Homemade Date Granola Bars

I have officially hit the weight loss plateau after a year. My trainer suggested that I change my eating habits. Okay, suggested might be a mild term. He laid out an entire meal plan for me.

Therefore, my next few recipe posts are going to be just me learning to cope with the meal plan. It consists of small and clean meals, heavy on protein to help my muscles repair and build.

One of the small meals consist of a protein shake and a granola bar after my work out. I like granola bars, but realize that the kind I like to eat aren’t necessarily healthy. Since they are loaded with sugar and unnecessary carbs, I decided to make my own.

Of course this step involves Pinterest. I searched for Healthy Granola Bars, and I came up with a link to tasty looking “Healthy Five Ingredient Granola Bars.” I already had 4 out of 5 of the ingredients so I decided to make them after a quick trip to the store for pitted dates.

These were fun to make and did not require much baking. I don’t like to turn the oven on in the summer since it is already so hot. I kick it up for twenty minutes or so to toast the oats, but that was not a necessary step.

Overall, the recipe was very tasty. My husband like them a lot as well (I made ten bars three days ago, and there are only three left now). However, when I calculated the calories per bar, it was 228 calories per serving. This is not horrible, but I prefer that it would be a little less. Therefore, if I make them again, I will cut them into 12 bars instead of 10. This would lower each serving by 38 calories, making them 190.

The original recipe from Minimalist Baker is below.

Healthy 5 Ingredient Granola Bars (No Bake)

Yield: 10 bars (or 12 smaller bars)

Ingredients

·         1 cup packed dates, pitted (soak in water and drain if they are dry and not sticky)

·         1/4 cup honey

·         1/4 cup creamy salted natural peanut butter (I used Skippy Natural with Honey)

·         1 cup roasted unsalted almonds, coarsely chopped

·         1 1/2 cups rolled oats

Method

1. This first step is optional. Toast oats in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes.

2. Process dates in a food processor until small bits remain (about 1 minute). It should form a "dough" like consistency. Mine turned into a ball

3. Place the oats, almonds and dates in a large bowl. I smashed my dates with a wooden spoon to chop and mix them throughout the mixture. Set aside.

4. Warm the honey and peanut butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir and pour over oat mixture and then mix.

5. Once thoroughly mixed, transfer to an 8x8 dish or other small pan lined with plastic wrap or parchment paper so they lift out easily.

6. Press down until uniformly flattened. Cover with parchment or plastic wrap, and let set in fridge or freezer for 15-20 minutes to harden.

7. Remove bars from pan and chop into 10 even bars. Store in an airtight container for up to a few days. The original blogger says to keep them in freezer so that they stay fresh.

Kuba Kuba

Style: Cuban
My Rating: 4/5 stars

Website:  http://www.kubakuba.info/index.html

Likes: There are things to look at all over, large portion size

Dislikes: Driving there and finding parking

Imagine this scene:

Me: What do you want to do today?

Husband: I don’t know.

Me: Would you like to go out for dinner?

Husband: Sure

Me: Where would you like to go?

Husband: I don’t know. <Pause> Wherever you want is fine with me.

Me: I don’t know.

The summer bucket list is helpful for dealing with the situation of no one making a decision. The perfect solution is a look at the Bucket List of ideas that you already want to do.

Therefore, today we went to Kuba Kuba. We have been there before, but it had been about five years and we were due for a visit.

We entered the restaurant at 3:00 pm to the sound of Cuban music with birds in the background. We really like going at off hours for busy restaurants, this way we get a table immediately and feel free to look around at the restaurant freely. Boy is there stuff look at here. There are murals along the borders of the wall, shelves of dishes, a stuffed fish, photographs, and beer bottles just to name a few items.

Plus, I love the décor of the tables and chairs. The chairs are a mish mosh of different styles, and the tabletops have a Latin American print on them as in the picture below.

It is the food that brings us back though. Although the prices are a little steep, we get our money’s worth. My husband ordered the Paella Valenciana. When it was first presented, I was struck by the amount of mussels that were in this dish. The rice had a smokiness with a mild taste of the sea. In addition to mussels, the dish also had clams, shrimp, and chorizo. Even my husband couldn’t finish the entire dish.

I ordered Arroz con Pollo since I am not a big fan of shellfish. It came with two sizeable chicken breasts, most likely about six ounces a piece. I ate one at the restaurant, and had to take the other home. However, the pollo was not the star of this dish. The rice had such a vibrant flavor, each bite packed with a different taste depending on what combination of vegetables were included. There were roasted red peppers, pieces of asparagus, capers, and peas to name a few.

Both of the dishes came with two grilled slices of Cuban bread, that had absorbed flavors from the rice within the bowl.

Overall, it was an excellent and successful venture. We have enough leftovers for another entire meal.

Porch Garden

For the past two or three years, I have become interesting in growing plants as my interest in cooking began to grow. I thought that if I had fresh herbs and products to use from my own backyard, it would give more meaning to my menu.  This was a great dream and all, except that I lived on a property that wasn’t mine and I couldn’t grow plants due to landscaping concerns.

So I moved into an apartment. It’s an improvement only because I have a second story porch. Granted a porch is not as exciting or productive as actual land, but it’s a start. Plus it had hanging hooks on the porch posts. Therefore, the first thing I bought was a beautiful hanging basket at the local farmer’s market.

My next challenge is that my porch is made of wood and has gaps between the planks that allows water to drip through. The couple below me are smokers and use their porch frequently and I suppose that they would be unhappy if I were constantly dripping water on their heads. Therefore, my husband and I purchased plastic planters to house our plants in that have bases to hold the water. Occasional accidents do happen. Sorry, neighbors.

The plants that I grew this year were jalapeno peppers, basil, dill, and rosemary. I started small with plants that I knew could grow well in pots.

One of the surprising advantages I found was that fellow gardeners are very willing to help share knowledge about how to grow plants. I was given advice on when to prune dill, and where to pull the leaves on the basil. The plants bring me closer to those around me because we now share a new commonality.

Also, I am able to share my herbs on occasion. Some of my family members love rosemary. When I brought a few branches to my mother’s house, she was very excited and began listing all of the dishes she planned to make with it. It’s nice to bring a smiles to love one’s faces.

Next, I will be posting about how I am going to use my basil to keep my grandmother’s tradition of amazing pesto alive. 

821 Cafe

Style: Cafe/ Diner
My Rating: 4/5 stars

Website: http://www.821caferva.com/ 

Likes: Eclectic and artsy atmosphere, classic menu items and ones with a twist, Sriracha on every table, parking downtown near VCU was not difficult due to roadside space, baskets on the table had creamer so I didn’t have to keep asking for me

Dislikes: Although neat, the one large table in the middle of the room provides for awkward situations

A fire engine screams by the restaurant on my quiet weekday visit, and my friend Greg walks in just as it goes by. As the siren echoes through the restaurant, he shakes his head as I say, “Way to make an entrance.”

Café 821 is a perfect place for us to catch up on our summer adventures. Greg had just spent time at a saxophone “camp” at the Eastman School of Music and I had spent the holiday with my in-laws plus my own grandmother. We had a lot to talk about.

We feel comfortable to talk in the atmosphere with its artistic touches, calm color palette, and retro tables adorned with fiesta ware.  The staff is friendly and patient as we stay there for a while. I even took a portrait picture of Greg for my photography class. Poor guy. 

With just a quick glance of the menu, I see at least five dishes that I am excited to try. Neither Greg nor I can decide on something sweet or savory, so we each get a different item and split it between the both of us.

I order the savory Bacon and Brie Omelet with grilled onions and spinach. It comes loaded with a side of crispy rosemary home fries, fruit salad, and four triangles of rye toast. The elastic cheese holds the onions and spinach together. The bacon is present, but does not seem like a feature of the dish as it is overpowered by the rest of the filling. The name is misleading. 

Greg’s choice of the Nutella French Toast is the best dish.  It comes beautifully arranged in a pinwheel, with slices of bananas on top with sprinkles with powdered sugar. The slices of toast have been sliced in half and spread with Nutella and something crunchy, quite possible hazel nuts! Therefore, each bite has a sweet complexity of Nutella, maple syrup, and bananas. It is out of this world!

DipDogs

Style: Fast Food
My Rating: 4/5 stars

Website: http://www.dipdogs.net/ 

Likes: Well established atmosphere of being around since 1953, Cute water bottles that say “God DipDogs?”

Dislikes: It’s definitely not healthy, no special dip for onion rings

For years, my husband has said that when we go to his parents’ house, he is going to take me to The Dip Dog. One time we went, and it was closed because it was the 4th of July. Another time we tried to go and it was closed for renovations.

Then, we gave up for a while. 

This year, I played it smart. I told my husband to call and see if they would be open. Since he talks about The DipDog frequently, I really wanted to experience this part of the younger years I was absent for. 

On this trip his parents’ house, I also brought my grandmother, Gigi. Gigi loves and adventure, so we piled into the car and drove half an hour to The DipDog, which happens to be just off of interstate I-81. 

I thought it was going to be a little roadside stand, and I was wrong. Instead, it is a small complex with a huge parking lot, a building where food is ordered, a building that is a gift shop, and a building that has tables where the greasy food can be enjoyed and consumed.

It also had a really cool retro sign that stood in front, saying that the DipDog was established in 1953. Johnny, my husband’s dad, then told me a story about how he used to bring his dates to eat here. Johnny is now in his 60’s and has been married for over forty years. Clearly, the DipDog is a local, deep routed tradition.

A DipDog is a local, very pink hotdog that is battered in a thin batter and is deep fried. It is similar to a corn dog, but the batter is not as thick. Then, they slather them in yellow mustard and pile them into a pyramid within a classic paper carton. We also ordered onion rings that were piled into a brown paper bag. Clearly, it is super low key. 

But it was one of the tastiest deep fried concoctions I have ever eaten and it made for some great memories with my grandma and my husband's family.