Snacks

Autumn Pumpkin & Fig Maple Glazed Scones (in APRIL)

- Amanda

One silver lining of this quarantine/ lockdown stuff is that I think we’re all feeling free reign to cook & bake with everything and anything we have on hand even if is sooo not in season. And I am definitely taking advantage of that with these Pumpkin & Fig Maple Glazed Scones. I mean doesn’t the name just sound scrumptious and scream all that is good about autumn. That’s because they are and well, yes they very much do indeed. But on this cold and gloomy spring day here in Istanbul (stuck at home,) I welcome every bit of the coziness that comes with brisk fall days that so often come with the scent of pumpkin baked goods wafting from the kitchen.

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Homemade Oat, Rye & Seed Crackers

- Amanda 2 Comments

These Oat, Rye & Seed Crackers have become my new lockdown snack obsession. And I’m pretty sure even once allowed some semblance of “normal” life, they will still remain ever-so-loved and on constant repeat in our kitchen. They are prefectly crisp, have just the right amount of seeded pop and hit that craving for a savory nibble with their lightly-sea-salted nature. Watch out Trader Joe’s, these really give your Whole Grain Crispbread a run for their money. Might I even say, these are better. (And aaand don’t contain a few of the less-desireable ingredients of some of the store-bought ones.) I still love you, TJ’s.

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Soft Beer Pretzels

- Amanda 1 Comment

You know that smell when you walk by an Auntie Anne’s Pretzels stall in the mall? If you’re anything like me, it’s a pretty hard smell to resist. Buttery baked dough heaven is what I call that smell. Well today, I am going to share with you a recipe to make your own soft pretzels at home, but with a twist (ha get it.). These pretzels are made with beer and are a little more reminiscent of those I remember from our fun beer garden days in New York. (Seems so long ago there was a time we were fun and used to enjoy long, relaxing days with friends at the beer garden.)

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Banana PB & Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

- Amanda

We’re definitely on a chocolate banana kick over here, but can you blame us? One of the best combos ever, right? (And well, we’re wasting nothing these days, so we’re putting them brown bananas to work.)…But we’ve upped the anti and included some peanut butter. And we’ve left out the gluten and almost all the refined sugar. But truuust me, don’t let that deter you from making these if you have the ingredients in stock. They are delicious as well as kid & healthy-treat-picky hubs approved.

Honestly, I have to say, I was a bit (pleasantly) surprised when we tasted these out of the oven. They were really knock-our-socks-off-good. Soft, chewy and full of chocolate-banana flavor. All good things you want in a cookie and often lack in one labeled gluten-free or refined sugar-free, let alone both. And I’ve made plenty of refined sugar-free and gluten-free treats. These don’t have that slight “something’ is missing element. They are just really satisfyingly delectable.

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PB&J Energy Bites

- Amanda

The classic PB&J, aka peanut butter and jelly sandwich, is the absolute lunch of choice for my little guys. Who am I kidding, they’d eat it for every meal if they could. Well, unfortunately for them, that doesn’t happen. (We have to ration our beloved peanut butter after all and well eating it everyday might not be the healthiest thing.) Even pre-Covid-19 days, stretching out our peanut butter usage was necessary as there’s only so much we were able to bring back from the states. It’s available here, don’t get me wrong, but not quite the pure sea salt and peanuts kind we like. So that means, we try to enjoy it only maybe once a week.

Well last week, the kids agreed to forego the sandwich and we decided to include some peanut butter in our Banana Peanut Butter & Oat Chocolate Chip Cookies. (Recipe coming soon, promise.) But this week, in honor of National PB&J day, which is today April 2nd, we’re gonna go crazy and not only enjoy the sandwich, but also these PB&J Energy Bites.

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