No-Bake Chewy Truffle Cookies

Low-Cal But Still Lovely
Even those of us watching our weight deserve sweets when we want them, but often those sweets are full of artificial ingredients. I found this recipe on The Food Network website and thought it was yummy and easy. You can get whole-wheat graham crackers all over town. And speaking of treats, nothing beats a piece of fresh fruit! Each cookie is 2 points for those who care.

Ingredients
1 cup dried pitted dates, chopped (about 4 ounces)
1 cup water
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons honey or agave syrup
2 tablespoons reduced-fat or natural chunky peanut butter
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
8 full sheets whole wheat graham crackers, finely ground (about 1 1/4 cups)
1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, not instant
Cooking spray
1/2 cup crushed whole-wheat graham crackers for rolling

Procedure
Combine the dates, water, and lemon juice in a medium saucepan. Simmer over medium heat, breaking up any large pieces of dates with a spoon, until the mixture resembles a thick paste, 15 to 20 minutes. Stir in the honey, peanut butter, cocoa powder, butter and salt until evenly combined. Stir in the graham crackers and oats. Remove from heat.

Lightly mist a baking sheet with cooking spray. Drop level tablespoons of the cookie mixture onto the prepared pan. Refrigerate until just chilled and set, about 20 minutes. Put graham cracker crumbs in small bowl and roll each cookie in crumbs and flatten slightly into a plump disk. Cover and refrigerate until firm. Serve chilled.

Chicken Salad with Dates, Feta, and Peanut Lime Sauce

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
I found this recipe on Chowhound, which is a great website. Besides a chat room specifically for Southwest conversation (which is actually pretty boring) there are articles and videos worth checking out. This recipe from a restaurant I do not know in Vancouver, and is absolutely delicious. I cannot vouch for whether or not it resembles the restaurant recipe.

Ingredients
2 whole chicken breasts, cut in half
Vegetable oil
Chipolte chili powder
Salt and pepper
1/4 cup chopped and toasted peanuts
1/4 cup fresh lime juice (2 limes)
2 teaspoons peanut butter
1 tsp each sugar and soy sauce
1 small clove garlic, pressed or finely chopped
2 Tbl lime zest (2 limes)
1/4 cup vegetable or peanut oil
1 cup fresh dates, chopped into 1/4" pieces
2 small corn tortillas
vegetable oil for deep frying
7-8 cups each mixed greens and chopped Romaine lettuce
1 cob corn (or 3/4 cup corn kernels)
vegetable oil
1 14 oz can black beans, well rinsed and well drained
1 avocado
3/4 cup feta cheese
1/4 cup chopped roasted peanuts

Procedure
Rub chicken breasts all over with vegetable oil; sprinkle chili powder liberally on both sides and season with salt and pepper. Grill over medium-high heat or broil until done. Set aside. Slice diagonally into 1/4" wide slices. To make dressing, put lime juice, peanuts, peanut butter, sugar, soy sauce, garlic and lime zest, and oil in food processor. Process ingredients until almost smooth. There should be tiny chunks of peanut and lime. Next prepare deep fried tortilla pieces: slice tortillas into pieces 1/8" wide and 1" long. Heat oil in a small pot or skillet to 375 degrees. Drop tortilla pieces in batches; drain on paper towel, sprinkle on salt. Grill corn: rub corn with vegetable oil; place over medium-high grill. Cook, rotating until lightly brown tinged. Remove kernels and set aside for salad.

To assemble salad, place lettuces in a large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to lightly coat. Add corn, dates and black beans and half the feta cheese and tortilla piece into lettuces; gently toss. Divide lettuce mixture between 4 dinner plates. Thinly slice avocado and divide between 4 plates, placing on the side. Top each salad with crumbled feta cheese, tortilla pieces, chicken pieces and chopped peanuts, if desired.

Date Nut Bread

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
I don’t know why, but date nut bread and cream cheese sandwiches make me feel all warm and cozy. It's not like I have any connection to them from my youth, they just totally work for me. The dark sweet and nutty mellowed with a perfect thick schmear of full fat cream cheese, it's textural perfection. I was thinking about experimenting further to see what else would work as a filling, but for the moment, let's keep it classic. This bread holds well and can be frozen, wrapped tightly in plastic wrap.

Ingredients
3/4 cup boiling water
1 1/2 cups chopped dates
1 tablespoon butter
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 large room temperature eggs
1 cup A.P. flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup chopped walnuts

Procedure
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, pour hot water over chopped dates and break in the butter. Stir till butter melts and mixture becomes lukewarm. In a food processor, puree 1/3 of the mixture to make a paste. Now add that goop back into the bowl of dates and add brown sugar, molasses, vanilla, and eggs. Stir to combine. In a separate bowl combine the flour, soda, powder, and salt. Make a well in the center of the dry stuff and add the date mixture stir to combine. Pour mixture into a greased loaf pan. Bake for 40-50 minutes or till the loaf has risen and the top is rounded. Let cool on rack for at least 30 minutes before cutting. Really better the next day. Don’t forget the cream cheese!

Baked Ham with Dried Fruits

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
I think a baked ham recipe is in order, don’t you? This recipe is from The Silver Palate Good times Cookbook, which I have used heavily over the years. Most of the recipes are great, but don’t trust the baked goods, as testing was spotty and the recipes are full of errors. Really!

Ingredients
1 precooked, 16 pound bone-in ham
25-30 whole cloves
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 cup dark brown sugar
2 cups apple juice
2 cups tawny port
2 cups pitted whole dates
2 cups dried figs
2 cups prunes
2 bunches watercress trimmed, washed, and dried for garnish

Procedure
Preheat oven to 350. If necessary, trim the fat off the ham to 1/4 inch thick. Using a sharp knife, score the fat into diamond shapes. Line a large baking pan with tin foil. Place Ham in pan. Insert a clove in each intersection of the diamond and pat the mustard over the top and sides of the ham. Sprinkle the brown sugar over the ham and pour the apple juice into the pan. Bake for 1 1/2 hours, basting frequently. Combine the port, dates, figs, and prunes into a bowl. Add this to the ham after 1 1/2 hours, bake for 30 minutes more, keep basting.

To serve, put ham on large platter with bed of watercress. Now take the lovely, liquor-soaked fruit and toothpick it on ham in neat rows. Drizzle with pan juices and serve the rest of the juice on the side. This should serve 20-25 folks.

Classic Date Nut Bars

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Classic date nut bars, practically health food... but not. Dried fruit and nuts, though extremely nutritious, are very high in calories so Weight Watchers beware. Eat some veggies instead, but if weight is not your issue and yummyness is, try these, they are incredible!

Ingredients for crust
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) butter
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/3 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, ground in food processor for 30 seconds
1 1/3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup A.P. flour

Ingredients for filling
1 pound (3 cups) chopped dates
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt

ingredients for topping
3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats, ground in food processor for 30 seconds
3/4 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter

Procedure
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Lightly grease a 9 x 13-inch pan. Set aside.

For crust: Cream the butter, sugar, salt, and vanilla in bowl of electric mixer till smooth. Add ground oats, regular oats, and flour. Mix till smooth — it will be very thick. Press into the bottom of prepared pan. Wet your fingertips to stop it from sticking. Prick bottom with fork. Bake for 30 minutes. Take out of oven and let cool. Make filling and topping. Reset oven to 350.

For filling: Combine dates, sugar, and water in a saucepan. Set pan over medium heat and simmer till liquid is syrupy and nearly evaporated — about 3 minutes. Keep stirring. Remove from heat and stir in butter, lemon juice, and salt. Allow to cool 10 minutes. Dollop the filling onto delicate crust. Be careful. It will spread when baking.

For crumble topping: Whisk the ground oats, the regular oats, sugar, nuts, and baking powder in a small bowl. Work in the butter with your fingertips till it's crumbly. Don’t overwork. Sprinkle topping over date mixture and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, or till top begins to brown and becomes bubbly. Let cool till lukewarm, then cut into bars.

Lemon Date Chutney

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Here is a quick little recipe from one of Lexi’s favorite cookbooks called The Angelica Home Kitchen by Leslie McEachern. Chutneys are a useful item to have on hand in your fridge. You can use them as a condiment to a curry, use them as a dip for crackers or pita chips, serve them with chicken, or use them as a base for other sauces.

Ingredients
2 strips lemon peel
1 bay leaf
1 cinnamon stick
4 whole cloves
2 pinches sea salt
4 whole cardamom pods
1 10-inch square of cheese cloth
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 cups diced onions
2 tablespoons peeled minced ginger
1 jalapeno, seeded and diced
3 finely chopped dates
2 cups water
2 cups apple cider
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice

Procedure
Combine lemon peel, bay leaf, cinnamon stick, cloves, cardamom seeds, and a pinch of sea salt in the cheesecloth and tie closed with kitchen twine. Set aside. Place olive oil in a sauté pan and sauté the onions, ginger, and Jalapeno pepper with a pinch of sea salt for 8-10 minutes. Add dates water, cider, lemon juice, and cheesecloth bundle and bring to the boil over high heat. Lower heat and simmer for 1 hour or until thickened, stirring to prevent sticking. Remove spice bundle and let cool, then refrigerate. Will keep for quite some time.