Energy bars, or “power bars” as they’re called in our home, are a great snack to have on hand. Packed with nuts, grains, seeds, and dried fruit, they’re a high fiber, nutritious, and very tasty snack! Plus they’re simple to make and a great addition to sack lunches.

Here’s how to make them:

Mix together the dry ingredients in a baking dish. In the picture above I used flax, almonds, and pecans, because that’s what we had.

Toast them in the oven for 12 minutes, stirring once halfway.

 Meanwhile, mix the brown sugar, honey, butter, and salt together in a medium saucepan.

Heat on medium until it boils, then let boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cinnamon and/or extracts, if desired.

 Put the toasted mixture in a large bowl. Add the liquid mixture and the dried fruit.

Stir well…..

….then pour into the prepared pan. Oil your hands to prevent the mixture from sticking to them, then press it down hard into the pan.

Melt the chocolate chips, then spread over top. Lick spoon! :) Pop the pan in your fridge and let it sit for 2 -3 hours, until chocolate has hardened.

Score the top into whatever size pieces you’d like and use a heavy knife cut them into bars.

Wrap each one in plastic wrap.

Store in the refrigerator or freezer. Now you have a tasty, high-energy snack ready to go! Enjoy!

Nobles’ Power Bars

Ingredients:
3 cups rolled oats
3 cups any type of nuts, seeds, flaxseed, wheat germ, or shredded coconut  (you can use a combination of almonds, pecans, walnuts, peanuts, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, etc. Just make sure the final product equals 3 cups)

2/3 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup honey
6 Tablespoons butter
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
2 teaspoons vanilla or almond extract and/or cinnamon, optional

2 cups puffed cereal, such as rice crispies or Cheerios
1 cup dried fruit (raisins, Craisins, chopped dried apricots or cherries, etc.)
1 to 1 ½ cups dark chocolate chips (I like Ghirardelli’s 60% chocoate)

(1) Start by preheating your oven to 400 degrees. Generously coat a 10 by 15-inch baking pan with butter or cooking spray.

(2) Mix together the oats and nuts/seeds in a baking dish. Toast them in the oven for 12 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Meanwhile, combine the brown sugar, honey, butter, and salt together in a saucepan. Heat on medium until it boils, then let boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in the cinnamon and/or extracts, if desired.

(3) Put the toasted mixture in a large bowl. Add the liquid mixture, dried fruit, and puffed cereal. Stir well, then pour into the prepared pan. Oil your hands to prevent the mixture from sticking to them, then press it down hard into the pan. Melt the chocolate chips, then spread over top. Lick spoon! :)

(4) Pop the pan in your fridge and let it sit for 2 -3 hours, until chocolate has hardened. Score the top into whatever size pieces you’d like, then use a heavy knife cut them into bars. Wrap each one in plastic wrap. Store in the refrigerator or freexer. Now you have a tasty, high-energy snack ready to go! Enjoy!

Hello! :) Boy oh boy, do I ever have an amazing recipe for you! If you like hot, creamy, flavorful, and easy-to-make soup on a cold winter day, here’s something for you to try. As promised, I’m posting the soup we made for Mom and Daddy’s anniversary dinner. And yes, I re-named this soup, because there are several different vegetables in it – not just onions.

You won’t believe that this creamy vegetable soup is made without milk or cream. This would be the perfect kind of soup to serve in a bread bowl – something I would like to learn how to make. Best of all, it has only 5 main ingredients, and can be whipped up in no time. OK, I bet you’re dying to know how to make it by now, so here it is:

Creamy Vegetable Soup

12 cups vegetable and/or chicken stock (I used about half of each)

5 pounds of unpeeled red potatoes

3/4 cup butter

3 onions, sliced

4 tomatoes, cut into chunks

salt (2-3 tsp) and pepper (1 tsp)

Cook the potatoes in stock until nice and soft. Meanwhile, melt butter in a pan over medium heat. Add onions and tomatoes; saute until very soft (the mixture will be a bit squishy).

Use a blender to thoroughly blend potatoes, broth, onions, and tomatoes until smooth. I used our Vitamix, and blended it in four batches. Pour into a large saucepan; add the salt and pepper. Stir over heat until heated through (I didn’t need to do this, as the soup was plenty hot already). Garnish with parsley or cilantro, if you like.

This recipe makes a large batch, serving 8-12 people, depending on whether it’s enjoyed as a main dish. You can make it the day before, and simply re-heat on the stove the next day. Serve with a salad and some rolls or fresh bread. Enjoy! ;)

What do you like to make for dinner on cold winter nights?