Donuts are my kryptonite. There are very few things in this world that make me forget that I have self control, and donuts are pretty much all of them.
I usually avoid them for this reason, but while on Spring break earlier this month visiting my cousins in North Carolina, I decided to treat myself to a toasted amaretto donut. Yes, it was as good as it sounds. And in those few, all-too-short minutes of edible bliss, I fell head-over-heels. Of course, the honeymoon was short lived, because I came sugar-crashing back to reality almost instantly. But it was worth it.
“By posting this recipe I am entering a recipe contest sponsored by National Dairy Council and the Quaker Oats Center of Excellence and am eligible to win prizes associated with the contest. I was not compensated for my time.”
I never quite understood the term “quick bread.”
I mean, I get it logically. You don’t have to add yeast. In theory, a good banana bread should take less time to complete than dough takes to rise. But if I may define my own idea of “quick bread” for you, it would be bread that’s prepared and out of the oven in less than a half hour. Or even more ideally, bread that appears out of thin air. If this whole music career thing gets tough (haha… if) I’m going to invent a device that dispenses fresh, warm, delicious loaves of bread instantly at the push of a button. “Carb-O-Matic.” Patent pending.
I already have a few recipes for “quick” breads in my arsenal, including this one, this one, and possibly this one (I think scones count). In my opinion, though, you can never really have too many – despite my impatience, quick breads really are quite convenient to put together. As a result, they’re great for brunches, gift-giving, and pot lucks, and can often be repurposed as a muffin recipe, and won’t take a big chunk out of your day. That was a HUGE requirement for me when creating this recipe in particular. If you follow me on Instagram, you may know that the past week and a half has been a bit of a crazy roller coaster ride. I packed up one apartment and moved into another, changed cities, and then packed up a day later to go away AGAIN with my family. I’m now enjoying some well-deserved R&R (aside from the placement exam and audition prep for graduate school), but before I left, I promised that I’d spend my last night at home whipping up a nice recipe for this month’s Recipe Redux challenge, hosted by Quaker Oats and the National Dairy Council.
This bread is delicious fresh, as is, or toasted, but I would recommend storing it in the refrigerator if you do not plan to eat it all immediately as it is very moist. Enjoy!
In a food processor, grind oats into a very fine flour. Sift flour into a medium bowl.
Add baking powder and salt, and mix to combine.
Whisk eggs and yogurt together in a separate mixing bowl until smooth, then whisk in almond extract, honey, and sparkling water.
Add the wet ingredients to the flour mixture and stir gently to combine – do not overmix.
Gently fold in blueberries, and transfer batter to a greased loaf pan. If desired, sprinkle a few extra blueberries and some slivered almonds onto the batter before baking.
Bake about 45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Notes
For a sightly sweeter bread, increase the amount of honey.
My love for Chobani yogurt extends far beyond the little six-ounce cups of heaven that I like to stir granola into. It’s so creamy and perfect and delicious, and as you well know, I will put it in anything. Dinner is no exception, even when it’s savory!
Now, I have been wanting to make falafel for a while. It’s one of the easiest things you can make if you have a food processor, which I don’t during school months. So, out of the twenty recipe ideas I accumulated while kitchen-less in Aspen, I figured this was a good one to try before I leave for Philly. I also made a delicious Tzatziki (yogurt sauce with cucumber and dill) to go with it. Served in a warm pita with vegetables and a light drizzle of tahini, these really did the trick. These falafel are pan (not deep) fried until browned and then baked to make them even crispier. The insides are perfectly soft but baking them for longer would make them drier if that’s the texture you prefer.
Recipe for Falafel (makes 28-30):
2 15 oz. cans garbanzo beans (chickpeas)
1 cup spinach
Juice of 1 lemon
1 small-medium white or yellow onion
3 sprigs fresh cilantro
2 sprigs fresh parsley
4-5 cloves garlic
2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp turmeric
Cayenne pepper to taste (I used 1/8 tsp, but you can use more depending on your heat preference)
1 cup oat flour
2 tsp baking powder
Coconut or olive oil for cooking
Rinse and drain chickpeas. Blend in food processor until smooth and then add spinach. Blend, adding lemon juice and tablespoons of water as necessary to help with blending. When completely blended, pour contents into a mixing bowl. In the food processor, combine onion, garlic, cilantro, and parsley and pulse until finely chopped. Fold that mixture into the bowl. Gradually stir in oat flour until the mixture becomes more stiff. Add baking powder and spices and combine.
Preheat oven to 375. Over low-medium heat, coat a pan with a thin layer of olive or coconut oil. Drop tablespoon-sized spoonfuls into the pan (2-4 minutes depending on your pan/stovetop) until they are able to be flipped easily. Flip falafels to the other side and let brown. Transfer falafels to a baking sheet and bake for 5-10 minutes, or longer for a drier result.
Greek Yogurt Tzatziki:
2 6-oz. containers plain 0% Greek yogurt (I recommend Chobani)
1 medium cucumber, peeled, seeded and minced
2 tsp. apple cider vinegar
4 tsp. olive oil
2 cloves finely minced garlic
4 tsp. fresh dill, chopped
For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you know my love affair with Chobani Greek yogurt has gotten pretty serious. Well, at least on my end. (Although they did send me three coupons and a free case of yogurt which arrives tomorrow, so maybe it’s more of a prom-couple-that-dates-for-the-convenience type of deal. Whichever it is, I’ll take it!) Unfortunately, I went through a period last year where I couldn’t eat lactose and it was the gentlest form of torture. So now that those circumstances are in the past, I have been putting Chobani in ALL of the things.
My newest Chobani adventure began when I decided to try something I’ve been seeing on a lot of different blogs:
Greek Yogurt dipped strawberries.
But of course I’m not just going to dip the strawberries in yogurt. I’m going to cover them in all sorts of goodness too.
I may be lazy, but I found the easiest way to go about dipping the strawberries was straight into the brand-new container of Chobani. Just stir to make it creamy and then dip away! The strawberries will come out evenly coated with a nice thick layer of yogurt.
I placed the dipped strawberries in a Pyrex baking dish that I lined with parchment paper to keep the berries from sticking. For toppings, I decided to make the berries like an Almond Joy (which is my favorite candy of all time besides sour gummi worms. I know, I’m a five-year-old) and use unsweetened coconut, crushed dry-roasted almonds, and dark chocolate.
Once the berries were dipped in the yogurt and sprinkled with the coconut/almonds, I popped them in the freezer to let the yogurt shell harden a bit (about 10 minutes). Then, I drizzled them with a combination of 1 tablespoon dark chocolate chips (melted) and water, and froze for another 10-15 minutes until the shell was hardened.
TIP: Serve immediately, before the berries get too hard to bite into!
HEY THERE!
Welcome! I'm Sarah, a violinist, culinary instructor for musicians, and blogger here at The Hungry Musician. Click here to read more about me!
