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Almond Delights or Almond Datelights — gluten free with natural sugar

These bars are delightful or should I say datelightul? I’ve seen versions of these called Snickers Bars with almonds but, personally, I don’t think the name fits. I thought of Almond Joy but there’s no coconut! These delightful bars begin with a base of almond flour (along with oat flour) mixed with almond nut butter and date or maple syrup. A date paste composes the gooey, caramel-like layer that is topped with toasted, sliced almonds and then spread with dark chocolate. Created to delight, these bars are also gluten-free and use only natural sugars. This is a nutrient-packed recipe so watch out as they are also packed with calories . . . but these bars are so rich that a small one satisfies most sweet lovers. 


Almond Delights or Almond Datelights    Yield: 8x8-inch pan; about 12 bars

Bottom Crust 

3/4 cup almond flour

1/4 almond butter, no sugar added

1/2 cup oat flour (to make your own – add a little over 1/2 cup old fashioned or quick oats to the blender or food processor and blend until it creates a somewhat coarse oat flour

2 tablespoons date syrup or real maple syrup 

Caramel Middle

3/4 cup date paste (cook about 1 cup of dates with 3-4 tablespoons of water until softened, adding more water as needed; process in a food processor until smooth 

2 tablespoons almond butter

1 teaspoon  vanilla

Topping

1/2 cup of chopped or sliced almonds, toasted (place in a 350° oven for 4-5 minutes or until they just begin to turn golden; watch closely)

1 cup dark chocolate chips

  1. Line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment paper.
  2. Combine almond flour, almond butter, oat flour, date syrup and salt.

  3. Press mixture into pan to form bottom base layer.  Place in freezer.
  4. For middle layer, combine date paste, almond butter, and vanilla.

  5. Spread on top of bottom layer and sprinkle with almonds. Place back in freezer.
  6. Melt chocolate and spread over top to set. You can also cut into bars first and dip in chocolate to cover like a candy bar. Since these bars keep best when refrigerated, I left the chocolate off. When ready to serve, I microwaved enough chocolate chips to cover a couple of bars, and then spread it over the tops of the cut and plated bars. 
Recipe without photos . . . Almond Delights or Almond Datelights    Yield: 8x8-inch pan; about 12 bars

Bottom Crust 

3/4 cup almond flour

1/4 almond butter, no sugar added

1/2 cup oat flour (to make your own – add a little over 1/2 cup old fashioned or quick oats to the blender or food processor and blend until it creates a somewhat coarse oat flour

2 tablespoons date syrup or real maple syrup 

Caramel Middle

3/4 cup date paste (cook about 1 cup of dates with 3-4 tablespoons of water until softened, adding more water as needed; process in a food processor until smooth 

2 tablespoons almond butter

1 teaspoon  vanilla

Topping

1/2 cup of chopped or sliced almonds, toasted (place in a 350° oven for 4-5 minutes or until they just begin to turn golden; watch closely)

1 cup dark chocolate chips

  1. Line an 8x8-inch pan with parchment paper.
  2. Combine almond flour, almond butter, oat flour, date syrup and salt.
  3. Press mixture into pan to form bottom base layer.  Place in freezer.
  4. For middle layer, combine date paste, almond butter, and vanilla.
  5. Spread on top of bottom layer and sprinkle with almonds. Place back in freezer.
  6. Melt chocolate and spread over top to set. You can also cut into bars first and dip in chocolate to cover like a candy bar. Since these bars keep best when refrigerated, I left the chocolate off. When ready to serve, I microwaved enough chocolate chips to cover a couple of bars, and then spread it over the tops of the cut and plated bars. 

Creating Legacy — Munson Dutch Meatloaf in a 9x13” baking dish

The latest edition of KANSAS! Magazine (vol 79, issue 2, 2023) features an article about Abilene, Kansas' Legacy restaurant — a fusion of the historic Brookville chicken dining establishment and Munson’s Prime. An ongoing labor of love taken on by Deanna Munson and her husband Chuck who passed away right before the magazine’s release. In a Facebook tribute to the family, the staff of KANSAS! allowed access to the article that tells the generational story about Munson beef and how they became involved in their latest venture. See it @  https://www.travelks.com/kansas-magazine/articles/post/creating-legacy-in-abilene

The Taste section always includes a recipe, and Deanna shared a family favorite that sometimes shows up on the Legacy menu. 

Munson Dutch Meatloaf — This meatloaf recipe features the natural flavors of Munson’s premium ground beef, available at Legacy Kansas. With just enough fat to add a buttery taste, their prime ground beef ups the ante for meatloaf. Deanna adapted this recipe from a traditional Pennsylvania Dutch meatloaf recipe and originally prepared it for church potlucks. For that reason, the recipe is baked in 9x13-inch casserole dishes to serve a crowd, but it could easily be cut in half. 

Yield: 24 to 30 servings

4 cups fresh bread crumbs

2 large onions, chopped

2 (8 ounce) cans tomato paste 

4 eggs

2 tablespoons salt

1 teaspoon black pepper

7 to 8 pounds Munson premium ground beef

1.   Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

2.   Pulverize all ingredients but ground beef; hand-fold pulverized ingredients into ground beef. 

3.   Press meat mixture into two greased or sprayed 9x13-inch baking dishes. Using fingertips or a wooden spoon, press many holes into meat mixture.

Sauce

3 cups water

6 tablespoons prepared mustard

6 tablespoons white vinegar

6 tablespoons packed brown sugar

 

1.   Mix together water, mustard, vinegar, and brown sugar. Pour 3/4 of the sauce over the meat. 

2.   Cover and bake 10 minutes at 400 degrees. Reduce oven temperature to 350 degrees and bake for 1 hour 50 minutes, adding more sauce as needed. Remove cover last 10 minutes of baking.

3.   Cut in squares; serve with a spatula tucked fully under one piece for easy removal.

Pizza Sticks “I Like Ava”

We hosted a hands-on cooking dinner for a friend, Judy Burgess, and her family, including her son, daughter-in-law, and their two adorable children. The menu was based on the food preferences of the kids and the printed menu was designed to include their names (Mack and Ava). The pizza sticks were quite a hit. You’ll notice on the menu that I originally called them Pizza Sticks à la “Ava”. However, Judy told me that on the way home, as the kids shared their favorites about the evening, Ava’s choice was Pizza Sticks “I Like Ava”. The name stuck and I have officially renamed the recipe. I have added notes (in red) explaining how I adapted this recipe so the kids could help.)      
Pizza Sticks "I Like Ava".
Original Menu before amending. 
Mack & Ava with Meta; Pizza Twists "I Like Ava" to the side. 

Pizza Sticks “I Like Ava”       Yield: 12 to 13 sticks

1 batch pizza dough (if using linked recipe, cut it in half for the equivalent of 1 batch of pizza dough,  or use 1 (13.8 oz) tube pizza crust 

About 1/4 to1/3 cup pizza or pasta sauce + extra for dipping (I just add Italian seasoning + a few drops of olive oil to purchased tomato sauce)

About 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

Olive oil for brushing sticks, or use olive oil spray

About 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

About 2 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

  1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Roll out the dough into a rectangle (Ideally roll out on a silicon baking sheet for easy handling.) If the dough is misshapen, cut edges into a rectangle shape but it’s okay if edges are slightly wavy. (I had this done but let the kids use to rolling pin to straighten out the dough)
  3. Use a pizza cutter to cut dough in half lengthwise. 
  4. Sparingly spread pizza sauce on one side of the dough. (We talked about the word sparingly before they began brushing on the sauce.)
  5. Add grated mozzarella cheese — use filling ingredients sparingly because as you twist the breadsticks any extra filling will squeeze out the edges. (They again practiced sprinkling on the cheese sparingly.) Finely chopped pepperoni, herbs, etc. could also be added at this point. 
  6. Place the other half on top the pizza side. 
  7. Slice into 1" strips. (I demonstrated and then they each carefully cut a strip or two. No they were not perfectly straight . . . but that makes little difference!)
  8. Use a fork to press down the sides of each breadstick. (An especially fun task for kids - a salad fork was the perfect utensil.)
  9. Twist two times and place on prepared baking sheet. (We ended up with a few more twists & so rather long sticks . . . but what fun we had!)
  10. Brush the tops of the stick with olive oil or use olive oil spray and then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning. (We actually omitted this step because we were so excited to put them in the oven.)
  11. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are slightly golden brown. 
  12. Serve with extra pizza sauce.


Hope, Ava and Mackpreparing Chix Stix

Recipe without photos . . .Pizza Sticks “I Like Ava”       Yield: 12 to 13 sticks

1 batch pizza dough (if using linked recipe, cut it in half for the equivalent of 1 batch of pizza dough,  or use 1 (13.8 oz) tube pizza crust 

About 1/4 to1/3 cup pizza or pasta sauce + extra for dipping (I just add Italian seasoning + a few drops of olive oil to purchased tomato sauce)

About 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

Olive oil for brushing sticks, or use olive oil spray

About 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

About 2 1/2 teaspoons Italian seasoning

  1. Preheat the oven to 425°. Line baking sheet(s) with parchment paper and set aside.
  2. Roll out the dough into a rectangle (Ideally roll out on a silicon baking sheet for easy handling.) If the dough is misshapen, cut edges into a rectangle shape but it’s okay if edges are slightly wavy.
  3. Use a pizza cutter to cut dough in half lengthwise.
  4. Sparingly spread pizza sauce on one side of the dough. 
  5. Add grated mozzarella cheese — use filling ingredients sparingly because as you twist the breadsticks any extra filling will squeeze out the edges.
  6. Place the other half on top the pizza side. 
  7. Slice into 1" strips. 
  8. Use a fork to press down the sides of each breadstick. 
  9. Twist two times and place on prepared baking sheet. 
  10. Brush the tops of the stick with olive oil or use olive oil spray and then sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning. Finely chopped pepperoni, herbs, etc. could also be added at this point. 
  11. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes or until edges are slightly golden brown. 
  12. Serve with extra pizza sauce.

“Pies by Pro” featuring recipes from a NY pie shop: Petra's Coffee Cream Pie & Pie Crust

 “Pies by Pro” is the title assigned to the article I wrote about Vivenne Pro for the Lawreance magazine. While it is so fitting, it also lays claim to an amazing accomplishment by 13-year-old Viv. The magazine article tells her story and her connection to a famous New York pie shop. A digital edition  of the magazine is available at https://issuu.com/sunflower_publishing/docs/lm23sp; Viv’s story is on pages 20-23.

Although recipes were not included in the magazine article, I did receive permission to use them from  Petra “Petee” Paredez, owner of Petee’s Pie Shop and author of “Pie For Everyone.  Petra’s book was published in 2022 by Abrams, The Art of Books, New York. 

Viv's Coffee Cream Pie.
Professional photographer taking photos for the article layout. 
Page from the magazine.

 

Petra's Pastry Dough   Makes two 9-inch (23-cm) pie crusts

Viv substitutes all-purpose flour for the whole wheat but otherwise follows Petra’s descriptive and detailed directions as written. 

 

INGREDIENTS

1 tablespoon sugar

1 1/4 teaspoons salt

1/4 cup (60 ml) boiling water

2 1/4 loosely filled cups (280 g) whole-wheat or graham flour (Viv uses all-purpose)

1 cup (2 sticks / 225 g) cold unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch (12-mm) pieces

Extra flour, for rolling 

 

INSTRUCTIONS

1.   Stir the sugar, salt, and water together in a small bowl until the sugar and salt are fully dissolved. Place the bowl in the freezer—the liquid needs to be ice cold before it is added to the dough. 

2.   Put the flour in a large bowl and dump the butter into the flour. Toss to coat the pieces of fat in the flour. Working quickly, use your thumbs and index fingers to squeeze each chunk of fat into a thin sheet, between1/8 and 1/4 inch (3 and 6 mm) thick. Shake the contents of the bowl to ensure the sheets are well coated with flour. 

3.   Sprinkle the ice-cold sugar-salt solution over the fat and flour.

4.   Use your fingers to lightly toss the contents of the bowl around to disperse the liquid.

5.     Squeeze the shaggy mess with your fists, repeatedly and quickly, until the chunks get bigger and more cohesive. At first it will be crumbly and seem as if it won’t come together but with continued compression, you can begin to make two mounds of dough of roughly equal size.

6.     Flatten your mounds into 1-inch (2.5 cm-) thick disks. 

7.     Prepare a clean, dry nonporous surface by sprinkling it with flour. Place a disk of dough on top of the floured surface and sprinkle it with a little more flour. Place your rolling pin in the center of the dough and roll away from yourself with firm, even pressure, but not enough force to squish the dough. As you approach the edge of the dough, use a little less pressure so that it doesn't become too thin on the edges.

8.   Rotate the dough about 45 degrees. Place the rolling pin at the center of the disk and roll away from yourself once again.

9.   Continue to rotate and roll, adding more flour as needed to prevent the dough from sticking to the surface and/or the rolling pin, until you’ve rolled the dough to approximately 1/8 inch (3 mm) thick. If the dough start to split on the edges, you can gently press it back together before continuing to roll it our. The finished sheet of dough should be roughly 12 inches (30.5 cm) in diameter. 

10. Transfer the sheet of dough into a pie pan, centering it so that you have at least 1 inch (2.5 cm) of extra dough all the way around the edges of the pan. While transferring, support the dough with your fingers spread out, in order to distribute the weight and prevent breakage. 

11. Once the sheet of dough is in the pan, ease it into the corner where the base of the pan meets the sides. In order to do this without stretching or breaking the dough, lift the edge of the dough with one hand to allow it to fall into place while gently pressing it into the corner with the other.

12. Either keep a simple edge or crimp the crust.

Since this pie crust is being used for a cream pie, Viv uses Peta’s pie weight method to blind bake the crust: 

To Blind Bake Crust

13. Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

14. Line the pie shell with a circle of parchment paper. Add dry beans, uncooked rice, or pie weights to reach about two-thirds of the way up the sides of the crust.

15. Bake the shell for 20 minutes, then carefully remove the pie weights and parchment paper. If you made a crimped edge, gently cover it with a strip of aluminum foil or a pie crust protector. Put the shell bake in the oven and bake for 15 minutes more to fully bake the bottom of the crust.

 

Petra's Coffee Cream Pie   Makes one 9-inch (23-cm) pie 

In her book Petra explains the origin of this filling, “I set out to re-create the flavor of coffee ice cream in the form of a pie.” Viv and her family agree that she succeeded. 

 

INGREDIENTS

For the coffee pudding and assembly:

2/3 cup (135 g) sugar 

2 tablespoons cornstarch

3/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder

1/8 teaspoon salt

1 egg

2 egg yolks

2/3 cup (165 ml) heavy cram

2/3 cup (165 ml) whole milk

1 teaspoon vanilla

1 bottom crust, blind-baked

 

For the coffee whipped cream:

1/3 cup (40 g) confectioners’ sugar

3/4 teaspoon instant espresso powder

Pinch of salt

1 1/2 cups (360 ml) heavy cream

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

Ground cinnamon, for sprinkling

 

INSTRUCTIONS

Make the coffee pudding and assemble the pie:

1.   In a medium saucepan, whisk together the sugar, cornstarch, espresso powder, and  salt. Whisk in the egg and egg yolks to form a paste. Gradually whisk in the cream, then whisk in the milk.

2.   Cook over medium heat, whisking constantly, until you feel the pudding start to thicken on the bottom of the pan, about 10 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and trade your whisk for a rubber spatula. Continue stirring with the spatula, scraping the sides and bottom of the pan to prevent burning. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes more, or until the pudding has bubbled for about 2 minutes and has thickened. Remove from heat and add the vanilla, stirring until smooth.

3.   Pour the hot pudding into the blind-baked crust, making sure to scrape the entire contents from the sides of the pan into the pie. Use the spatula to ease the pudding up the sides of the shell, leaving about 1/2 inch (12 mm) of the crust exposed on the outer edge.

4.   Place in the fridge and chill the pie for at least 1 hour, or until the surface of the pudding is cool to the touch.

Make the coffee whipped cream:

5.   Sift the confectioners’ sugar into the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl, then whisk in the espresso powder and salt. Pour in the heavy cream and vanilla. Using the whisk attachment or a hand-held mixer, beat on high until the cream is voluminous and can still hold its shape but is smooth. 

6.   Transfer the coffee whipped cream to a pastry bag with a round tip and pipe dollops onto the pudding, starting at the outer edge and working your way to the center. (Viv uses a simplified method: “I use a spatula to plop the whipped cream on the pie and  then smooth it over the filling.”)

7.   Put the pie in the fridge for another 3 hours to cool completely before serving.

8.    prinkle very lightly with cinnamon just before serving. 

The pie is best eaten the same day but it will keep for up to 3 days, covered, in the fridge. 

Vincent Price’s Mushroom Soup

I discovered this recipe years ago and recently reisurrceted it, making just a few changes and adjustments. Since I planned to served it prior to a prime rib dinner, I used beef broth instead of chicken. I also added cream to finish it, and topped it with a dollop of sour cream before serving in my Grandmother Richardson’s china soup bowls. 

The original recipe contained a note saying it was Vincent Price’s favorite soup. Vincent Price just happened to be one of my grandmother’s favorite actors. An online source said he was also a gourmet cook. 

Making the soup ahead is a convience but it also allows the flavors to meld in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, I reheated it, adding more broth and the cream. 

 

Vincent Price’s Mushroom Soup 

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, grated 

1 clove garlic, split

1 pound (button) mushroom caps, sliced thin

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 cups chicken or beef stock/broth + more for reheating or to achieve desired thickness

2 tablespoons sherry or  Italian vermouth, sweet 

1/2 teaspoon salt

Dash pepper

Heavy cream, optional – just enough to add a creamy note to the soup

Sour cream, optional – for garnish

  1. In a heavy soup pot,  saute onion and garlic gently and discard garlic.  
  2. Add mushroom and sauté 5 minutes.
  3. Mix in tomato paste and stock/broth.  Stir and add vermouth, salt and pepper.  
  4. Let simmer 10 minutes.
  5. Optional finishing: add enough cream for a creamy appearnce + additional stock/broth as desired.
  6. Garnish bowls of soup with a dollop of sour cream if desired. 
Recipe without photos . . . Vincent Price’s Mushroom Soup 

1 tablespoon butter

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 medium onion, grated 

1 clove garlic, split

1 pound (button) mushroom caps, sliced thin

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 cups chicken or beef stock/broth + more for reheating or to achieve desired thickness

2 tablespoons sherry or  Italian vermouth, sweet 

1/2 teaspoon salt

Dash pepper

Heavy cream, optional – just enough to add a creamy note to the soup

Sour cream, optional – for garnish

  1. In a heavy soup pot,  saute onion and garlic gently and discard garlic.  
  2. Add mushroom and sauté 5 minutes.  
  3. Mix in tomato paste and stock/broth.  Stir and add vermouth, salt and pepper.  
  4. Let simmer 10 minutes.
  5. Optional finishing: add enough cream for a creamy appearnce + additional stock/broth as desired.
  6. Garnish bowls of soup with a dollop of sour cream if desired.