Nutty Crackers, and other gluten-free things for hors d’oeuvres and snacking

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Lately I have been asked to come up with decent-tasting crunchy things to have with cheese and dips. Commercially available gluten-free crackers are not very tasty—and require an excellent set of molars to break them down. I was looking for something a bit more delicate. Enter Ottolengi's chickpea flour crackers. They're an excellent jumping-off point, but too high in carbs for my client, so I started experimenting.

First, I will post the original recipe then share you three variations. Plus, a great seed and nut biscotti! It's a little sweet, and great with some Pernod cream cheese! And finally, a great super easy recipe for gluten free buckwheat Blini. Dont let the name fool you, Buckwheat is not actually wheat.

 

Ottolenghi’s chickpea cracker

Ingredients
100 g chickpea flour
50 g corn starch
150 ml water
50 ml olive oil
Flaky sea salt and black pepper
50 g grated parmesan, divided into 30 g and 20 g
1 1/4 teaspoon anise seeds and crushed fennel seeds

Procedure
Heat the oven to 300F. Put the chickpea flour, corn starch and oil in a medium bowl, add 150ml water and three-quarters of a teaspoon of flaked salt. Mix to a smooth slurry, then grate in 30g parmesan and mix until smooth. Spoon on to a sheet pan lined with a silat or parchment that’s big enough to cover the whole baking tray, and use an offset spatula to spread it out as thinly as you can. The paper may acquire a wet look and wrinkle, but don’t worry about that.

Sprinkle with the anise seeds and generously grind some black pepper on top, then scatter over the remaining 20g parmesan and a half-teaspoon of salt and bake for 55 minutes, until lightly golden and crisp. Remove and leave to cool, then store in an airtight container.

So that's the original recipe, and then these happened ...

Variation 1

Substitute chickpea flour with hazelnut flour, which is just toasted and skinned hazelnuts ground fine in the food processor with the cornstarch.

Variation 2

Substitute chickpea flour with pecan flour, which is just pecans ground fine in the food processor with the cornstarch. Add 1 tablespoon rosemary, 1/2 teaspoon cayenne, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, salt and pepper, and 1 teaspoon smoked paprika. Batter comes out very thin so pour onto a Silpat-lined sheet pan. Make sure pan is flat!

Variation 3

Substitute chickpea flour with pistachio flour, which is just shelled pistachios ground fine in the food processor with an extra 20 g cornstarch. Add 2 tablespoons flax seed, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 tablespoon black sesame seeds, and 3 tablespoons shredded Italian mixed cheese. This batter is even thinner.

Gluten-Free Biscotti

Ingredients
1 cup Bob's Red Mill Paleo flour
2 cups well-chopped nut and seed mixture (I used sesame seeds, poppy seeds, caraway seeds, pecans, walnuts, almonds, and pistachios)
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 teaspoon Fleur de Sel
3 eggs
2/3 cup brown sugar
extra virgin olive oil for brushing

Procedure
Preheat oven to 300. Combine nut and seed mix with flours. In separate bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Mix together and pat into a parchment-lined loaf pan which has also been oiled. Bake until firm, about 55 minutes. Let cool and then slice as thin as possible. Turn oven up to 425. Lay biscotti slices on a parchment-lined sheet pan and brush with olive oil. Bake 5 minutes, or until brown and toasty. Turn over, brush with oil and toast the other side. Careful — it likes to burn, so watch them closely!

Buckwheat Blini

Ingredients
2 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) buckwheat flour
2 1/2 ounces (1/2 cup) gluten-free all-purpose flour (I like Bob's Red Mill paleo flour)
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 teaspoon gluten-free baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 cup buttermilk, or 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar mixed with 1 cup whole milk
1 large egg
2 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled

Procedure
Place dry ingredients in a bowl and whisk to thoroughly blend. Crack an egg into a bowl and whisk. Add buttermilk and melted butter and whisk. Add dry ingredients and whisk just until smooth. Let sit for 5 minutes to allow liquids to absorb into dry ingredients.

Heat a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Lightly oil pan with oil or butter and make small pancakes. These are great cold with caviar if you are bougie, smoked salmon if you are slightly less bougie, or with peanut butter of you have the munchies!

Gluten Free Nut and Seed Biscotti

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Something like biscotti, which does not really rise, is a perfect candidate for a Gluten-free make over. For the nut and seed mixture I used whatever I had. You can customize that mixture with any kinds of nuts and seeds but definitely include sesame and caraway seeds because they taste so damn good. Toast your nut and seed mixture for extra flavor, and you could even add some finely diced dried fruit, I'm thinking cranberries.

Ingredients
1 cup brown rice flour
2 cups well chopped nut and seed mixture (I used sesame seeds, poppy seeds, caraway seeds, pecans, walnuts, chopped mixed spiced nuts)
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 teaspoon Fleur de Sel (AKA fancy salt)
3 eggs
2/3 cup sugar
extra virgin olive oil for brushing

Procedure
Preheat oven to 300. Combine nut and seed mix with flours. In separate bowl, combine eggs and sugar. Mix together and pat into parchment lined loaf pan which has been oiled. Bake till firm 55 minutes. Let cool and then slice as thin as possible and cut each slice in half. Turn oven up to 425. Lay biscotti slices on a parchment-lined sheet pan and brush with olive oil. Bake 5 minutes or till brown and toasty. Turn over, brush with oil and toast the other side. Careful — it likes to bur, so watch!

Guest Monica Meehan: Hors d'oeuvres

Nice New Nibbles
For New Year's Eve, my family does a snacky-type dinner made up of appetizers. Things like shrimp cocktail, deviled eggs, those little cocktail wieners in grape jelly, pigs in a blanket, potato salad, herring salad ... This year we're doing the same. Here are a few hors d'oeuvres recipes we'll be having:

olive cheese bites

Mmmmm ... buttery, cheesy, salty!

Ingredients
1/2 cup flour
1 1/4 cup grated cheddar cheese
3 tsp milk
3 Tb melted butter
1/8 tsp salt (I omit if I'm using salted butter)
1/8 tsp dry mustard (optional)
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
30 to 40 pitted green olives, such as manzanilla

Procedure
Mix together all the ingredients, except the olives. Mold a rounded teaspoon of dough around each olive. Bake on a cookie sheet at 400 for 12 to 15 minutes, until golden brown.

These also freeze really well so you can make them ahead of time and bake later. Once you've covered the olives with the dough, put them on a cookie sheet and freeze until solid. Then you can dump the olives into a ziploc bag and keep frozen until you're ready to bake them. Don't thaw, just put directly into your 400 degree oven and bake a little longer.

chipotle and rosemary spiced nuts

This is a combination of a recipe from Ina Garten and one from David Leboviz.

Ingredients
8 cups total of your favorite mixed nuts
(you can also bulk this out with up to half the total amount of small pretzels or Chex cereal)
1/3 cup maple syrup
(real, please, none of that Aunt Jemima corn syrup stuff!)
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 Tb orange juice
2 tsp ground chipotle powder
(or less, or none, if you don't like things spicy)
4 Tb minced fresh rosemary leaves
kosher salt

Procedure
Preheat oven to 350. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper — this stuff is sticky! In a large bowl, combine nuts (and pretzels/Chex, if you're using), maple syrup, sugar, oj, and half of the rosemary. Toss to coat everything. Dump onto sheet pan, and spread out in one layer. Bake for 25 minutes, stirring twice, until nuts are glazed and golden brown. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with remaining rosemary, and salt to taste. Keep stirring as the mixture cools, so you don't end up with giant clumps. The nuts will crisp up as they cool. Serve warm, or cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature.

prune and walnut log

Yeah, it looks weird, but this is really yummy with a cheese plate.

Ingredients
1/2 cup sugar
2 Tb honey
zest and juice of one lemon
3/4 pound pitted prunes
3/4 pound raw walnut halves or pieces

Procedure
Combine sugar, honey, and lemon juice and zest in a small saucepan (preferably non-stick). Bring to a boil, then continue simmering until the temperature reaches the hard ball stage. Remove from heat and allow to cool enough to touch.

In a food processor, chop the prunes slightly, then add the syrup and process untill well chopped. Don't make a completely smooth paste, you want some chunks of prune left.

Turn the mix into a bowl and add the walnuts. Mix thoroughly, using a spatula, or your hands. I use my hands, but I wear those food-handling gloves — this stuff is sticky! Spread the mixture onto a big sheet of parchment paper and form into a log shape. Roll up in the parchment paper, place on a sheet pan, and bake at 250 for about 45 minutes. Let cool on sheet pan (it will be soft), then refrigerate until firm. Slice thinly and enjoy with a sharp cheddar!

stuffed peppadew peppers

This is a new one I'm trying out for New Year's Eve.

Ingredients
12 peppadew peppers
(make sure you get ones that aren't split down the side)
12 chunks of mozzarella cheese
(sized to fit in the peppers)
6 slices bacon, cut in half
12 toothpicks

Procedure
Put a chunk of mozzarella in each pepper. Wrap pepper with a half-slice of bacon and secure with a toothpick. If your bacon is thick, pre-cook it a little. Put the peppers on a rack on a sheet pan (so the bacon fat can drain off) and bake at 375 for 20 to 30 minutes, depending on how crispy you like your bacon.

Goat Cheese Bacon Balls

Nice New Nibbles
This sounds kind of dirty, but it isn’t. It's just delicious. Great do ahead appetizer, goes well with cocktails, but what doesn't?

Ingredients
6 slices bacon

4 ounces goat cheese
4 ounces cream cheese

2 tablespoons chopped thyme or basil, divided

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

1/4 cup pecans

Procedure
Fry the bacon in a large skillet over medium heat. Remove to a paper towel-lined plate to drain. Pat the slices to remove excess grease. 
While the bacon is cooking, whiz the goat cheese, cream cheese, 1 tablespoon of herbs, and black pepper in the food processor. Blend until creamy and well-mixed, then form small balls, about the size of the tip of your thumb. 
Place balls on a parchment-lined baking sheet.
 Put in the freezer for 20 minutes to firm up a little more.

Clean out the food processor. Crumble in the cooled bacon, the remaining tablespoon of herbs, and the pecans. Pulse until very fine and crumbly; it should be as fine as your food processor will make it. 
Take the cheese balls out of the freezer and roll them in the bacon mixture, pressing it in with your fingers if it doesn't immediately stick.
 Place the balls in a container and refrigerate until serving. Serve on toothpicks or with crackers.

Nut Dumplings

Seasonal Recipe of the Week
Here is a great side dish that you can add to a nice, home-cooked stew or a bowl of homemade soup. And you can use up old stale bread, really any kind, but not too heavy, man!

Ingredients
7 cups stale bread cubed
1 3/4 cup boiling milk
3/4 cup diced bacon (about 6 slices)
1 1/2 cup finely dice onions
1/2 cup finely ground pecans
1/2 cup finely chopped hazelnuts
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground coriander
4 eggs
1/4 cup chopped parsley

Procedure
Place bread cubes in a large bowl, pour the hot milk over bread and let soak 30 minutes. In a small skillet, sauté the bacon until crisp then add the onions and sauté 5 minutes more. Pour this mixture over the bread. Add all remaining ingredients except parsley and — using your hands — mix thoroughly. Fill a large skillet 2/3 full of water and bring to a boil. Divide the mixture into 24 portions and roll into balls. Drop the balls into simmering water and cook for 5 minutes. Remove the dumplings and set onto a platter lined with a cloth napkin to absorb excess water and sprinkle parsley on top. Serve hot.

Nuss Torte

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Maybe there is no great fruit around at the moment, but we can always find nuts, so there is no reason to stop baking. Here is a classic European nut torte which is easy, not altitude affected, and terribly yummy ... so try it!

Ingredients for crust
1 cup walnut pieces
1/2 cup pecan pieces
1/4 cup AP flour
1/4 cup sugar
6 tablespoons chilled butter, cut into small pieces

Ingredients for filling
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup light brown sugar
1 tablespoon Frangelico (hazelnut liquor)
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
4 tablespoons melted butter
2 tablespoons AP flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup chocolate chips
1 1/2 cups pecan halves
Ingredients for topping
2 cups heavy cream
2 tablespoons confectioners sugar
3/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Procedure
Preheat oven to 375. Butter a 9-inch springform pan.

To make the crust, place the walnuts, pecans, flour, and sugar in the bowl of your food processor ,fitted with a steel blade, and process until the crumbs are fine, about 30 seconds. Add the butter and pulse 6 times to mix. Gather dough and press into the bottom of your spring form pan and 3/4 of an inch up the sides. Set aside.

To make the filling, combine the eggs, vanilla, corn syrup, brown sugar, Frangelica, cinnamon, and pepper. Beat at high speed for 3 minutes. Now add melted butter, flour, baking soda, chocolate chips and pecan halves and mix on low just to combine. Pour mixture into prepared nut crust and smooth top. Place on sheet pan and bake for 45 minutes. Allow to cool 10 minutes then remove pan and place on plate. When ready to serve, whip up some heavy cream with sugar and cinnamon and serve on the side.

Danny’s Flourless Chocolate Nut Cookies

The Altitude Adjustment Section
In the quest to keep my people happy, today I have a gluten-free cookie recipe with amazing flavor, which I found on Chowhound. I am always attracted to recipes with odd procedures and this one qualifies. I am now trying it with (dare I say) Splenda to see if it’s Weight-Watchers-possible. Stay tuned!

Ingredients
4 large eggs, whites only
1/2 tablespoon each, almond & vanilla flavoring
3 cups powdered sugar, sifted
3/4 cup of Good quality (Valrhona) unsweetened cocoa, sifted
pinch of salt
8 oz. of chopped nuts (optional)

Procedure
Preheat oven to 350. (You'll turn the oven down to 325 once the cookies go in.) Sift powdered sugar into a large stand-mixer bowl. Sift cocoa on top. Add salt. Whisk together gently. In a separate small bowl mix the whites with the flavorings using a small whisk. With the whisk attachment on the stand-mixer on low, add in the whites mixture until fully incorporated. Turn mixer on medium high and whisk until glossy — just a couple of minutes. Stir in the chopped nuts with a wooden spoon. Drop by heaping tablespoons (or scoop) onto Silpat- or parchment-lined baking sheet. Give them lots of space and limit to 5 per sheet. Makes about 15 large cookies. Feel free to downsize them and make a larger quantity. Flatten the dough slightly with a fork before baking — they will still spread into a thin cookie. Let them sit about 30 minutes before baking. Put them in the oven, then turn it down to 325. Bake at 325 about 7-9 minutes for the large cookies, 6-8 minutes for smaller cookies. They will look gooey in the center. The tops will start to crack. Don’t overbake them! Be sure to let them get stone cold cool before you try to remove them. Peel the Silpat or the parchment from the back of the cookie. Store in a tin. They taste the best on day two, so plan ahead.

Honey Nut Bars

The Altitude Adjustment Section
I love making bar cookies. They are so easy, they are not terribly altitude affected, and they are yummy. So here is a recipe for a honey nut bar from The Better Homes and Garden Cookbook which I love. The honey keeps them moist and chewy. And you can keep it local by using local honey and local pinons or pecans... if you can afford them.

Ingredients
1/2 cup unsalted butter (room temp)
1/4 cup shortening (Crisco)
1 cup honey
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 1/2 cups AP flour
1 cup coconut
1 cup chopped nuts (your choice)

Procedure
Grease 9 x 13 x 2" baking pan. In the bowl of your electric mixer, cream the butter and shortening on high till light and creamy. Now add honey, baking powder and salt. Beat till combined. Beat in eggs and vanilla. Now add the flour and blend — it will be very thick. Add the coconut and nuts last, and mix to blend. Spread batter in the prepared pan and bake in a preheated 350 oven for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Cool in pan and then cut into squares. May be dusted with powdered sugar for a lovely finish.

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!

No-Bake Oatmeal Fruit and Nut Cookies

The Altitude Adjustment Section
I know it’s too hot to bake, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have homemade cookies. A girl cannot live on ripe fruit alone! Here is an easy recipe from my pals at King Arthur Flour Company for oatmeal fruit cookies — and you don’t even have to turn on the oven. Plus, they are pretty low in fat!'

Ingredients
2 cups (7 ounces) rolled oats
3 tablespoons (1 1/2 ounces) unsalted butter
1 cup (8 ounces) brown sugar
1/2 cup frozen apple juice concentrate, thawed
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups nonfat dry milk
1 1/2 cups mixed dried fruit (apples, cranberries, golden raisins, apricots, etc.) chopped small
3/4 cup chopped walnuts, optional

Procedure
Place the oats in a mixing bowl and set aside. In a medium saucepan set over low heat, combine the butter, brown sugar, apple juice, spices, and salt. Bring to the boil and stir till sugar is dissolved. Pour this mixture over the oats. Then stir in the dry milk and the assorted fruit and nuts. Now drop by tablespoonful onto a greased parchment lined sheet pan. Press top to flatten slightly and serve when cooled. You could also press mixture into a greased 8x8 inch pan, allow to cool, and cut into squares.

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.

Rugulach

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Have you ever noticed that certain foods have a mystical reputation? I think it's often-ethnic foods, comfort foods, or foods from our childhood. A hazy memory, which we elevate to epic proportions, which can never be matched. I’ve got tons of these. Many revolve around cakes and pastries from now defunct Brooklyn bakeries. Then there are the Rugulach. A simple rolled cream cheese pastry classically filled with cinnamon nuts and sugar. Now you can buy these in lots of places but they are always mediocre at best. I hate being disappointed. And then I found Susan Purdy’s recipe, which was one of the few recipes I didn’t test for the book. Susan did. Now I make them all the time and they totally take me back. Susan you are a goddess!

Ingredients
8 ounces full-fat cream cheese
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
2 cups A.P. flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup finely chopped walnuts, almonds, or pecans
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon

Procedure
To make dough: In the large bowl of your electric mixer with paddle attachment, combine cream cheese and butter till very smooth. Add flour and salt and mix till just combined. Overmixing will make a tough dough. Turn the dough onto a floured piece of plastic wrap and form into a disc and cover tightly. Refrigerate at least 1 1/2 hours, preferably overnight. While dough chills, make filling by combining nuts, sugar, and cinnamon. You could also try other fillings — try adding mini chocolate chips to the filling, or ground up ginger snaps, or Poppy seeds or raspberry jam when assembling.

To assemble cookies: Take dough out of fridge and cut into quarters. Keep 3 in the fridge while rolling out one. On a lightly floured counter, roll out a circle of dough into a 9 inch round about 1/8 inch thick. Take 1 egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of water and beat with a fork. Now brush circle with egg wash and sprinkle with nut mixture. Take a pizza cutter and cut circle into 16 equal wedges. Roll up from the outside to the inside to make little croissant-shaped cookies and place on parchment-lined cookie sheet. Brush top of each cookie with more egg wash and sprinkle on more nut mix. Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 15-20 minutes, or till golden brown. Because the dough is dense, they take longer than most cookies. I like to add the mini chocolate chips on the inside, or instead of the nut mix on the inside, use jam and cinnamon sugar and nuts on the outside. You can make your reputation on these cookies!

The Real Deal Granola Bars

The Altitude Adjustment Section
Being that we ate in a real “health food” establishment this week, it got me thinking about hippy foods and tree hugging and Patchouli oil and, of course: granola. Real granola is delicious and nutritious and doesn’t need to be like a dry brick, or be chocolate coated, or have a layer of marshmallow fluff for the kids to eat it. What kids? Do I have kids? I don’t think so. But anyway here is a great recipe for a snack you can take with you hiking or you can sneak it into the movies instead of paying for a 2-pound bag of gummy worms.

Ingredients
3/4 cups (6 ounces) brown sugar
3/4 cups (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter melted
1 cup pure maple syrup
1/2 cup corn syrup
1 teaspoon salt
4 cups rolled oats
1 cup chopped almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup sweetened flaked coconut
1 cup dried cranberries or golden raisins
1 cup chopped dried apricots
1 tablespoon vanilla extract

Procedure
Preheat oven to 450. Lightly grease an 18 x 13 inch half-sheet pan. Combine brown sugar, butter, syrups, and salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to the boil and boil for 5 minutes till mixture reaches 250 degrees on a candy thermometer. While the sugar is boiling, combine oats, almonds sunflower seeds and coconut on prepared sheet pan. Bake for 12-15 minutes stirring every 4-5 minutes so nothing gets burnt. Pour oat mixture into a bowl and add all dried fruit. Add vanilla extract to the syrup mixture and pour over nut and fruit mixture. Once well-combined, put mixture back onto sheet pan and pat flat. Be firm — it needs to be compressed. Now bake for 6-8 minutes, till it bubbles a little bit around the edges and starts to lightly brown. Let cool in pan for 10 minutes and cut into strips while still warm. I use a bakers bench knife or you can use a big cleaver. Remove from pan and then cut into strips. Wrap in plastic so the lint in your backpack doesn’t stick to them.