaten

1 C. milk

1/2 C. Melted butter, coconut oil or applesauce

1 C. fruit

Directions:

Combine the liquids in a small bowl. Add dry ingredients. Stir until moist. Should be lumpy.

Fold in fruit of your choice. (I often do 1/2 banana along with 1 or 2 other fruits. Banana, strawberry, chocolate chip is our favorite, so far.)

Pour into greased muffin tins.

Bake in preheated oven at 400°F for 18-20 minutes.

~~~~~~~~~

Any fruit can be used. Fresh, dried, etc. If you want a topping mix sugar (brown or white) with oatmeal and butter.

Recipe from Diane from TX. Adapted, just a bit, by me. :-)

Ham & Cheese Soup

Ingredients:

1 C. Carrots, shredded

¼ C. Green onion, sliced

3 Tbsp butter or margarine

¼ C. All-Purpose flour

2 C. Milk

1 Can chicken broth (10 ¾ oz)

1 1/2 C. Cooked Ham, cubed

1 C. Cheddar Cheese, shredded

½ tsp Worcestershire sauce

1/8 tsp. Black pepper

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, cook carrots and green onion in hot margarine or butter about 10 minutes or until tender but not browned. Stir in flour. Slowly add milk, chicken broth, Worcestershire sauce and black pepper. Cook and stir until thickened and bubbly. Stir in ham and cheese. Cook and stir over low heat until cheese melts. Serve hot.

Grandma's Brownies

Ingredients:

2 C. Sugar

1/2 C. Butter

1 tsp Vanilla

3 eggs

8 Tbsp cocoa in a 1 C. measuring cup, fill the rest of the cup with all-purpose flour, plus one more cup of flour.

If needed, add few drops of water

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease and flour a 13x9 in pan.

Mix together until blended. Don't mix too much!

Bake for about 22 minutes or until toothpick comes out clean.

Recipe by my Grandma B.

Cranberry Chicken Salad

Ingredients:

1 12.5 oz Can Chicken

1/4 C. sliced or slivered almonds (or any nut you prefer)

1/4 C. Cranberry Mustard Sauce (click here for recipe)[

1/4 C. dried cranberries

Directions:

Mix all ingredients together. Serve on whole grain bread or La Choy Chow Mein Noodles.

Recipe by Jen. Enjoy!

Cranberry Mustard Sauce

Ingredients:
½ C. Jellied Cranberry Sauce
1 ½ Tbsp Dijon Mustard
Agave Nectar to taste (about 2 tsp is good for us)


Directions: 
Combine Jellied Cranberry Sauce, Dijon Mustard and Agave Nectar in a small saucepan. Heat and serve.

Apricot Dipping Sauce

Ingredients: 

1 C. Apricot Preserves

2 Tbsp. Dijon mustard

Directions:

Combine apricot preserves and Dijon mustard. Heat and serve.

Coconut Chicken Tenders

Ingredients:

1 C. Angel Flake coconut

½ C. flour

½ tsp salt

¼ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp garlic powder

1 ½ lbs boneless, skinless chicken tenders

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/3 C. butter or margarine

Directions:

Heat oven to 400°F. Mix coconut, flour, salt, pepper, and garlic powder in medium bowl. Dip chicken strips into egg, then coat with coconut mixture. Place in a shallow baking pan; drizzle with melted butter. Bake 25 minutes or until chicken is browned and cooked through, turning once. Serve with dipping sauce (see below).

Dipping Sauces:

• Apricot Dipping Sauce 
• Cranberry Mustard Sauce 

Recipes adapted from the internet. I am unable to remember their location.

Agave Nectar Rice Pudding

Ingredients:

1 1/2 C. cooked white rice

1 1/2 C. skim milk

1/4 C. Agave Nectar

1/4/ tsp salt

1 egg, beaten

1 Tbsp butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

Directions:

In a saucepan, combine the rice, milk, agave nectar and salt. Cook over medium heat until thick and creamy, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in beaten egg. Cook 2 minutes more, stirring constantly. Remove from heat; stir in butter and vanilla. Serve warm.

Notes: You may add 2/3 C. raisins when you add the egg, if you desire. You may also sprinkle this with cinnamon. 

Recipe from Jen

Tortellini, Peppers and Tomato Soup

Ingredients:

4 Tbsp butter

8 cloves garlic

8 C. chicken broth

12 oz  fresh or frozen cheese tortellini

2 – 14 oz cans diced tomatoes, with their juice

2 yellow or orange peppers, chopped

1 16 oz bag shredded carrots

1 Tbsp basil

Parmesan, grated

Directions:

Melt butter in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Add garlic, peppers and carrots and sauté until tender. Add broth and bring to a boil. Add tortellini and cook halfway, about 5 minutes for frozen pasta, less if using fresh. Add tomatoes and juice, reduce heat to simmer and cook just until pasta is tender. Stir in basil and cook about 1-2 minutes. Serve with grated parmesan.

I can't remember where I got this recipe, so I can't give proper credit. 

If you recognize it, please let me know where it's from so I can credit 

the correct place. Thank you!

Agave Nectar Ketchup

I made this because we ran out of ketchup and I had a bunch of frozen tomatoes, as well as some agave nectar and decided to try my hand at homemade ketchup. I have always been a Heinz gal myself but really don't like that it has corn syrup in it. Corn syrup does really strange things to my children so I try not to feed it to them very often. I wasn't sure if my kids and my husband would like it and I SURE wasn't sure I'D like it (I'm the picky one in our family), but lo and behold - we ALL loved it! So, it looks like we'll be switching to homemade from now on! I'm so excited!

Ingredients:

1- 28-oz can whole tomatoes (I used about 5-6 tomatoes that I had frozen)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 Tbsp tomato paste

1/2 C. agave nectar

1 Tbsp molasses

1/2 C. cider vinegar

1/2 tsp salt
1/2 Tbsp garlic powder

Directions:

Heat oil in a large, heavy pan. Sauté onions until soft, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, puree tomatoes in a blender. Add tomato paste and puree another 30-seconds or so.

When onions are soft, add tomato puree and remaining ingredients. Simmer for approximately 1 hour, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.

Once mixture has cooled slightly, puree in batches. Cool for 2 hours before serving. 

Makes approximately 2 cups. Keeps for approximately 3 weeks in a well-sealed container.

Enjoy!

Adapted from The Kitchen.com