day five hundred and seven

more healthy recipes are in the mix (#59). also, and this is a big one, i finally used my food processor for the first time (#45)! my mom gave this lovely machine to me for christmas in '07, and while i made sure to unpack it at every apartment i moved into, i was a little intimidated by all the parts and the user manual's sheer size. but recently i tried some brownies that my mom brought with her to seattle (again, courtesy of my stepdad), and i had to make some of my own. so good, and so (relatively) good for me. i didn't realize until after i'd purchased all the necessities that the recipe required a food processor. so, i buckled down, did some reading, and got the thing together really embarrassingly easily. now i'm inspired to make a ton of new things with it!

in all its spinning glory!

ok, now for the new recipe. what you need:

• fifteen ounces black beans, cooked -- canned, drained
• one-fourth cup unsweetened cocoa powder
• one teaspoon espresso powder
• three-fourth cup egg substitute (i used three eggs instead)
• three tablespoons whole wheat flour (i used white)
• three-fourth cup agave nectar
• one tablespoon unsalted butter -- melted
• one teaspoon vanilla extract
• one cup pecans -- coursely chopped (i used almonds)

preheat the oven to three hundred and fifty degrees. spray an eight-by-eight inch baking dish with cooking spray. rinse and drain the canned black beans. combine the beans, cocoa powder, espresso powder, egg substitute and flour in the bowl of a food processor. process until the mixture is smooth, about two minutes, scraping down the bowl halfway through.

add the agave, butter and vanilla. process until all the ingredients are combined, about one minute. pour the batter into the baking dish and smooth the top with a spatula. bake for twenty minutes, turning the dish halfway through the baking time. remove the baking dish from the oven and turn down the temperature to three hundred degrees. spread the pecans evenly across the top of the brownies and bake for another eight minutes, until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out with a little bit of soft batter clinging to it. it should not come out clean; if it does, it's overcooked.

let the bars cool completely at room temperature in the baking dish on a wire rack. then put them in the refrigerator for at least three hours. when they're cold, cut them into squares and serve. refrigerate any leftovers.

voila! seriously, these taste just like not-so-healthy brownies. i love them.

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day five hundred and three

i just passed the halfway mark! and to celebrate, goal #22 = achieved. a very generous friend invited a bunch of us up to his parents' home in silver star ski resort for a few days of snow-themed adventure. most people did some downhill skiing and snowboarding, some tubed (WHOO!), i attempted cross-country skiing again (though not as successfully as in the overwhelmingly flat forests of suburban chicago), and kyle and i took the opportunity to build a snowman. yes, i've done this before, but it's been a reeeeeally long time. this may have been the easiest goal yet!

trying to make the left spatula arm fit.

completed! meet harold bucket. i can't remember why i gave him that name.

arty shot up close, to capture all his features.


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day four hundred and ninety-six

recipe number eleven: almond honey power bars! (#59)

about a month ago my mom visited me for a weekend in seattle, and she brought with her a sample one of these that my stepdad made. i thought it was pretty tasty, especially considering how healthy it is compared to other granola type snacks. so, i got the recipe and gave it a shot. some of the ingredients were pretty expensive, so i made some modifications based on some alternatives i already had and how much money i felt like spending overall.

ingredients:

• one cup old-fashioned rolled oats
• one-fourth cup slivered almonds
• one-fourth cup sunflower seeds
• one tablespoon flaxseeds, preferably golden (i could only find the dark brown kind)
• one tablespoon sesame seeds
• one cup unsweetened whole-grain puffed cereal (kashi makes one)
• one-third cup golden raisins (i used regular since i already had 'em)
• one-third cup dried apricots (i substituted dried cranberries)
• one-third cup currants (yeah, didn't include bother looking for those)
• one-fourth cup creamy almond butter
• one-fourth cup turbinado sugar (i used brown sugar)
• one-fourth cup honey*
• one-half teaspoon vanilla extract
• one-eighth teaspoon salt (i didn't do this, because the sunflower seeds i bought were salted)

directions:

• preheat oven to three hundred and fifty degrees.
• coat an eight-inch square pan with cooking spray.
• spread the oats, almonds, sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, and sesame seeds on a large, rimmed baking sheet. bake until the oats are lightly toasted and the nuts are fragrant, shaking the pan halfway through (about ten minutes**). transfer to a large bowl and add the cereal, currants, apricots (or cranberries) and raisins. toss to combine.
• combine the almond butter, sugar, honey, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan. heat over medium-low, stirring frequently, until the mixture bubbles lightly (two to five minutes).
• immediately pour the almond butter mixture over the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula until no dry spots remain. transfer to the prepared pan. lightly coat your hands with cooking spray and press the mixture down firmly to make an even layer (this is easier if you wait for it to cool first). refrigerate until firm, about thirty minutes. then cut and serve!

*the first batch came out pretty dry and crumbly, so i doubled the honey to one-half cup the second time around and the consistency turned out perfectly.

**the first batch also came out with a weird burny aftertaste. for take two i cut the baking time in half. still, weirdly, a little off? but much tastier.