Oatmeal Maple Raisin Bars

A great, dense chewy bar. Great for a mid-morning or afternoon snack. Also great served warm with a scoop of vanilla ice cream!

Bars:

1 c quick oats

¾ c all purpose flour

½ c raisins

½ cup chopped walnuts

½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp cinnamon

½ tsp ground nutmeg

¼ tsp salt

¾ c brown sugar

¼ c canola oil

¼ c milk

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 tsp maple flavoring

Maple glaze:

1 cup powdered sugar

1 ½ T milk

½ tsp maple flavoring

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

Grease an 8 inch square baking pan. In a medium bowl mix oats, flour, raisins, nuts, baking powder, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, oil, milk, egg and maple flavoring. Stir into oat mixture. Turn into baking pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. Cool.

In a small bowl prepare maple glaze. Stir milk into powdered sugar a bit at a time until glaze is thin but not watery. If watery, add additional powdered sugar 1 T at a time to thicken if necessary.

Drizzle glaze with a spoon over cooled bars. Cut into squares to serve.

(adapted from Linda Willt’s recipe)

Ham, Spinach & Cheese Frittata

Don't know what to do with that leftover ham? Try this frittata. A quick meal that's great for breakfast, brunch, lunch or dinner.

3 to 4 c fresh spinach leaves (about 1/2 of a 9oz bag)

1 c diced cooked ham

1/2 c grated gouda cheese

6 eggs

1/3 c milk

2 T sour cream

1 T Dijon mustard

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/8  tsp ground or grated nutmeg

1/8  tsp salt

Cooking spray or olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

In a large bowl whisk 6 whole eggs with milk, sour cream, salt and pepper. Set aside.

Spray or lightly grease a 10” oven-proof skillet with oil. Over medium heat, cook ham for 3 to 5 minutes. Turn off heat and quickly add the spinach and 2T of water. Cover for 1 minute to wilt. Add nutmeg and stir. Add spinach and ham to the egg mixture. Spray or grease the skillet again. Pour egg, spinach and cheese mixture into the skillet, spreading out the spinach and ham as evenly as possible. Sprinkle with grated cheese. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes until golden brown. Let rest outside the oven for 2 to 3 minutes before serving.

With a quick hand (covered with an oven mitt) and a little luck you can invert it onto a plate and cut into wedges, but it's just as easy to serve out of the skillet. 

Great served with fresh apples or applesauce.

Healthy substitutes: use 8 egg whites instead of whole eggs, low fat greek yogurt for sour cream, and low fat cheese for gouda. If using egg whites, heavily grease pan to prevent sticking.