Moving Day Energy Bars

Tears were flowing as our plane took off from our home in Washington DC to embark on our new journey in California. As much as we love Los Angeles, we also couldn't help tearing up the next morning when we caught a glimpse of the Capitol building on the news. Washington DC is inspirational. It is a city filled with intelligence and passion. Washington DC has made us stronger, and taught us what it means to work hard for what you believe in. After two years of learning from some of the best educators in country at Georgetown and KIPP DC: AIM Academy, we are taking what we have learned and bringing it back to California. Brent will be putting his MBA to use at McMaster-Carr, and I'll be teaching 5th grade at KIPP in South LA. Mama raised us to never throw away food, so in the weeks before our move I started cooking unusual combinations of food to make sure everything got used. While Marta was visiting DC we decided to use the last of our baking supplies to make energy bars. We just started throwing energy bar ingredients into the kitchenaid and hoped for the best. The result was quite delicious, required no cooking and was perfect to have on hand while packing. It has now been over a week since I've had all my kitchen supplies, and I am so eager to cook! The moving truck arrives in LA tomorrow, so I'll be energized and ready to cook and blog West Coast inspired meals. 

 

Ingredients:

1 cup natural peanut butter

2 1/2-3 cups old fashioned oats (depending on how the peanut butter and oats are sticking)

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup grade a maple syrup

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/3 cup dried cranberries

1/3 cup dried apricots, chopped

Directions:

1. Line a 9x9 square baking pan with wax paper, leaving a 2 inch overhang on 2 opposites sides. Set aside.
2. In a large bowl, combine first five ingredients, tossing with a wooden spoon to mix evenly. (I used my mixer)
3. Last, mix in the dried fruit.
4. Pour the mixture to prepared baking pan, spreading it evenly to the sides. To make energy bites, divide mixture in a mini muffin tin. Press down firmly to compact the granola.
5. Chill in the refrigerator until firm, at least 2 hours, up to overnight. When firm, using the wax paper overhang, lift granola out of pan and place on a cutting board. With a large, sharp knife, cut into bars.

The Focus Cookie

The Focus Cookie first made its appearance in Mrs. Lowry's classroom a few days before DCCAS standardized testing. The kids and I were getting burnt-out from all the intense work and stress. We needed joy and enthusiasm. The Focus Cookie was invented as a way to have fun, without sacrificing sacred learning time. I told the kids that Focus Cookies have a magical power and ability to help students focus and master math skills. My too cool for Mrs. Lowry sixth graders rolled their eyes when I pretended to sprinkle magic focus dust on each cookie, but raved about the taste and kept asking for more. Yesterday on our way back from the sixth grade West Virginia camping trip we stopped at Splash Down Water Park before saying our goodbyes. We spent three hours in the pool, and were treated to cookies and snow cones before boarding the bus. A bunch of KIPPsters ran up to me after eating what I considered to be delicious cookies and said, "Mrs. Lowry, these cookies are good, but they're nothing compared to Focus Cookies!" We'll see how much math they retain from the year, but at least they know how to recognize a good cookie.

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup butter, softened
2 large eggs
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups of semi sweet chocolate chips
1/2 cup of peanut butter chips

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375° F. Combine flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl and mix thoroughly. Beat butter, white sugar, brown sugar and vanilla extract in large bowl until creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well each time. Slowly stir in the flour mixture. Gently fold in the  chocolate chips and peanut butter chips. Drop small spoonfuls onto an un-greased baking sheet. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown. Remember, the cookies will continue to cook when you take them out of the oven. I personally enjoy gooey undercooked cookies, so I only cook them for 8 minutes. Cool on wire racks.

Fig and Prosciutto Flatbread

Kerri inspired my love for the combination of figs and prosciutto when she hosted pizza and game night back in April. I decided to experiment with the sweet and savory combination, and recently I blogged a dried fig jam recipe with the intention of using it as a substitute for pizza sauce.  This elegant flatbread recipe requires no measuring, and can be made simpler with store bought fig jam and pizza dough. Oh, and although Brent was not a fan of dried fig jam by itself, he loved this pizza!

Ingredients:
Pizza dough
Olive Oil
Fig Jam
Kosher Salt To Taste
Fresh Mozzarella, Sliced Thin
Thinly Sliced Prosciutto
Washed And Rinsed Arugula
Freshly Ground Pepper, to taste
Parmesan

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. 

2. Roll out 1/3 of the pizza dough as thinly as possible. Place on a large baking sheet.

3. Drizzle lightly with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with kosher salt. Spread fig jam over the surface of the dough. Sprinkle lightly with salt.

4. Lay sliced of mozzarella all over the surface, and top with proscuitto Sprinkle lightly with salt and freshly ground pepper. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly. All ovens are different, keep an eye on it!

5. Just before serving, sprinkle on arugula and Parmesan.

6. Cut, serve, and enjoy.

Pork Meatball Banh Mi

We spent last weekend in Southampton celebrating Carmen and Jim's engagement. It was a weekend of bike riding, barbecuing, champagne drinking and wedding planning. We are so excited for Carmen and Jim, and are looking forward to their upcoming wedding. On the trip back to Washington DC we had two hours to kill in Manhattan. Our first stop was the famous Joe's Pizza in Greenwich Village. After enjoying what some argue to be Manhattan's best pizza, Brent suggested visiting New York's famous Banh Mi joint. He raved of the Vietnamese sandwich so we took the long walk in the heat, working up an appetite for our second dinner. I had never even heard of Banh Mi, and it took just one bite to realize I had been missing out. I was determined to recreate this dish at home, and thanks to Bon Appetit's recipe, we can now enjoy this dish anytime.

Ingredients:

Hot Chili Mayo
2/3 cup mayo
2 green onions, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sriracha chili sauce

Meatballs
1 pound ground pork
1/4 cup chopped basil
4 garlic cloves, minced
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 tablespoon sriracha
1 tablespoon sugar
2 teaspoons corn starch
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon pepper

Sandwiches
1 cup grated carrots
1 english cucumber, cut into long slices
1/8 cup sugar
1/8 cup rice vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon sesame oil
1 baguette
Thinly sliced jalapeño chiles 
Fresh cilantro sprigs

Directions:

Hot Chili Mayo
Stir all the ingredients in a small bowl. Season with a touch of salt. Cover and chill. 

Meatballs
Gently mix all ingredients in a large bowl. Roll mixture into 1 inch meatballs. Arrange on a baking sheet, and keep cool. 

Sandwiches
Combine the first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Let sit at room temperature for an hour, tossing occasionally. Heat sesame oil in large skillet over medium-high heat. Add half of meatballs. Sauté until brown and cooked through, turning meatballs often and lowering heat if browning too quickly, about 15 minutes. Cut the  baguettes into 4 pieces. Pull out enough bread from each bread half to leave 1/2-inch-thick shell. Spread hot chili mayo over each bread shell. Arrange jalapeños, then cilantro, in bottom halves. Fill each baguette with 3-4 meatballs. Drain pickled vegetables; place on top of meatballs. Press on baguette tops.