Nuts

Crock Pot Spiced Mixed Nuts

April 26, 2015 by Kay Leave a Comment

Crock Pot Spiced Mixed Nuts are a sweet and salty snack made in a crock pot and are perfect to have on hand for a kid’s snack, your weekday lunch or for a party.

Crock Pot Spiced Mixed Nuts use some very aromatic spices; cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Add in cayenne if you like to add a little heat to the mix. The sweet in the mix comes from pure maple syrup and the salty comes from sea salt. To finish off this tasty treat, butter is added in to the mix!

Enjoy this tasty treat, I promise you won’t be able to stop eating this delicious snack.

Crock Pot Spiced Mixed Nuts

Rating: 51

Yield: 6 Cups

Crock Pot Spiced Mixed Nuts

Ingredients

2 cups pecans, unsalted
2 cups almonds, unsalted
2 cups cashews, unsalted
3 tbsp. butter, melted plus more for crock pot
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 tbsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. cayenne pepper
1/2 tsp. sea salt

Instructions

Very lightly grease the bottom and sides of a crock pot with butter. Set the temperature to high. Place the nuts into the prepared crock pot.
In a small bowl, add the melted butter, maple syrup, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cayenne pepper and sea salt, which together.
Pour the mixture over the nuts. Use a rubber spatula to thoroughly combine, making sure the nuts are well coated and are evenly distributed across the bottom of the crock pot.
Cover and cook on high for 30 minutes. Then stir the nuts well and reduce the temperature to low. Cover and continue to cook on low for 1 1/2 more hours, making sure to stir the nuts every 30 minutes.
After cooking time is completed, stir the nuts well. Then, carefully spread the nuts out onto parchment-lined baking sheets to cool.
Allow the spiced nuts to cool completely. Then, place them into airtight containers.
Nuts will remain fresh in an airtight container at room temperature for about a week, or store in the refrigerator for up to one month.

Notes

Adapted from Kitchen Aid.

http://www.lovefoodwillshare.com/crock-pot-spiced-mixed-nuts/

Spiced with Cinnamon

Spiced with Nutmeg

Spiced with Ginger

Spiced with Cayenne Pepper

Made with Real Maple Syrup

Just a touch of Sea Salt

Made with Butter

Crock Pot Spiced Mix Nuts

Pesto 3 Ways

September 1, 2014 by Kay Leave a Comment

Greens are abundant this time of year rather it be from your garden, your CSA Share or from the Farmers Market. Pesto 3 Ways is a great way to utilize those greens.

How was your weekend? Did you enjoy the last weekend of summer? I was just happy that it was a three day weekend. The family (the husband, middle daughter Kiley and SIL & BIL Kathy & Dave) and I went to the Appleton’s Farmers Market to see my daughter Mackenzie, it was her last market before she headed back to college. We had a nice day bumming in Appleton.

Sunday was spent canning for the day. Cowboy Candy, Hot Peppers, Chipotle Sauce and Tomato Sauce were canned. We ended the day with Chicken that the husband made on the smoker. And lastly, Monday was spent doing much of nothing, just enjoying the day off and catching up on recipes and the blog.

Pesto 3 ways uses kale, broccoli and celery leaves to create three different kinds of pestos that are all equally delicious in my book. Pesto is always made up with a green, parmesan cheese, a nut, olive oil and garlic.

I am featuring Celery Pesto which uses celery leaves and walnuts, Kale Pesto which uses kale and cashews and Broccoli Kale Pesto which uses broccoli, kale and walnuts. Pesto stores well in the fridge for approx. 2 weeks and in the freezer for up to 3 months.

I will be featuring recipes in the next couple of days to use your Pesto 3 Ways with. So stay tuned for ways to use pesto.

Enjoy!

Pesto 3 Ways

Rating: 51

Yield: Each recipe yields approx. 1 cup of pesto.

Pesto 3 Ways

Ingredients

Celery Pesto
4 cups celery leaves, packed
½ cup chopped walnuts
2/3 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves
½ cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 pinches of salt
Broccoli Kale Pesto
2 cups chopped broccoli florets, just the tops, no stems
1 cup (loosely packed) fresh basil leaves
2 cups kale, packed
2/3 cup grated Romano or Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2/3 cup chopped walnuts
3 garlic cloves, peeled
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tsp. salt
Kale Pesto
4 cups packed kale, stems removed
½ cup chopped cashews
2/3 cup olive oil
2 garlic cloves
½ cup shredded parmesan cheese
2 pinches of salt

Instructions

Celery Pesto: Add all the ingredients to a food processor. Pulse until thoroughly mixed. Taste for seasoning, you may need to add more salt.
Broccoli Kale Pesto: Add the broccoli florets in a microwave safe bowl and add ¼ cup of water. Microwave for 2 minutes or until the broccoli is bright green in color. Add the broccoli to the food processor.
Also add to the food processor the basil, kale, cheese, walnuts, garlic, olive oil and salt.
Process the pesto until thoroughly mixed. Taste, you may need to add more salt. If the mixture is thick, add a little water.
Kale Pesto: Add all the ingredients to a food processor. Pulse until thoroughly mixed. Taste for seasoning, you may need to add more salt.

http://www.lovefoodwillshare.com/pesto-3-ways/

Pesto 3 Ways

Such pretty colors of green.

This stores well in the fridge and freezer.

This is great to eat just by itself.

Yum!

I store my pesto in Ball Half Pint canning jars.

Celery, Broccoli/Kale & Kale Pesto are featured.

Celery Pesto with walnuts.

Broccoli Kale Pesto with walnuts.

Kale Pesto with cashews.

Wild Rice & Kale Salad

July 21, 2014 by Kay Leave a Comment

Wild Rice & Kale Salad is packed full of good for you greens, wild rice, fruit, nuts and is topped with a honey balsamic vinaigrette.

Kale is rich in nutrients and it can help lower cholesterol and protect you against cancer. With that being said, I guess everyone should eat more kale. Lacinato and baby kale are by far my favorite varieties.

I like to treat kale like a lettuce but sometimes kale can be kind of heavy in a salad. What I really like about today’s recipe for Wild Rice & Kale Salad is the fact that the warm rice is added to the kale and the heat from the rice helps soften the kale and in my opinion, it tastes more like lettuce.

Wild rice can take a long time to cook, so I opted for a quick cooking wild rice and I think it’s perfect for this recipe. I also like the taste of the goat cheese with kale, a very nice combination in Wild Rice & Kale Salad.

Enjoy!

Wild Rice & Kale Salad

Rating: 51

Yield: 4 Servings

Wild Rice & Kale Salad

Ingredients

1 large bunch kale, stems removed & chopped
1 large apple, chopped
2oz goat cheese, crumbled
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup salted cashews
1 ½ cups warm wild rice blend, I used quick cooking
For the Honey-Balsamic Vinaigrette:
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 Tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 ½ Tbsp. honey
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper

Instructions

In a large bowl, add the kale, apple, goat cheese, cranberries, cashews and rice. Take two spoons and mix to combine. You want the rice to still be warm so it breaks down the kale and makes it more tender.
In a jar or bowl, add the ingredients for the vinaigrette, shake or whisk until combined. Pour the vinaigrette over the salad and mix to combine.

http://www.lovefoodwillshare.com/wild-rice-kale-salad/

Kale, Wild Rice, Apple, Cashews, Cranberries & Goat Cheese

Toss everything together.

Wild Rice & Kale Salad

The wild rice blends well with the other flavors.

The kale tastes more like lettuce in this recipe.

The crunch of the apple & cashews adds a nice touch.

A new favorite of mine!

Adapted from Iowa Girl Eats

Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

July 7, 2014 by Kay Leave a Comment

Easy to follow and full of nutty and chocolate flavor, Chocolate Chip Granola Bars are sure to please everyone in your family!

This is my first attempt at making granola bars and I must say it was way easier than I anticipated. These are great to have on hand for breakfast or a quick snack. I think kid’s will fall in love with these. The best part is these are made in the microwave! Super simple!

These definitely are healthier than store bought granola bars because natural ingredients such as honey, maple syrup, oats and nuts are used to make these decadent granola bars. No high fructose corn syrup or preservatives, that’s right, NONE. That is what makes Chocolate Chip Granola Bars so special and delicious! Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

Yield: 16 Squares

Chocolate Chip Granola Bars

Ingredients

1/4 cup coconut oil, plus 1 tsp.
1/3 cup packed light-brown sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/8 tsp. salt
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 cups oatmeal
1 1/4 cups rice cereal
1/4 cup pecans, chopped
1/3 cup mini semi-sweet chocolate chips, plus 4 tbsp.

Instructions

Add coconut oil, brown sugar, honey and salt to a 2 quart microwave safe bowl. Heat for 1 minute on high power. Stir the mixture. Microwave for another 1 minute and 30 seconds on high power. Blend in vanilla and cinnamon, then add in the oatmeal, rice cereal and pecans. Mix to combine. Firmly press mixture into a baking sheet. Sprinkle 1/3 cup of mini chocolate chips and press into bars. Transfer to freezer and chill 10 minutes, then remove. Microwave 4 tbsp. of chocolate chips and 1 tsp. coconut oil on high for 30-40 seconds, drizzle this on top of the bars. Place back in freezer for 10 minutes, remove and cut bars. Store in an airtight container in the fridge.

http://www.lovefoodwillshare.com/chocolate-chip-granola-bars/