No Bake: Peanut Butter Balls with Chia Seeds Rolled in Oats

I do tend to repeat myself by making various versions of recipes I like. This is a pretty simple recipe with few ingredients.

 

Once made, these little balls are great to pop in your mouth when seeking a sweet treat.

 

 

No Bake: Peanut Butter Balls with Chia Seeds Rolled in Oats

 

Makes 10-12 balls.

 

Ingredients:

Two bowls

2-3 TBspns honey
2 heaping tablespoons  peanut butter
2 heaping tablespoons dry milk
2 TBspns Chia seeds
1/2 cup oats
1 dab of vegetable oil


Process:

Pour oats in a small bowl.
Mix honey, peanut butter, dry milk, chia seeds, oil in a soup bowl.
Chill for 5 minutes.
Take 1/2 a spoonful of mix and roll in palms to create a ball.
Roll ball in oats.
Place in freezer container.
Freeze and eat at any time.

 

Note: The Peanut Butter Balls do not really freeze. 

 

No Bake: Lime Cream Cake Freezer Dessert - Experiment #1

You are going to see several No Bake Lime Cream Cake Desserts here because I can't seem to make the same one twice. This has a lot to do with the ingredients I have on hand and my own "cooking" abilities.

This will be one of those desserts I won't be able to duplicate because I was also trying to use some leftover cream and yogurt, so I probably won't have this combination of ingredients on hand at the same time, again.

 

One of these days, I hope I can come up with a Universal No Bake Lime Cream Cake Refrigerator Dessert.

No Bake: Lime Cream Cake Freezer Dessert - Experiment 1

 

 

Ingredients:

 

1/2 Cup cream

1/2 Cup condensed milk

1/2 Cup evaporated milk

2-3 TBspns Yogurt

3 dollops lime juice concentrate

6-8 sugar cookies, crumbled

 

 

Process:

 

Add cream, milks and yogurt in a bowl.

Stir and whip with a spoon until smooth.

Add lime juice.

Mix liquids thoroughly.

Make thick layer of cookie crumbs on the bottom of small rectangle microwaveable glass loaf dish with a cover.

Add 1/2 of cream mixture, no need to use it all.

Top with 2 crumbled cookies.

Sprinkled top with lime zest.

Put in freezer.

Freeze overnight or 6-8 hours.

 

Personally, I like to let it defrost a bit before serving, it makes it easier to divide the portions.

 

This No Bake: Lime Cream Cake Freezer Dessert came out pretty good. It was very tasty, just the right about of lime. But, it could have used more crumbled cookies.

No Bake: Blueberry Cream Cheese / Yogurt Refrigerator Dessert

No Bake: Blueberry Cream Cheese / Yogurt Refrigerator Dessert

Ingredients: 

 

8 Sugar cookies

1/2 8oz Package Cream Cheese

2-4 oz Plain yogurt

4-6 TBspns Canned Blueberry pie filling

Process:

In a bowl, mix cream cheese and yogurt together.

Stir until smooth.

Add more yogurt to make mixture thinner, if desired.

In a dessert or small bowl, add a layer of 4 roughly crushed sugar cookies.

Add a thin layer of cream cheese/yogurt mixture. It is not necessary to use all the mixture.

Smooth layer out to sides of bowl.

Add blueberry filling, spread fulling to sides of bowl.

Top with a layer of crushed sugar cookies.

Refrigerate overnight.

No Bake - Refrigerator: Mug O’Chocolate Cream Cake

 

Now, when I look at an interesting recipe, I think, "Can I make this into a Mug Recipe?"

Lucky for me, with this recipe, you can make a mug version.

No Bake - Refrigerator: Mug O’Chocolate Cream Cake

(Adapted from: https://www.olivemagazine.com/recipes/baking-and-desserts/coffee-and-cream-fridge-cake/)

Pre-preparation:

Make 1/4 cup of strong coffee:

Add 2 heaping Tspns of instant coffee to 1/4 cup of hot water.

Stir.

Ingredients:

A dribble vegetable oil
5 oz light cream*
1.5 oz coffee concentrate
1 Tspn Chocolate milk powder mix and extra for garnish
2 Tspns confectioner sugar
1 Tspn Vanilla flavoring (optional)
Sugar cookies, crushed


Process:

In a measuring cup, add cream, coffee concentrate, chocolate powder, 2 Tspns confectioner sugar, and vanilla flavoring.

Mix thoroughly. 

Whip until it froths.

In a large mug, add vegetable oil, swirl oil to coat bottom and sides of mug.
Add a layer of some of the crushed sugar cookies.
Add a layer of some of cream mixture.
Repeat layers until mug is almost full
Make last layer cream mixture.
Chill overnight.

Prior to serving, sprinkle with chocolate milk powder and some crushed sugar cookies.

 

I liked it. It was creamy, cakey, chocolatey, and coffeey.

Next time, I won't crush the sugar cookies into crumbs, I'll keep them a little chunky.

 

*I struggle to understand the differences in creams.

 This is the light crema I used:

 

According to Spruce Eats, a light cream has 20% butterfat.

https://www.thespruceeats.com/understanding-different-kinds-of-milk-and-cream-3050535

No Bake: Small Yogurt & Whipped Topping Pie

My recipes have devolved into small or single portion servings and minimalist ingredients.

While I don't have a sweet tooth, I do crave something sweet now and then. I made a version of this recipe, previously, but this one is simpler and more basic.


No Bake: Small Yogurt & Whipped Topping Pie
(Adapted from: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/12225/strawberry-yogurt-pie-i/)

 
Ingredients:

6oz Yogurt, flavored
6 Tbspns Whipped Topping
6-8 Cookies, crushed, use more if needed
Garnishes: Cookie crumbs and cinnamon


Process:

Put cookies in a plastic bag.
Smash cookies into crumbs with something hard like a can or a cutting board.
Conserve some cookie crumbs for garnish.

Layer the bottom of a small pie dish with the crushed cookie crumbs.
Use a spoon to level the cookie crumbs in the dish out to the edges.

In a small bowl, add yogurt and topping.
Stir and mix well until smooth.

Pour yogurt mixture over cookie crumbs in pie dish.
Use spoon to smooth mixture out to the edges.
Place in freezer for several hours to set.

When serving, garnish with additional cookie crumbs and cinnamon.

For a variation, see other blog post:

No Bake: Fruit & Yogurt Dessert
https://riastoneblog.blogspot.com/2015/05/no-bake-fruit-yogurt-dessert.html

#GERD-friendly - this is GERD-friendly for some but not all. Because I use lactose-free milk and dry milk, the use of other dairy products sparingly does not cause a problem. Be cautious.

Curry and Cinnamon Overnight Oats

I am enjoying making variations on Jack Monroe's Carrot Cake Overnight Oats

For this recipe, BudgetBytes offered another good idea for making a version of overnight oats using spices like Turmeric. As usual, I often don't have the spices called for in a recipe, so I have to make substitutions.

I did not have Turmeric, so I took a look at my Badia curry powder and it had Turmeric and a few other spices as its ingredients.

So, I went with the Curry and I made a few other adjustments. I had wanted to make one small serving, so instead of measuring the ingredients, I used them as a guide.

(Badia: https://badiaspices.com/product/curry-powder-1-20-lbs/)

Curry and Cinnamon Overnight Oats
(Adapted from:) https://www.budgetbytes.com/golden-milk-overnight-oats/)

 

Ingredients:

2 - 4 TBspns Rolled oats
1/2 - 2/3 Cup milk, made from dry powder mix
1 Tspn Curry powder
1/2 Tspn Cinnamon
1 Tspn Honey
 1/2 Capful Vanilla


Process:

In a small container with a lid, add a layer of oats.
Add a little milk, stir to coat oats.
Add a little more milk to cover oats.
Add spices and honey.
Stir and mix thoroughly.
Add lid.
Place in frig overnight.

In the morning, open the container. The oats will have absorbed the milk, add more milk and stir well before eating.

This makes a small serving. Increase oats, milk and spices for larger servings.

#GERD-friendly
 

No Bake: Pineapple Overnight Oats

When I returned home, I got frustrated. I had a pantry full of items but because I lacked one essential ingredient for several recipes, I floundered. What do I make? Unfortunately, my “Use What You Have” method did not help this time.

I love Jack Monroe’s Carrot Cake Overnight Oats from her Tin Can Cook Cookbook (https://cookingonabootstrap.com/2019/05/30/carrot-cake-overnight-oats-recipe/). But, where I live, the canned carrots are seasoned with salty and sour spices that I could not rinse out.

So, I decided to make a variation on the recipe using a replacement ingredient for the carrots.

So, after three trips to various tiendas, I got oats, milk, and canned pineapple. This venture was Not Tightwaddery.

I was bound and determined to have a breakfast of overnight oats. During the process, I did a bit of research about overnight oats recipes and found answers to several of my questions.

There are several types of oats according to the Oldways Whole Oats Council (https://wholegrainscouncil.org/whole-grains-101/easy-ways-enjoy-whole-grains/grain-month-calendar/oats-%E2%80%93-january-grain-month/types):

Raw, Whole Oats Groats, Steel Cut Oats, Scottish Oatmeal, Rolled Oats Regular, Rolled Oats Quick or Instant, and Oat Flour.

On my visit to my family, I made the Carrot Cake Overnight Oats with quick oats. While the result was good, the oats were semi-soft, that was not a problem, they just gave the dish a different texture.

For this recipe, I used rolled oats which are thicker. This gave my new overnight oats recipe a thicker, crunchier texture.

Also, @TheKitchn gave some great information about making and storing overnight oats recipes. I wondered how long the oats would keep in the frig and found this article: This is How Long Overnight Oats Will Last in the Fridge, (https://www.thekitchn.com/this-is-how-long-overnight-oats-will-last-in-the-fridge-248415).

Also, I found I had already made an Overnight Oats Mug recipe years ago (https://riastoneblog.blogspot.com/2014/02/mug-no-cook-fruit-oatmeal-treat.html). With my new information, I can improve that recipe.



No Bake: Pineapple Overnight Oats


Ingredients:

Food container with a lid
1 Can of chunk pineapple, drained
Rolled oats (Instant will work, too)
Honey
Cinnamon
Milk


Process:

I had to eyeball the measurement of the ingredients based on the size of the food container.

Basically, layer the bottom of the food container with some of the pineapple chunks.
Top with a thick layer of oats.
Add honey and cinnamon according to taste.
Stir mixture well
Pour in milk to cover the oat mixture.
Stir well.
Cover container with the lid.
Store in fridge.
Check mixture about an hour later.
The oats will have absorbed most of the milk.
Add a bit more milk and stir.
Check later if necessary.

In the morning, upon serving, add more milk if mixture is too thick or dry.


#GERD-friendly

Tin Can Cook - Carrot Cake Overnight Oats

I am enjoying reading Jack Monroe’s latest cookbook, Tin Can Cook. This is the first of several recipes I am going to try.

It is always an adventure to try and make a recipe.

BTW, I love the name of the recipe and the fact it is a no bake or cook recipe.

When I was in the states visiting family, going grocery shopping, is often a catch as catch can affair because I use public transit or join family on their trips to the grocery.

After a family event, my sister stopped by a grocery store. As we shopped, I tried to be quick. What did I need to make Jack’s Carrot Cake Overnight Oats?

Besides buying cans of carrots, I had asked my sister to pick up some oats. Back at the house, as I began to gather the ingredients to make this recipe, I realized she had selected quick oats, so I was not sure how they would work.

Note: I converted the metric measurements to ounces.

Tin Can Cook - Carrot Cake Overnight Oats
(No Bake)

Ingredients:

1 can carrots, drained, 200g = 7.05 oz

My can was 14.5 oz, so I used roughly half a can.

Milk 250ml = 8.79 oz
I used Lactose-free milk

Oats 70g = 2.49 oz

Raisins 70g = 2.49 oz

1/2 tsp cinnamon

2 Tbspns Sugar, optional

Process:

In a medium-size container with a lid, add carrots.

With a fork, mash carrots.

Add milk.

Mix and mash carrots in the milk

Add oats.

Add raisins.

Add cinnamon and sugar.

Mix well.

Affix lid.

Chill overnight or 8 hours to allow oats to soak up milk and swell up.

Serve with a splash of milk or cream.

The recipe turned out great. Now, I have another oats recipe including the "Worts" recipe.

#GERD-Friendly

Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Mousse

Updated 1/9/21

 

As I peruse the peanut recipes created by George Washington Carver, a noted Botanist, who promoted new agricultural methods and cash crops like the peanut and sweet potato to assist farmers in the South, I found his recipe for Peanut Frappe below which I find similar to my Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Mousse.

 

Source:

 

How to Grow the Peanut and 105 Ways of Preparing it for Human Consumption, Seventh Edition, January 1940


By GEORGE W. CARVER, M.S. in AGR., Director

 

"5. Peanut Frappe

Make one pint of good gelatin; set aside to harden.
Stir 1 cup of granulated sugar into one pint of whipped cream;
when the gelatin is just at the point of setting, stir into the whipped cream by beating it with a fork;
add 3/4 cup of peanut meal;
serve in sherbert glasses with fresh or preserved fruit."

 

Slowly, I am discovering the fun and many uses of yogurt and peanut butter in various recipes.

Easy Peasy Peanut Butter Mousse
(Adapted from: https://eatsmartmovemoreva.org/recipes/yogurt-peanut-butter-dip/)

Ingredients:

3 heaping TBspns creamy peanut butter

5 TBspns plain yogurt

1 Capful vanilla flavoring

Optional:

Garnish: fruit slices or berries

Topping: Cinnamon 

 

Process:

 

Add peanut butter into a bowl.

Add yogurt and vanilla. 

Mix well until smooth. 

If a thicker mousse is desired, add more peanut butter. 

If a thinner mousse or dip is desired, add more yogurt.

 

Serve in a small dessert bowl.

Add garnish and cinnamon.

 

 

References: 

 

Texas A&M Agrilife Extension

https://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/fruit-nut/carver-peanut

 

Miami New Times Blogs
Top 5 George Washington Carver Peanut Recipes
(Accessed 2/10/2010)

 

#GERD-friendly

No-Bake Cheesecake Experiment

I have been thinking about making a no-bake cheesecake for over a week. So, after some research I found three recipes that might work for me.

Initially, I thought I had all the ingredients.

As I examined each of the three recipes, I realized one called for condensed milk, didn't have that, so I dropped that one.

The other two were recipes for a much larger cheesecake than I planned for, so I had to halve the recipes to see what I could do.

Eventually, I adapted Valerie's recipe with insight from the other two and that's when the recipe became an experiment.

I knew I had confectioner sugar but I had several unlabelled jars of white powder in my cupboard. I tasted them. Two were baking soda, two were confectioner sugar. I labelled the jars.

I used a gram to ounce online converter to determine amounts.

https://www.metric-conversions.org/weight/grams-to-ounces.htm

With only two "pans" to choose from, I choose the 7" round glass pie pan.

No-Bake Cheesecake Experiment 
(Adapted from: https://www.fromvalerieskitchen.com/easy-blueberry-cheesecake-dessert/

 with consultation from: https://divascancook.com/easy-no-bake-cheesecake-recipe/ and https://cookingonabootstrap.com/2018/04/04/lazy-cheesecake-v-vg-df/)

Ingredients:

Crust

113g (3.98 oz) cinnamon flavored crackers or sugar cookies, crushed (depending in size of cake pan, you may have some crumbs left)

olive oil

Cheesecake

1 8oz package of cream cheese, softened

1/2 Cup confectioner sugar

1/2 Cup Whipped topping

1 Tspoon vanilla flavoring

1 Tspoon lime juice concentrate

Optional toppings: slices of fresh or canned fruit (drained), dried blueberries or chocolate syrup

Process:

Crust

To make the crust, put crackers or cookies (I choose the cinnamon flavored crackers) into a large baggie. Smash crackers with the bottom of a heavy glass or measuring cup until it becomes a bag of crumbs.

 

(Sugar Cookies or Cinnamon flavored crackers)

Add crumbs to large bowl.

Add a bit of olive oil. Stir and smash crumbs and oil thoroughly.

Add a bit more oil until the mixture sticks together.

Stir thoroughly.

Add some of the mixture to the pan.

Smash mixture down into center of pan. Add more mixture. Smash down mixture from center of pan to sides of pan until bottom and sides are coated with crumb mixture.

Set pan in frig while making the cream cheese mixture.

Cream Cheese Mixture

In a large bowl, add cream cheese.

Add confectioner sugar. Stir well. Stir to remove all lumps. Smash lumps with spoon. Stir until smooth.

Add Whipped topping. Stir well.

Add vanilla flavoring and lime juice concentrate.

Stir thoroughly.

Get pan with crumb mixture.

Carefully, add the cream cheese mixture into the center of the pan. It will be a mound of cream cheese mixture. Using a spatula or a spoon, carefully spread cream cheese mixture over bottom of pan up to the sides.

Smooth top of cream cheese mixture with the spatula or spoon.

Put pan in frig.

Refrigerator for 4 hours or overnight, until firm.

Add toppings when serving.

I tried a slice with some dried blueberries I had heated in the microwave with a little water to soften.

Later, I tried another slice with chocolate syrup. I liked it better than the one with blueberries.

It was also good without any topping. The cracker crumb crust was good.

Microwave: A Dish of Apple Pie

 While the original recipe was a mug recipe, for this recipe, I used a small dessert dish.

This recipe is similar to Amy Dacyczyn´s Apple Crisp recipe in the Tightwad Gazette.

A Dish of Apple Pie
Adapted from: http://www.curryandcomfort.com/2012/11/2-minute-apple-pie-in-mug.html


Ingredients:

1/2 an apple, peeled, cored and diced
1/2 Tsp flour
1 Tsp olive oil
a few dashes of Cinnamon
a dash of Nutmeg
1/2 Tbsp lime juice concentrate
Toppings: crushed cookies, whipped cream or ice cream


Process:

Mix all ingredients together, except toppings.
Stir well.
Microwave 1 minute on high.
Add toppings.

No Bake -- Fruit & Yogurt Dessert

I could tell you about the melt-in-your-mouth recipe that "got away." But, I am on a roll. Three decent recipes in a row! 


No Bake -- Fruit & Yogurt Dessert

Ingredients:

1 Medium Baggie
2-3 Small Dessert Bowls (approx 8oz)
1/2 cup Blueberry or Strawberry yogurt
6 Tablespoons Whipped topping
1 cup Blueberries or Sliced Strawberries (save some for garnish)
6 Medium Sugar cookies, crushed (save some for topping)
Garnish: Blueberries or Sliced Strawberries

Process:

Place cookies in a baggies and smash into crumbs.
Set cookie crumbs aside.
Mix yogurt with whipped topping.
Add in blueberries or strawberries.
Mix well.
Garnish: Cookie crumbs and Blueberries or Sliced Strawberries

In each dessert bowl, add about 1 inch of cookie crumbs.
With a spoon, make a slight well in the center.
Save about 2-3 teaspoons of cookie crumbs for topping.

Add about 3-4 tablespoons of fruit, yogurt & topping mixture into the well of cookie crumbs.
Push down lightly, crumbs should move up along the sides a bit.
Add any remaining mixture evenly between the dessert bowls.\

Freeze for about 10 minutes.

When ready to serve, sprinkle a teaspoon of cookie crumbs on top.
Add garnish: blueberries or sliced strawberries.