Since my world revolves around food, I always bring snacks when we go hiking. Sometimes it’s whatever I can find in my pantry. Sometimes it’s cake. (True story.)

Sometimes it’s my favorite snack bars from KIND. This is not an advertisement or endorsement, I just like them. I like that they’re made out of real food and I like that they taste good. My favorite so far is the Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew bar because, duh, chocolate.

I ate one recently and found myself marveling over the delicious simplicity of fruit and nuts in a perfectly transportable bar when it hit me – I could easily make these myself!

With a little help from Jen’s own energy bar recipe on her website Use Real Butter (which you should check out, by the way) and guidance from the KIND ingredients list, I did just that.

It was as simple as pulsing some dried fruit in the food processor until it formed this rather unappealing looking gummy mass…

… then mixing in some nuts…

… drizzling with metled chocolate and BAM. Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars. If you play your cards right, you won’t even have to turn on your oven.

One thing I noted about the KIND Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars is that they don’t taste specifically cherry-y or cashew-y, and I find my bars turned out the same way. They are flavorful and satisfying though.

The dried fruit makes the bars just sweet enough and a bit chewy while the nuts give them some good crunch. I was a little afraid the chocolate would melt, but during a test hike over the weekend the bars held up just fine in my bag while we hiked through sunshine and enjoyed the nearly 80 degree weather. (80 degrees! In March!) Don’t leave them out in direct sun unless you want a big melty mess on your hands though.

Oh, and I highly recommend eating them with a view.

Dark Chocolate Cherry Cashew Bars

Adapted from Use Real Butter and KIND Bars
Makes about 14 KIND-sized (roughly 1 inch x 4 inch) bars

The dried fruit in this recipe is super sticky, which is great for holding the bars together but can be difficult to work with. To make it easier, spray all utensils, bowls and pans liberally with oil.

Ingredients

vegetable or olive oil spray
1/2 cup lightly salted cashews
1 1/4 cups (10-12 whole) medjool dates, pitted
1 cup dried cherries
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1 cup almonds, roasted *see note below
1/2 cup crisped rice
1/2 cup bittersweet chocolate chips (optional)

Directions

* You can purchase your almonds already roasted if you don’t want to turn your oven on. Or, buy raw almonds, spread out evenly on a sheet pan and bake at 350ºF for 10-15 minutes, stirring once. Keep an eye on them so they don’t burn!

Line an 8×8 baking pan with two layers of foil, leaving some overhang, and spray with oil. Coat the inside of a large mixing bowl with oil spray. Set aside.

In a food processor, pulse cashews until roughly chopped (no smaller than pea-sized pieces). Add to prepared mixing bowl. Spray food processor blade generously with oil. Add all fruits to food processor (dates through cranberries) and pulse until a sticky paste forms, scraping down sides as needed.

Add fruit paste to cashew pieces in mixing bowl. Add 1/2 cup almonds and crisp rice. Mix by hand until thoroughly combined. Press mixture firmly into prepared ban. Press remaining 1/2 cup almonds firmly into top. Chill in freezer for about 30 minutes.

Spray a sharp knife with oil. Remove bars by foil overhang, place on cutting board and cut into 14 bars.

Place chocolate chips in a small, microwave-safe bowl and heat in 30 second intervals until chips start to melt. Continue heating in 15 second intervals, stirring well between each, until melted and smooth. Drizzle over cut bars. Set at room temperature until chocolate is firm, 15-30 minutes.

Bars can be individually wrapped and stored at room temperature for a few weeks. If storing longer, place individually wrapped bars in a freezer bag and freeze. Remove from freezer 1 hour before eating.

Guess what?

It lived!

It lived and grew taller and taller, like Jack’s fabled beanstalk. (Seriously, it got to be about a foot tall. The photo above was taken after I cut it down.) I knew I’d have to cut it down eventually but I didn’t want to do it until I had something worthy in mind for my magical beanstalk of basil.

What goes with basil? Tomatoes. Then it hit me.

Soup. Soup soup soup. I’m kind of obsessed with soup right now.

I don’t usually get excited about tomato soups, but I like this one for lots of reasons. It’s got really nice depth of flavor, unlike the classic kind that comes in a red and white can. This soup can also be made dairy-free while still being rich and creamy, which my stomach is a fan of. And did I mention it’s ridiculously quick and easy to make?

It’s win – win – win. (I keep typing wine. Obviously my brain is trying to tell me something.)

There’s something just really comforting about tomato soups, right? Pair it with a salad or some grilled cheese and eat it while wrapped up in warm a blanket for best results.

Are you obsessed with soup right now too? Come join SoupaPalooza at TidyMom and Dine & Dish sponsored by KitchenAid, Red Star Yeast and Le Creuset. You’ll find 50+ soup recipes there – enough to keep you warm and comforted through the rest of winter and well into summer!

Creamy Fire-Roasted Tomato Soup

Adapted from Nom Nom Paleo
Serves 4

Don’t get weirded out by the coconut milk. You don’t taste coconut at all, it just makes the soup creamy without the dairy. Feel free to add up to 14 ounces of coconut milk if you want your soup creamier. The wine can be omitted – I just can’t help putting wine in everything I cook.

An immersion blender makes this soup very quick (and I highly recommend it!), but you can use a blender or food processor if that’s all you have. You may have to work in batches.\

Ingredients

2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 large shallots, diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 cup white wine (optional)
28 ounces Muir Glen Organic Fire-Roasted Diced Tomatoes
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup chicken broth
10 ounces coconut milk (regular or lite)
1 teaspoon brown sugar
1/4 cup grated Parmesan (optional, omit if making dairy-free)
Spices, to taste (I use black pepper, chili powder, and cayenne for a kick)
6 – 10 leaves fresh basil, finely chopped

Directions

In a 2 or 3 quart stock pot over medium heat, add oil and saute shallots until soft. Add garlic, cook for 1 minute. Add wine (if using) and cook until reduced by at least half. Add tomatoes, salt and broth. Puree (using an immersion blender, or working in batches with a food processor or blender) and return to heat. Bring soup to a simmer. Stir in coconut milk. Add sugar, Parmesan and other seasoning to taste. Stir in fresh basil. Puree one last time, if desired. Serve hot.

New York was gorgeous. Positively glowing with fall colors.

We spent our days hiking to plunging, splashing, cascading waterfalls and the evenings dining on the culinary gems of the Finger Lakes region. We ate so much good food – wines, cheeses, waffles with peanut butter and banana, brie stuffed French toast, and more. But my favorite meal of them all was at the place I least expected: Moosewood. Don’t get me wrong – I had heard Moosewood has excellent food, but I had also heard that they were all about healthy, natural, vegetarian foods. I’m not opposed to any of those things. They just aren’t really words that get my mouth watering in anticipation, you know? However, the hype intrigued me so I decided we should check it out anyway.

I am so glad we did. I loved everything I ate that night, from the tea to the roasted dumpling squash. In fact, I loved it so much I asked for the recipes right then and there and then bought two of their cookbooks as soon as I got home. Who knew vegetables could taste so fantastic?

The tea. Wow. That chilly night there were several really good sounding drinks on the menu but when my husband noticed the ginger tea, I just had to have it. It was sweet and citrus-y with a warm, slightly spicy finish from the ginger. At the first sip I immediately I knew I would need the recipe to make at home again and again.

Once we got back home to Virginia, I thought I would have a few more weeks before the weather really cooled enough to try making ginger tea. I mean, it was still nearly 70 degrees during the day.

And then it snowed. Wait, what?

Yeah, that happened. Snow. In Virginia. In October. The only way I was going to get through this was with some ginger tea.

To my delight, Moosewood’s Ginger Orange Tea is utterly simple to make and takes only slightly longer than steeping a regular tea bag. This tea is packed with vitamin C and flavor, making it perfect for whenever you’re feeling under the weather. It can be served chilled over ice, which mellows the flavors some, but I prefer to enjoy it piping hot next to a window with a view on a snowy day.

Ginger Orange Tea

Adapted from The Moosewood Restaurant Cooking for Health Cookbook
Serves 4

Fresh ginger can be found in the produce section of most grocery stores. While fresh squeezed orange juice is ideal, I took the lazy way out and used store bought, not from concentrate, 100% orange juice. After some experimenting, I discovered ginger is best grated with the large holes of a box grater, but a microplane zester can be used in a pinch.

Ingredients

2 heaping tablespoons peeled and grated fresh ginger
2 cups water
2 cups fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1-2 tablespoons honey, to taste

Directions

Place water and grated ginger in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat. Steep for at least 5 minutes. Strain tea with a fine mesh strainer, pressing on the ginger with the back of a spoon to squeeze out all the liquid. Return tea to pot. Stir in orange juice, lemon juice, and honey. Reheat to serve warm, or chill to serve over ice.

I only discovered I even liked butternut squash two years ago. I had never tried it before. Since then though, I’ve eagerly looked forward to roasting the slightly sweet orange squash as soon as the weather cools every year. It’s my new favorite fall vegetable.

This year, I decided to try something a little different with my butternut squash. I roasted it as usual, then pureed it and turned it into a fantastic soup. This soup has just a hint of pumpkin pie-like flavor, while remaining savory and not tasting, you know… like pumpkin pie. It’s fall in a warm, cozy bowl and it’s healthy too!

Well, except for maybe that extra crisp bacon I topped it with.

Yeah, that happened. Salty sweet heaven. You need to eat this.

Butternut Squash Soup with Crumbled Bacon

Serves 4-6

While the soup is simmering, cover a baking sheet with foil, lay bacon strips in a single layer on sheet and bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes, or until bacon is crisp. It’s my favorite way to cook bacon.

Don’t be scared by the tales of how hard it is to cut up butternut squash. By roasting the squash in quarters, it only requires a few quick cuts. You don’t have the mess with peeling and chopping it. I made my soup on the thicker side. If you prefer thinner, add more chicken broth. I only added a few dashes of each spice to the soup – start with a little and adjust to your taste.

Ingredients

1 3-lb butternut squash
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

2 shallots, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 cups finely diced carrots
3 ribs celery, finely diced
1 Granny Smith apple, peeled, cored, and diced
3-4 cups chicken broth
1 teaspoon cider vinegar
salt to taste
dashes of cinnamon, allspice, chili powder

crisp cooked bacon, for garnish

Directions

With a sharp, strong knife, slice roughly 1/2 inch off the top (stem end) and bottom of butternut squash. Cut squash into quarters lengthwise, first slicing in half from top to bottom, then cutting each half in halves. Place squash on a foil lined baking sheet (for easy clean up). Using your fingers, break 1 tablespoon butter into small pieces and dot over squash. Sprinkle evenly with salt. Cover with foil and roast at 400°F for 45-50 minutes, or until squash is tender and easily pierced. Cool on pan.

In a large soup pot, saute shallots, garlic, carrots, celery, and apple over medium heat until tender, about 5-8 minutes. Add enough chicken broth to cover (about 3 cups) and simmer for 20-25 minutes. Remove soup from heat.

Using a spoon, scoop softened roasted squash from skin and puree in food processor until smooth, working in batches if necessary. Transfer to a bowl. Carefully ladle soup into food processor and puree until smooth, again working in batches if necessary. Repeat until all soup is pureed.

Combine pureed soup and butternut squash in pot and return to medium-low heat. Cook just until hot. Add cider vinegar. If needed, add additional chicken broth to thin soup to desired consistency. Season to taste with salt & spices.

Serve warm, topped with crispy, crumbled bacon.

Either way, you need to make some zucchini bread.

I originally got this recipe from one of my favorite farmer’s markets. They had samples. I tried one and said “Oh, yum! I’m going to need the recipe.” When I got home I read the recipe and nearly fell out of my chair. 3 cups of sugar. 1 cup of oil. No wonder it tasted so good! Call me crazy, but I feel like bread made with vegetables should at least try to exercise some restraint*.

So this is my altered version. It uses half the sugar and replaces half the oil with non-fat Greek yogurt, and it still tastes delicious. The texture is somewhere between cake and a muffin. They’re moist and lightly sweet with lots of cinnamon spice flavor – just the way I like my zucchini bread. I highly recommend adding chocolate chips (which I forgot – first time in my life I have ever forgotten chocolate!) and/or nuts, if you like that sort of thing.

This recipe makes enough to share – 2 loaves or a loaf and muffins – so feel free to pay that neighbor back for sharing their garden goods!

* For those of you rolling your eyes at the thought of using restraint in baked goods, stay tuned. The next recipe uses over a pound of butter and more than 4 cups of sugar. And heavy cream.

Zucchini Bread & Muffins

Makes 2 standard loaves
OR
5 mini loaves
OR
1 8×4 loaf plus 12 muffins

Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 cups graulated sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
4 eggs
1/2 cup vegetable or canola oil
1/3 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt, such as 0% Chobani
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tsp lemon juice
1 tablespoon water
2 cups grated zucchini
1 cup chopped nuts (optional)
chocolate chips (optional)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350° Prepare baking pans – line muffin tin with liners and/or spray loaf pans with non-stick baking spray.

In a large bowl, whisk together dry ingredients (flour through cinnamon). In a medium bowl, beat eggs lightly. Add oil, yogurt, vanilla extract, lemon juice, and water. Whisk. Stir in grated zucchini. Pour wet ingredients into dry and whisk just until combined.

Divide batter evenly among prepared pans. Bake standard loaves about 45-50 minutes and mini loaves and muffins about 20-25 minutes, or until toothpick comes out clean. Cool on a wire wrack. Store covered at room temperature, or wrap tightly and freeze for later.

This recipe is so simple you’re probably thinking “What’s the big deal? It’s just asparagus.” But oh, roasting does something to asparagus that’s near magical. It somehow intensifies the flavor while bringing out a subtle sweetness. I like to roast mine until the tips are browned and crunchy, which when combined with a little salt makes those beautiful green spears downright addictive!

Roasted Asparagus

Serves 2-4

This is one of those recipes where you don’t need to be exact. Use these measurements as a general guideline, but adjust to your taste. Makes a great side dish on its own, but can also be use in other recipes – like quiches!

Ingredients

1 bunch of asparagus, stemmed*
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 big pinches of kosher salt

Directions

* To stem asparagus, grasp the spear with two hands – one at the base and one near the middle. Gently bend the spear and the woody end should just snap off. Discard woody ends.

Cover a baking sheet with foil (for easy clean up). Preheat oven to 400°F.

Lay asparagus on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and toss until evenly coated. Arrange spears in a single layer.

Roast at 400°F for 10-15 minutes for skinny asparagus (15-20 minutes for thicker asparagus), or until tender.

No wait, that’s just the Lemon Pudding Cakes.

Pudding cakes are a hybrid of two well-loved desserts – cake and pudding. But you don’t actually use either cake or pudding to make them. Confused? Sorry. All you really need to know is that you whisk together most of the ingredients, fold them into some whipped egg whites and bake. What goes in the oven as a soupy batter comes out as cake on top and pudding on the bottom – like magic. If you baked these with kids, I bet it would blow their minds. (OK, I admit it kinda blew my mind too.)

If you need some sunshine in your life, make these Lemon Pudding Cakes. They’re bright and sweet and light – a perfect pick-me-up after a long, cold winter or a dark and stormy Spring day.

Lemon Pudding Cakes

Adapted from Eating Well
Serves 8

I managed to use 4 6-ounce ramekins and 3 7-ounces very full ramekins for this batch, so you’ll need at the very least 8 6-ounce ramekins for the full batch. I strongly recommend using fresh squeezed lemon juice as it’s the star flavor in this very lemon-y dessert. I tried these both warm and chilled – I preferred mine chilled.

Ingredients

3/4 cup + 1/4 cup granulated sugar, divided
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup low-fat milk
2 teaspoons freshly grated lemon zest
1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
2 large egg yolks, room temperature
3 large egg whites, room temperature

powdered sugar, for dusting

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray eight 4- to 6-ounce ramekins with non-stick baking spray. Place ramekins in a roasting pan or baking dish deep enough to reach the top of the ramekins.

In a medium bowl, whisk together 3/4 cup sugar, flour and salt. Add milk, lemon zest, lemon juice, melted butter and egg yolks. Whisk to combine.

Using an electric mixer with a whisk attachment, beat egg whites on medium-high speed until soft peaks form. While beating, slowly add the remaining 1/4 cup sugar. Continue beating until egg whites form stiff peaks and look glossy. Carefully fold the egg whites into the batter. (It will be soupy).

Divide batter among prepared ramekins in roasting pan. Put roasting pan in oven and fill pan with enough really hot tap water to come halfway up the side of the ramekins. Bake until set on top and lightly browned, 25-30 minutes.

Cool ramekins on a wire rack. Serve warm or at room temperature, or cover each ramekin with plastic wrap and chill to serve cold. Dust with powdered sugar before serving.

Me too.

Did you stuff yourself full of rolls, mashed potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing and pie yesterday?

Me too.

We have so much in common! Maybe you’re also looking for a way to use up some Thanksgiving leftovers that’s on the light side and that does not feature 3 or more carb-filled sides? This Thanksgiving Leftovers Salad should just about hit the spot.

Thanksgiving Leftovers Salad

Vinaigrette adapted from Cooking Light
Makes 1 serving

This recipes makes enough vinaigrette for several salads. Store any leftovers in the fridge. Still want more carbs? Serve with warmed leftover rolls, or try rolling leftover stuffing into small balls and baking until crisp to serve on the side.

Vinaigrette Ingredients

1/2 cup whole-berry cranberry sauce, homemade or canned
3 tablespoons orange juice, fresh or refrigerated
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
pinch of salt

Salad Ingredients

Mixed Greens
Leftover Turkey, shredded
Softened mild cheese, such as goat cheese or brie, crumbled
Pecans, chopped

Directions

Measure vinaigrette ingredients into a small bowl and whisk vigorously until combined. Adjust liquid by adding more orange juice or oil, if needed.

Pile a healthy serving of greens on a plate. Top with shredded turkey, cheese and chopped pecans. Drizzle with cranberry vinaigrette and serve.

To make it worse, this recipe is not fancy or complicated at all. You don’t need to use your oven or pots. In fact, you don’t even need to make a trip to the grocery store to buy an expensive specialty ingredient that you’ll only use once before it languishes in the back of your pantry.

Will you ever be able to forgive me? Perhaps some Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal would help win you back…

Pumpkin Pie Oatmeal

Makes 1 serving

Ingredients

1/3 cup oats
2 tablespoons canned pumpkin puree
1 tablespoons packed brown sugar
1/4 cup water
2 tablespoons milk
1/8 teaspoon vanilla extract
pinch of salt
dash of cinnamon, cloves, and allspice
dried cranberries (optional)
chopped pecans (optional)

Directions

Measure all of the ingredients into a microwave-safe bowl and stir just until combined. Microwave on high for 1-2 minutes, or until desired consistency. Top with more pecans and dried cranberries, if desired. Serve immediately.

This cake is a kuchen, prounced “koo-ken” best I can tell. Kuchen is German for cake. I’m not German and I’ve never even eaten kuchen before, but this recipe looked so good I had to try it. I’m so glad I did. There are several varieties of kuchen. This one has a base cake layer that is dense like a pound cake. The top layer is a smooth, creamy, almost cheesecake-like layer of custard. It’s fantastic!

While this recipe is probably best made at the peak of summer, when fresh summer berries are bursting with ripeness, it can be made with frozen berries which means it’s suitable for any time of year. It uses my beloved Greek yogurt, which I think qualifies this cake as a breakfast food, but it’s equally good as a snack or for dessert. It’s simple and unfussy, but yields beautiful results. Best of all, with only 4 Tablespoons of butter in the whole thing, it’s practically health food!

In short, I loved it so much I told everyone I know about it, immediately made a second kuchen, and forced my friends to eat it.

Lemon Blackberry Kuchen

Adapted from 6 Bittersweets
Serves 8 – 12

This cake is equally great with raspberries, so feel to use them if you prefer. If using frozen berries, thaw at room temperature and drain excess liquid.

Ingredients

Cake
1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup butter, melted
2 large egg whites, yolks reserved for filling
2 tablespoons milk or buttermilk (optional)
1/2 tablespoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Filling
1 1/2 cups non-fat Greek yogurt (I use Chobani 0% plain)
1/2 cup sugar
2 large egg yolks
1 large egg
1/2 tablespoon lemon zest
1/2 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 ounces fresh blackberries

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spray a 9-inch springform pan with baker’s spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, salt and baking powder. Add melted butter, egg whites, lemon zest, optional milk and vanilla. Stir until a soft cookie-like dough forms. Press dough lightly into bottom of prepared pan. Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk together yogurt, sugar, egg yolks, egg, zest, lemon juice and vanilla extract until smooth. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Spread berries evenly on top of dough. Pour yogurt mixture over berries. Bake at 350°F for 45-55 minutes, or until center is set but still jiggles when gently shaken. Cool in pan for 15 minutes. Remove outer ring and cool about an hour. Cover and chill for 4 hours, or until ready to serve.