Crunchy Yellow Pea Poppers

Here’s an easy and healthy back-to-school snack!

Crunchy Yellow Pea Poppers

Ingredients

• 1 C yellow split peas
• water
• 1 T olive oil or butter
• salt and pepper, or other seasonings as desired

Directions

Begin by placing the split peas in a large bowl and covering them with cool water. You’ll want them to be covered by at least 1 inch of water. Allow the peas to sit, hydrating, for 4 hours.  Then, rinse and drain. 

Pat the peas dry with a tea towel and then warm a skillet over medium heat.  Add the butter or olive oil and then, add the peas about 1/3 of them at a time, to the skillet.  Season with salt and pepper and sauté over medium heat for 5-7 minutes until lightly browned and crunchy.  Repeat with the remaining peas. 

Cool and store in an airtight container.  Enjoy!

Oatmeal Apple Muffins

These muffins are a hearty and tasty way to get your apple-a-day!  Power packed with antioxidants from the apple and delicious whole grains from the oats, these muffins make a great breakfast or snack. 

Drizzle with a little powdered sugar glaze, and you even have dessert. 

Regardless of how you enjoy them, you will.  They freeze wonderfully, so make a double batch so you have some around when you need them.

Oatmeal Apple Muffins – Inspired by Lynn’s Kitchen Adventure

Ingredients

• 3 C old fashioned oats
• 1 1/2 C milk
• 1/3 C brown sugar
• 1/8 C olive oil
• 2 eggs
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp. nutmeg
• 2 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 medium apple, finely chopped

Directions

Begin by combining the 3 C oats with 1 1/2 C milk.  Stir well and let the mixture sit for 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, wash and chop the apple and prepare the muffin tin (n=12) with liners that have been lightly sprayed with oil. 

Next, stir in 1/3 C brown sugar, 1/8 C olive oil and 2 eggs.  Add in the 1 tsp. cinnamon and 1/4 tsp. nutmeg along with 2 tsp. baking powder and 1/4 tsp. salt.  Stir well.

At this point the muffin batter should be getting “gummy” like oatmeal does when you begin to cook it.  If it’s not starting to get thick yet, allow the mixture to sit for 5-7 minutes.  The batter will be wetter and thinner than traditional muffin batters.   

Then, add in the chopped apple. 

Stir well.

Scoop the batter into a prepared muffin cup, filling almost to the brim.  These muffins don’t rise a ton, so you don’t have to worry about getting them too full. 

Bake at 350 for 17-20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. 

Remove each muffin from the pan and immediately place them onto a cooling rack.

Cool for 20-30 minutes before eating, and if desired drizzle the top with a simple glaze of powdered sugar (1/4 C) and 1-2 tsp. milk. 

Enjoy!

Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites

So last week, I shared with you delicious apple oatmeal bites.  And, until I made these, those were my favorite.  Then, I made some pumpkin oatmeal cookie dough, added chocolate chips and called it an afternoon snack. 

They count as a snack because they are wholesome, and they aren’t baked.  They are only a cookie if they are baked, right?! 

Pumpkin Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Bites – Adapted from Chocolate Covered Katie

Ingredients

• 1 C quick cook oats
• 1/2 C oat flour*
• pinch of salt
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice
• 1/8 C brown sugar
• 1/8 C honey
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/3 C sweet potato puree
• 1/8 C dark chocolate chips

Directions

Begin by making the oat flour – to do so, take roughly 1/2 C oats and grind them in a food processor or blender until a flour forms.  Combine the oat flour with 1 C quick cooking oats in a large bowl.  Add in a pinch of salt, 1/8 tsp. baking soda, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, and a pinch of nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice. 

Mix in 1/8 C chocolate chips (more or less to taste). 

In a second bowl, combine 1/8 C brown sugar, 1/8 C honey, 1/2 tsp. vanilla and 1/3 C sweet potato puree. 

Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ones until moist.  Then, refrigerate for 5-10 minutes. 

Shape into balls and place into an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. 

Makes about 12 1 T bite-sized cookie dough bites. 

Enjoy!

Store the leftovers in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.  Makes about 1 dozen. 

No-Bake Apple Cinnamon Energy Bites

What’s not to love about granola, applesauce, apple bites, and cinnamon in a no-bake granola bite? 

These are perfect for an after schools snack, and are easy enough for even your kids to help make. 

No-Bake Apple Cinnamon Energy Bites

Ingredients

• 1 C quick cook oats
• 1/2 C oat flour*
• pinch of salt
• 1/8 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. cinnamon
• pinch of nutmeg
• 1/4 C unsweetened applesauce
• 1/8 C brown sugar
• 1/8 C honey
• 1/8 C apple maple sauté

Directions

Take roughly 1/2 C of oats and pulse it in a blender or food processor until a smooth powder forms; measure out 1/2 C of oat flour and combine this oat flour* with 1 C quick cooking oats.

Add in a pinch of salt, 1/8 tsp. baking soda, and 3/4 tsp. cinnamon along with a pinch of nutmeg.  Stir well. 

Mix in 1/4 C unsweetened applesauce, 1/8 C brown sugar and 1/8 C honey. Add in 1/8 C cooled apple maple sauté.  Mix until all ingredients are moist. 

Refrigerate for 10 minutes. 

Then, using a cookie scoop, create 1 T balls of the granola apple mixture.  You’ll get about 12-14 energy bites in total. 

Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. 

Enjoy!

Fruit & Yogurt Wraps

A tasty and refreshing breakfast or after school treat. 

Tortillas stuffed with yogurt, honey and fruit.  Rolled in cinnamon and sugar. 

Yum!

Fruit & Yogurt Wraps – Adapted from Tidy Mom

Ingredients

• 4 fajita-sized tortillas
• 1/2 T butter, melted
• 3 T sugar
• 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
• 1 C plain Greek Yogurt (or your favorite yogurt variety)
• 4 tsp. honey
• 1 C frozen fruit or 1/4 C your favorite fruit preserve

Directions

Begin by melting 1/2 T butter and using a pastry brush to coat one side of each fajita.  Place the fajitas butter-side down one at a time onto a plate where 3 T sugar have been mixed with 1/2 tsp. cinnamon. 

Top each tortilla with 1/4 C yogurt, spreading it in the center, leaving about a 1-inch margin around the edge. 

Drizzle approximately 1 tsp. honey over the yogurt. 

Layer fruit or fruit preserve over the top. 

We enjoyed blueberry, raspberry frozen fruit tucked inside these, as well as a raspberry rhubarb preserve option.  Yum! 

Note: if you use a preserve, like the raspberry rhubarb pictured above, be sure to leave at least 1 inch along the margin and spread your filling thing; otherwise it will ooze out when you roll it up. 

Roll up the tortilla and place them onto a cookie sheet. 

Freeze for 20-30 minutes. 

Slice in half. 

Place into a freezer-friendly bag or container. 

To serve, thaw at room temperature for 25-30 minutes before enjoying.  Don’t let them sit out too long or they will get soggy.  We found about 25 minutes was perfect.  These can easily be taken out of the freezer when you get up in the morning and they’ll be ready by the time you make your way to the kitchen for breakfast! 

They also make a great afternoon snack. 

Enjoy!

Dark Chocolate Graham Crackers

Yep.  These would be amazing for s’mores. 

I doubt you’d even need additional chocolate bars… although, who can say no to extra chocolate, right?!

The recipe is simple and takes no more time than making your own crackers. 

We loved snitching them from our snack drawer, and they also worked great in our Carvel Ice Cream Cake copy-cat recipe.  Yum, yum!

Dark Chocolate Graham Crackers – Adapted from Elise Bakes

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 C white whole wheat flour
• 7/8 C powdered sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1/2 C dark chocolate cocoa powder
• 6 T butter, softened
• 1 T honey
• 6 T milk

Directions

Begin by sifting together 1 1/2 C white whole wheat flour with 7/8 C powdered sugar, 1 tsp. baking powder, 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/2 C dark chocolate cocoa powder. 

Using a fork or pastry blender, cut in 6 T softened butter.  Keep working at this step… it takes time.  Don’t give up early. 

Mix together the 1 T honey and 4-6 T milk; add slowly to the mixture. 

Pack the dough together in a ball; when it sticks, you’ll know you have your base ready. 

Break off some dough in small chunks.  Roll out the dough to 1/8 – 1/4 inch thickness.  

Place on parchment paper.  Then, cut the dough into 1 1/2 – 2 inch squares; or if you prefer, make them look more like graham crackers. 

Poke them with a fork. 

Bake on parchment on a cookie sheet in a pre-heated oven at 325 for 12-15 minutes. Check after 10 and remove any crackers around the edges (which seem to always get done faster than the others!). 

Split apart the center crackers and spread them out for the last few minutes of baking – it will help them get crispy. 

Remove from the oven and transfer the crackers to a cooling rack. After about 5 minutes on the rack you’ll be able to tell if the crackers are crispy enough.  If not, simply return them back to the oven for additional baking.

Repeat until all the dough is used. 

Store in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks (although they won’t last that long!). 

Like I said… they would make excellent S’mores!