1/4 C balsamic vinegar
1/4 C sugar
Big handful of fresh mint
1 lb strawberries, hulled and quartered

Mix vinegar, sugar, and mint. Marinate the strawberries in this mixture for a couple of hours. Especially good with vanilla ice cream and fresh whipped cream.

The pickles become incredibly sweet and get crunchier the longer they sit.

Preheat oven to 350 F.

Combine the brown rice syrup, peanut butter, oil, and butter. Stir in the oat bran and then the remaining ingredients.

Grease a 9×12 baking dish and press the mixture into it. Bake for 20 minutes or until it browns slightly around the edges. Cool completely in the pan before cutting into bars.

Heat oven to 250. Melt butter in a large roasting pan in the oven. Stir in seasonings. Gradually stir in rest of ingredients until evenly coated. Bake for 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes.

My Mom always made this at Christmas. The Cheerios are my favorite part — they seem to soak up the flavor more than the Chex (TM) cereal, and they’re usually cheaper.

My Mom always packed it away in a huge plastic container to keep it fresh, but Barry’s Grandma had a better idea. She saves the cereal bags/boxes and puts it back in them, after it’s made. It’s fun to open a box of Cheerios and discover it’s really snack mix!

In a large paper bag, combine the powdered sugar and cocoa. Dump the popcorn into the bag, fold the top over, and shake it up. Spread it on large sheets of waxed paper to cool.

Peanut butter version:
Use 9 oz chocolate chips
2/3 C smooth peanut butter
1/3 C butter
Vanilla extract only
And leave out the cocoa powder

Preheat oven to 300 F. Grease a baking sheet with a rim.

Toss nuts with butter in a bowl. Combine 2/3 C sugar and the coffee in a small bowl and stir into the nuts.
Beat egg whites with a mixer until soft peaks form. Add the rest of the sugar gradually, then beat until stiff peaks form. Fold these whites into the nuts and spread on the baking sheet. Bake for 30 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Cool before serving, and store in the refrigerator.

Mix the dry ingredients first, then add oil and honey. Bake in 300 degree oven until lightly browned. Add raisins after baking.

1/2 lb sliced bacon at room temperature
1 C dark brown sugar

Preheat oven to 250 F. Dredge both sides of the bacon in the brown sugar, patting it to make it stick. Place slices on a flat baking sheet in a single layer, without overlapping. Bake for 30-40 minutes, until crisp. Remove from pan and drain on paper. When cool, break in half and serve.

From Gene Hovis’ cookbook.

1-1/2 C plain granola
1 C quick oatmeal
3/4 C dried fruit (raisins or cherries)
1/2 C whole wheat flour
1/3 C slivered almonds, toasted
1/2 t ground cinnamon
2 beaten egg whites
1/3 C honey
1/4 C brown sugar, firmly packed
2 T vegetable oil

Line bottom and sides of an 8x8x2-inch pan with foil and spray with non-stick cooking spray.

In a bowl, combine granola, oatmeal, cherries, whole wheat flour, almonds, and cinnamon. Stir together the egg whites, honey, brown sugar, and oil. Stir into the granola mixture and mix until all ingredients are coated. Press into prepared pan.

Bake (the cookbook does not say what temperature!) for 20-25 minutes until light brown. Cool on wire rack and use the foil to lift it out of the pan. Cut into bars after it has cooled completely.

5 quarts of popcorn, popped (can use 2 bags of microwave popcorn)
1 C nuts
2 sticks margarine
2 C brown sugar
1 t salt
1/2 t baking soda
1/2 C dark Karo syrup

Put nuts and popped corn in large pan. Bring margarine, sugar, and syrup to a boil for 5 minutes. Remove from heat, add baking soda. Stir well and pour over corn and nuts. Mix well. Bake at 250 for 30-40 minutes. Stir every 10 minutes. Spread on waxed paper to cool and store in an airtight container.

In a large pot with a lid, heat 1/4 C oil with 3 popcorn kernels. When they have popped, add the remainder of the popcorn and cook over medium heat (not high), shaking until the popping slows and then stops.

(For fluffier popcorn, occasionally lift the lid a bit to allow some steam to escape. The lid’s purpose is merely to keep the popcorn from jumping out of the pan, but it also allows too much steam to accumulate.)

Put the popcorn in a large bowl and toss with the spice mixture.

When I went away to college, I found a popcorn popper like that in a thrift store, and I used it at first. Then I discovered that I could make popcorn in a pan instead, and it was a lot easier to clean. I never went back, and I never fell for those newfangled air poppers or microwaved popcorn. I like it the old-fashioned way.

In a large (4-quart or larger), heavy pot with a lid, heat 3 T of oil over high heat. Put 3 kernels of popcorn in the oil and put the lid on the pot. When you hear the three kernels pop, pour in 1/2 C Jolly Time popcorn. You can use other brands, but the name of that one is the best.

Turn the heat down to medium-high and cook, shaking regularly to avoid burning. When you hear it popping really wildly, you can lift the lid just a tiny bit to let some of the steam out. That will make it fluffier. Eventually, the popping will slow down and stop. Immediately dump the popcorn into a huge bowl.

The pot is still hot enough to melt butter — put a couple spoonfuls of butter in and let them melt. Pour them over the popcorn in the bowl. Put about half of the buttered popcorn back into the pot and swirl it around to pick up the melted butter off the sides. Dump it back in the bowl and mix it very, very well. Now you can sprinkle it with popcorn salt, which is extra-fine salt that will stick to the butter. I like to sprinkle mine with a little nutritional yeast as well, and sometimes some shaved parmesan cheese.

1 large bunch of kale
Vegetable or olive oil
3 T finely grated parmesan
Fine salt or garlic salt
Preheat the oven to 350. Clean the kale and tear it into pieces, about 1-2 inches across. Oil a large baking or pizza pan and spread the kale out in the pan. Roast it for 10 to 20 minutes, stirring it every 5 or 7 minutes. Watch it carefully near the end, so it doesn’t burn. It will get chewy and then crispy. Remove it from the oven, sprinkle with Parmesan cheese and salt, and serve.

1 lb green or Greek olives
4 cloves garlic, sliced
2 t harissa or chili paste
2 T orange juice
2 T balsamic vinegar
Grated zest of 1 orange and 1 lemon
1/2 pint extra virgin olive oil
6 T chopped coriander

Whisk together all the ingredients except the olives. Add the olives and marinate for two days.

Preheat oven to 325 F. Line a 9-inch square baking pan with foil, then grease the foil.

Mix together flour, oat bran, oats, soy powder, sunflower seeds, salt and fruit. In another bowl, beat the egg, then stir in lemon juice and zest, maple syrup, and canola oil. Fold the liquid mixture into the dry ingredients and mix lightly. Press into the foiled pan. Bake for 30 minutes, until slightly browned. Let cool, remove from pan and cut into bars or squares.

3 C rolled oats
1 C toasted and sliced almonds
1 C wheat germ
3/4 C packed brown sugar
1/2 C honey
1/2 C butter
1-1/2 C dried fruit – any mixture of raisins, cherries, dates, apricots, or cranberries
1/4 C sesame seeds
1/4 C water
1 t salt

Directions:
1. Simmer sugar, honey, salt, water, and butter in large saucepan for 5 minutes
2. Stir in almonds, sesame seeds, wheat germ, and oats
3. Cook for 15 minutes, stirring regularly
4. Remove from heat
5. Add fruit
6. Pour into a greased jelly roll pan
7. Cut bars
8. Allow to cool

Make tiny piles of grated parmesan cheese, about 1 t per pile, on the cookie sheet. Bake for 7 minutes. Watch carefully — if they get too brown, they take on a burnt taste. Using a thin spatula, remove them to a plate to cool.

These are great as snacks, or to garnish salads or other dishes. You can also make them on the stovetop, using a heavy skillet.

5 oz Eagle sweetened condensed milk
1 t vanilla
2 C powdered sugar
14 oz shredded or flaked coconut
24-oz package semisweet chocolate chips

Blend condensed milk and vanilla. Add powdered sugar, a little at a time, stirring until smooth. Stir in coconut. The mixture should be firm.

Pat firmly into a greased 9x13x2 inch pan. Chill in refrigerator until firm.

In a double boiler over hot (not boiling) water, melt chocolate, stirring often. Or, in the microwave, place the chips in a bowl and heat for 1 minute on high, then stir and heat for 1 more minute.

Remove the coconut mixture from the fridge and cut into 1×2-inch bars. Set each one on a fork and dip into the chocolate. Tap the fork against the side of the pan or bowl to remove excess chocolate.

Air-dry at room temperature on waxed paper. This could take several hours, but chocolate sets best at cool room temperature (below 70 F). You can speed up the process by placing the bars in the fridge for about 30 minutes.

If you feel like a nut, try these changes:
Substitute milk chocolate for the semisweet chocolate. Place 2 almonds atop each bar before dipping (should take about a cup of almonds).

Combine water with vinegar, salt, mustard, and fennel seeds. Bring to a boil and stir in the honey.  Add the carrots and garlic. Simmer gently for about 10 minutes, until the carrots are tender-crisp.

Cool, then store in a jar with a tight-fitting lid.