Granola Bars

In class on Wednesday, we had a surprise demo where I showed the students how to make homemade granola bars. Throughout the course of our current unit, "How Nutrients Become You," we have talked about practical ways to promote healthy digestion. This recipe is one of those. The oats, sunflower seeds/nuts, wheat germ, and raisins are full of fiber, which is necessary for a healthy digestive system.

But not only are they good for you, they are delicious! I can't take credit for this recipe, though. I found the recipe online and altered it a little. Okay, a lot. For example, the original called for Karo corn syrup, but it would be an understatement to say that I am not a fan of high fructose corn syrup. So, we replaced that with honey, a much more natural ingredient that still serves to bind the granola into a bar.

Also, if you don't have wheat germ, use extra oats. If you don't have raisins, add whatever dried fruit you do have. I made them once with dried cranberries, and the tartness of the berries added a fantastic "kick." You are only limited by your imagination and your pantry, of course. I unintentionally burned our almonds while toasting them before class yesterday, so we just omitted them.

The moral of the story? Don't box yourself in in the kitchen. Unless you are baking pastries, you can always make changes!

Homemade Chewy Granola Bars

Ingredients
• 1/3 c. packed brown sugar
• 1/3 c. peanut butter
• 1/4 c. honey
• 1/4 c. butter, melted
• 1 t. vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 c. quick-cooking oats
• 1/4 c. sunflower kernels or other nuts
• 1/4 c. raisins
• 3 tablespoons toasted wheat germ (or substitute more oats)
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips

Directions
1. In a small mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, peanut butter, honey, butter and vanilla. Stir in the oats, sunflower kernels or nuts, raisins, and wheat germ. Fold in chocolate chips.
2. Press into an 8-in. square baking dish coated with nonstick cooking spray. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15-20 minutes or until set and edges are browned. Cool completely on a wire rack. Cut into bars. Bars take about two hours to cool and set up, but you can enjoy them warm, too, as long as you don't mind a little "crumble."

Yield – 12 bars

Bon appetit!

World's Best Spaghetti Sauce

Below is our recipe for The World's Best (and easiest) Spaghetti Sauce. The recipe states that you should simmer for an hour or two, but we are not able do that since we only have 80-minute blocks in which to cook, eat, and clean up. And do you know what? Our sauce was still perfect! If you do simmer your sauce for a while, be mindful of the amount of water that evaporates as the sauce cooks. You may need to add a little more water to thin it out.

World’s Best Spaghetti Sauce

Ingredients

• 1/4 lb. ground sausage
• 1/2 lb. lean ground beef
• 4 T. minced onion
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 (15 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
• 1 (6 oz.) can tomato paste
• 2 (6.5 oz.) cans tomato sauce
• 4 T. water
• 1 T. white sugar
• 1/2 t. dried basil leaves
• 1/4 t. fennel seeds
• 1/2 t. Italian seasoning
• 1 1/2 t. salt
• 1/4 t. ground black pepper
• 1 t. dried parsley

Directions

In a sauté pan, cook sausage, ground beef, onion, and garlic over medium heat until well browned. Stir in crushed tomatoes, tomato paste, tomato sauce, and water. Season with sugar, basil, fennel seeds, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper, and parsley. Simmer, covered, for about 1 1/2 hours, stirring occasionally.

Serves 8

Homemade

It's always better homemade, in my humble opinion! No matter what "it" is. Yes, we took a few shortcuts - no garden fresh tomatoes or leafy fresh herbs. But our pasta sauce was a hit! The students chose their own pasta shapes to serve with their sauce, so every team's creation was unique. Garlic bread completed our delicious meal!

Inspired by Italy...

In class, we have been focusing on how culture affects food choices. So in the spirit of embracing food from another culture, we are going to learn how to make our own pasta sauce next week. We will take a few shortcuts, like canned tomatoes, since we are bound by an 80+ minute block, but I think my students will be impressed by how much tastier our sauce is when compared to commercial sauces.

And it's easy! You may be thinking...doesn't homemade sauce need to simmer all day? Well, ideally, yes, but even if you are short on time, a good tomato-based sauce can be whipped up in thirty minutes or less if you use your vegetables and seasonings strategically.

So look for a post early next week documenting our "travels" into Italian cuisine!

Try it!

Here is the apple pizza recipe, for those who requested it. This is a very simple dessert, though I'll warn you - it's sweet! You could also substitute peaches or pears for the apples, as well as use your own homemade pizza dough. The possibilities are endless!



Apple Pizza

1 can (11 oz) Pillsbury® refrigerated thin pizza crust

Apple topping:

3 tablespoons butter
3 large cooking apples, peeled and sliced thinly
¾ cup sugar
3 tablespoons flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon

Streusel topping

½ cup all-purpose flour

½ cup packed brown sugar

½ cup quick-cooking oats

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

½ cup butter or margarine

¼ cup caramel topping

Directions:

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Spray 15x10-inch nonstick cookie sheet. Unroll dough on cookie sheet; press into 15x10-inch rectangle.
2. Whisk together the flour, sugar, and cinnamon in a medium-sized saucepan. Add butter and apples, and heat over medium heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer until apples are tender. Set aside to cool. Then spread over pizza crust.
3. In medium bowl, mix flour, brown sugar, oats and cinnamon. Cut in butter, using pastry blender until mixture looks like fine crumbs. Sprinkle over apples.
4. Bake 13 to 16 minutes or until golden brown. Drizzle with caramel topping. Serve immediately.

Apple Pizza

Welcome back, Students! You're in for a great year! I am so excited to be teaching Food, Nutrition, and Wellness again, and we have had a busy start.

I hope you will share the link to our blog with your family and friends. My goal is to keep this site updated with recipes, pictures, and other news about things going on in our classroom.

This week, we made Apple Pizza! The halls smelled of apples and cinnamon, and we had many drop-in visitors who were interested in what we were cooking. I will post the recipe later this week, but for now, here a few pictures of us in action.

Welcome!

Welcome to our little corner of the web, The Dogg Dish!

I am Ms. M, a Family and Consumer Sciences teacher in a small town in Northeast Georgia. I started this blog as a way to communicate with, and sometimes brag about, my Food and Nutrition students. Here you will find photos, recipes, reminders, and the occasional goofy story about the shenanigans happening in today's high school classroom. I have great kids, and I am looking forward to enhancing what we do in class with our little blog.

Feel free to comment on our posts and pictures! The kids will love reading notes from those who happen to find our page.

Class starts in about four weeks! Boy, summers fly! I am looking forward to another great year with my Food and Nutrition Doggs. (And if you are not sure what that second "g" is all about, that story will come later!)