Ironmom Bar

I love fruit and nut bars like Raw Bite and Nakd but only get them when they're half-priced. Then I learned how ridiculously easy they are to make. These three-ingredient bars are chewier and more pliable than the commercial bars and I found that I actually like them better that way. You can make your own variations by adding coconut chips, or cocoa, or adding different dried fruits and nuts. We take these on road trips as they keep well. I'll be seeing a lot of these in the next two years as I train for the Ironmom.  

13-15 pieces medjool dates, pitted (deglet dates work fine but I find medjool more moist)
1 cup dried fruit (I love the tartness of dried cherries and cranberries)
1 cup nuts (my go-to nuts are pecans)

Put all the ingredients in a food processor and pulse until everything is broken down fairly well and the ingredients form a ball, pulling off from the sides of the container. Transfer it to an 8x8" pan or glass dish lined with baking paper and press it flat with a spoon. It helps to use a small piece of baking paper to press the bar flat as it can be really sticky. Refrigerate. Slice into bars. 

Vietnamese Wrap and Roll

I recently visited Ho Chi Minh with my colleagues at the organic center that I work at. Vietnam is home to these wonderful pork and shrimp salad rolls. I can eat these everyday. They are healthy and do not leave you feeling heavy.  Since I couldn't bring my family to Vietnam, I brought Vietnam to our dinner table for my family. Put some lemongrass oil in a diffuser and enjoy a gastronomic trip with these rolls.

1-2 small packs glass noodles or harusame or vermicelli noodles
200 g thinly sliced pork
5-6 T The Best Grilled Meat Marinade (for cooking the pork)
1 carrot, sliced into long thin strips
200 g shrimp
a couple slices of ginger (for cooking the shrimp)
lettuce leaves (1 leaf per roll needed)
Vietnamese roll rice paper sheets
fresh cilantro (I didn't have these and they're usually quite expensive in the supermarket so I substituted with nira or garlic chives and it worked wonderfully -- but if you have access to cilantro, these are the cat's meow!)
cucumber, sliced into long thin strips (optional)

Pan fry pork in The Best Grilled Meat Marinade until done. Set aside.

Boil ginger slices in salted water. Toss in peeled and deveined shrimps. Cook until done. Slice in half lengthwise. Set aside.

Soak glass noodles in water for at least 20 minutes. Blanch in boiling water. Cool in running cold water. Drain. Set aside.

Dip two sheets of rice paper in water until completely damp on both sides and they have become soft and pliable. Lay on a plate one on top of the other. Put a piece of lettuce on the bottom half of the paper. Layer with carrots, coriander or garlic chives, cucumber (if using), pork pieces, and a clump of noodles. Fold bottom portion of the paper over the filling and fold in the left and the right sides. Place 2 shrimp halves over the top of the roll. Roll wrapper tightly until the edges seal shut. Serve with the dipping sauces below. 

Nut based dipping sauce

2 T soy sauce

1 T nut butter (I've successfully used peanut butter and almond butter, smooth and crunchy both okay)

1 T honey

1 T lemon or lime

1 T vinegar

1 T sesame oil

dash of pepper

1 clove garlic minced

chili powder (I eliminated this to make it kid-friendly)

Combine all ingredients and blend well. 

Fish sauce based dipping sauce

You may not be a fan of fish sauce but do give this sauce a try. The final sauce does not taste too strong or too fishy and is in fact a really delightful blend of sweet, salty and sour. 

2 cloves garlic peeled and finely chopped
1½ T sugar or honey

2 T lemon or lime

1 t vinegar

2 T fish sauce

¼ cup water

chili paste or sliced fresh chili (I eliminated this to make it kid-friendly)

Combine all ingredients and mix well. 

Everyday is Christmas Glazed Almonds

Cinnamon and maple glazed almonds spell Christmas but you need not wait for Christmas for this seriously addicting but thankfully healthy treat. So easy to make you will toss out this recipe after reading it. It's just 1-1-1 and multiply it as many times as you want. You can also use these to top a salad.

1 cup almonds
1 T maple syrup
1 t cinnamon powder

Toss almonds in maple syrup and cinnamon. Line baking pan with parchment paper. Bake for 12-15 minutes in 350°F. Cool and enjoy.

Abunai Chocolate Cookies

Abunai. A word uttered frequently by Japanese moms. It means "dangerous" or in the imperative, "Look out!"

It also describes this chocolate cookie. It is what my neighbor said when I gave her some. One has to look out lest an entire batch is consumed without thinking. It's that good.

½ cup butter

1 cup sugar

1 large egg

1 vanilla

1 cup all purpose flour

⅓ cup cocoa

½ t baking soda

pinch of salt

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

Cream butter and sugar. Add egg, and vanilla extract. Mix in dry ingredients. Fold in chocolate. Bake in 350°F for 9-10 minutes. Cool and enjoy with coffee.

Jack-Approved Chocolate Coconut Oatmeal Cookie

We have a neighbor named Jack who runs an organic vegetarian cafe. Every so often, I share with Jack some of my baked goodies. Jack is always grateful but sparing with his praise, but there is one cookie that he complimented and so his approval is especially memorable. If Jack says it's good, it must be good. I came across this recipe when someone gifted us with shredded coconut and I wasn't sure what to do with it. The original recipe from Ambitious Kitchen called for coconut oil but I like butter better. 

1 cup oats (original recipe called for quick oats. I used regular rolled oats just fine)

1 cup all purpose flour

1 t baking soda

¼ t salt (I omit this if I use salted butter which is sometimes the only thing available)

½ cup butter

¾ cups sugar

1 egg

2 t vanilla

1 cup shredded coconut

2 t milk

100 g chocolate (original recipe called for chocolate chunks. I just used semi-sweet chocolate chips)

Mix wet ingredients, then mix in the dry ingredients, chunkier ingredients last. Bake at 350°F for 9-11 minutes. 

I-Don't-Like-Potatoes Potato Dango

A friend from the forest kindergarten the kids used to go to had a son who didn't like potatoes but her father grew a lot of them. She looked for a recipe that jazzed them up and modified their potato-ness and found a recipe for potato dango. Her son loves these. The first time I tried them, I was surprised by how chewy and tasty they were. She brought them to our  potluck event and they were not piping hot when served but were still exceptionally good and in fact were one of the first things gone at the buffet. This recipe makes about 10 pieces of potato dango (about 4 cm diameter). Double or triple the recipe as needed - you'll probably need to!

5 pieces small potatoes
2 T katakuriko or cornstarch (the more you put, the chewier they become)
2 T milk or soy milk
1 T mirin
2 T soy sauce
1 T sugar (optional)
Oil for pan frying

Mix the mirin, soy sauce and sugar in a bowl and set aside. Peel the potatoes and boil them until soft enough for a fork to go through. Drain the water and pat dry. Mash the potatoes with a fork (I like to do it by hand). Add the katakuriko and the milk. Mix and mash well. Form them into round flat cakes about 4 cm in diameter and about 1 cm thick. Pan fry them in oil until slightly brown. When done, add the mirin-soy sauce-sugar mix and toss the potato dango in the sauce until nicely coated. Serve.