Scraps and Snippets ~ Vegan Classic Burger Sloppy Joes

Classic Burger Sloppy Joes (Serves 8 ish)

2 Cups hamburger replacement (Gardein or Beyond Meat or homemade)

⅓ Cup ketchup

3 TBSP yellow mustard

2-3 TBSP dill pickle relish (or a mix of dill and sweet, or if you like your sloppies sweeter, go with all sweet) (I used 3 TBSP but I love pickles so use your taste buds as a guide.)

1 TBSP apple cider vinegar

1-2 TBSP finely diced onion (again, to taste)

Mix all the ingredients together and heat until warmed through. Or put it in a crock pot on low for 2-3 hours. Serve with buns. Add vegan bacon, lettuce, tomatoes, onion or vegan cheese slices, pickles and ketchup and mustard.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Sweet and Spicy Nicey Mix

Sweet and Spicy Nicey Mix

½ Cup spicy almonds (I used wasabi almonds) (You could also use any wasabi spiced dried pea etc or chili spiced nuts.)

¾ Cup dry roasted peanuts (don’t go low salt)

2 Cups rice chex or plain cereal of choice. (alternatively, you could use crackers, pretzels, chips of choice, popcorn)

½ Cup caramel sauce

Dump peanuts and nuts in a bowl, add caramel sauce and stir well to coat. Toss in cereal or other add-ins and stir very well. Dump contents on a well greased or parchment paper covered cookie sheet or pizza pan. Put in a 200 degree oven for 1 hour stirring every 15 minutes. Leave in the oven and turn off heat and let cool. Break up into smaller bites.

This will seem wet when it’s done cooking. But will harden into a glaze when it’s dry. The spice gets incorporated throughout so it’s not intense. But the sweet, salty, spice is nice.

Caramel Sauce Recipe

2 cups sugar (brown or white)

1/2 cup water

1/4 cup agave nectar or corn syrup

1/2 cup full fat coconut milk

1 1/2 T. Earth Balance

pinch of salt

Over medium high heat bring the sugar, corn syrup/honey/agave and water to a boil while stirring very well to dissolve the sugar. Turn heat to low and simmer approximately 11-12 minutes until the color changes. Stir frequently. Remove heat. Add (carefully as the mixture is very hot) the milk, Earth Balance and salt and stir until smooth.

The sauce makes approx 1 and ½ Cups. (Store the rest in the refrigerator or halve the recipe.)

Scraps and Snippets ~ Spicy Curry Garlic Cereal Mix

Spicy Curry Garlic Cereal Mix

3 Cups cereal (a mix of Chex flavors if wanted, puffed rice or Cheerios)

1 and ½ Cups or additional add-ins. Nuts, seeds, pretzels, crackers

2 TBSP melted Earth Balance (or oil of choice)

1 TBSP garlic flavored oil (or more butter)

1/2 TBSP worcestershire sauce (find a vegan one, last time I checked Whole Foods 365 brand was. Traditional worcestershire contains anchovies)

½ TBSP soy sauce

1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

½ teaspoon curry powder

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Melt the butter, add the spices. Mix well. Dump the cereal in a bowl, add nuts, pretzels or crackers of choice. Pour the buttery spice mixture over it and mix very well. Bake at 250 for 1 hour and stir every 15 minutes. Dump onto paper towels and let cool. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Ranchy Cereal Mix

Ranchy Cereal Mix

3 Cups cereal (a mix of Chex flavors if wanted, puffed rice or Cheerio type)

1 and ½ Cups of additional add-ins. Nuts, pretzels, crackers

2 TBSP melted Earth Balance

1 TBSP garlic flavored oil (or more EB)

1/2 TBSP worcestershire sauce (Find a vegan one, that doesn't use anchovies...last time I bought Whole Foods 365 brand was vegan)

½ TBSP soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon ground celery seed

3/4 teaspoon dried parsley flakes

1/4 teaspoon dried dill

1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon dried basil

1/8 teaspoon (heaping) ground black pepper

Melt the Earth Balance, add the spices. Mix well. Dump the cereal in a bowl, add nuts, pretzels or crackers of choice. Pour the buttery spice mixture over it and mix very well. Bake at 250 for 1 hour and stir every 15 minutes. Dump onto paper towels and let cool. Store any leftovers in an airtight container.

Scraps and Snippets ~ German Chocolate Puppy Chow or Poopies (Vegan)

If you like coconut and chocolate and delicious crunch...you might want to make this ASAP... Leave out the pecans if you want and use more coconut for pure chocolate/coconut magic. This is amazing and doesn't feel or taste weird or vegan or healthy. It is decadent. Make sure your ingredients are vegan (i.e. powdered sugar and semi-sweet chocolate chips if this is important to you.) (If your cereal choice is gluten free, these will be, too.)

German Chocolate Poopies (German Chocolate Puppy Chow)  

Serves 4 - 8

3/4 Cup toasted coconut

3/4 Cup toasted pecan pieces

3 1/2 Cups cereal (rice or corn chez or mix of cereals)

¼ Cup coconut oil

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1 1/2 cups confectioners' sugar (This can be decreased. I only had about 3/4 of a cup the last time I made it and so I added an additional 3/4 cup of toasted coconut the bag with the powdered sugar...they weren't as well coated, but still tasted amazing.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Dump the coconut and chopped pecans on a baking sheet (lightly oil if the coconut is sweetened) Place in oven and toast approximately 10 minutes. Check at 7 to make sure the coconut is not browning too much. You will be able to smell the nuts. You want the coconut golden.
2. In double boiler or microwave melt coconut oil and chocolate chips. Add toasted nuts, coconut and cereal and stir until all coated in chocolate.
3. Pour powdered sugar into large plastic bag, the chocolate mixture to the bag and shake until all is coated. Place in fridge for an hour or so to harden the chocolate. If there is any left you will want to store it in an airtight container.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Vegan Muddy Buddies/Puppy Chow Cereal Treats

 Sometimes I forget how easy it is to veganize some things. Puppy Chow aka chocolate peanut butter sugar dusted pillows of deliciousness were an easy go to recipe back in the day. Nostalgia reared it's head last week when I was working on some vegan chex mix savory mixes. I still had cereal, and a little voice requested puppy chow (so she's 27 and it was clearly a grown female voice, but that's beside the point). 

Here's what I did. And the result? Ahhh. sugar dusted chocolate peanut butter pillows of deliciousness! 

4 Cups of cereal of choice, like Chex. I used half rice/half corn. 

1/4 Cup peanut butter (I used natural chunky, just peanuts and salt)

1/2 Cup vegan chocolate chips

1 TBSP oil (I used coconut oil but Earth Balance margarine or equivalent should work)

2/3 Cup vegan powdered sugar. (You can make your own if you have the patience and a high speed blender...)

Melt peanut butter, chocolate chips and oil. Mix well. Dump in cereal and stir until coated. 

In a large zipper bag dump the powdered sugar. Then dump the cereal mixture over the sugar and close bag and begin shaking until all the cereal is coated. Serve. Enjoy the nostalgia. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Peanut Thai Soup

I needed to take soup to a church event and had some coconut milk that needed a home. So this is what I came up with. And well, to quote an omnivore teenager. "If I could eat this soup every day, my life would be complete." 

So maybe I paid her in Smores cookies to say that, but still. (Not really, no money or favors were exchanged in this transaction. Her enthusiasm was real. For reals.) (And if you refrain from snarky comments, I'll post the Smores cookie recipe, too.)

Peanut Thai Soup

serves 6+

1 medium onion small dice

3 cloves garlic minced

1 1/2 cup peanuts, chopped (additional for garnish) 

1 TBSP coconut oil

2 stalks celery, small dice

5 Cups vegetable broth
1 Cup broccoli slaw (or a diced broccoli stem)

1 TBSP chopped fresh cilantro (with additional for garnish) 

Juice of one small lime (or to taste) (additional lime for garnish) 
1/3 Cup soy sauce
2 TBSP sriracha (with additional for garnish)
1-2 Cups coconut milk (unsweetened)
4 ounces Udon noodles (1 sleeve, broken) 

Saute the garlic, onion, peanuts and celery in the coconut oil in a dutch oven or larger saucepan.  When onions grow translucent add the vegetable broth, broccoli slaw sriracha, soy sauce, lime juice and noodles. Simmer 20 minutes or so. Add the coconut milk and cilantro 5 minutes before serving. 

Provide extra sriracha, peanuts, shredded coconut, lime wedges, Vegan sour cream, and minced ginger if desired for garnish. 

I'm posting this recipe at Ricki Heller's Wellness Weekend. Click to see all the other recipes available there. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Pizza Rolls

Pizza Rolls

1 PKGE crescent rolls (check ingredients or use a similar dough)

2 TBSP vegan cream cheese

1 TBSP minced onion

1/2 tsp garlic powder

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/8 tsp salt

Finely chopped vegetables. I used olives, tomatoes and mushrooms. (about 3/4 cup total.)

Preheat oven to 350. Spray a 12 section muffin tin. 

Mix all the ingredients together except the rolls. 

Separate the crescent roll into two halves. Roll each half into a long rectangle. Press all the seams together. 

Spread half of your cream cheese mixture over each rectangle. Roll longwise into a long tube. Cut each half into 6 pinwheel pieces. Place swirl side up in muffin tins. Bake at 350 for 16-18 minutes until golden and baked. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Lemon Chia Bars (Vegan)

Lemon Bars

8 x 11 30 to 35 minutes 350

1 1/2 Cup whole wheat pastry flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

3 flax eggs (4 TBSP water, 2 TBSP milk)

1 Cup sugar

2 TBSP EB

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

1/3 Cup lemon juice

1 tsp lemon juice

1/2 Cup coconut oil

Zest of one lemon

1 TBSP chia seed

Glaze 

1 Cup powdered sugar

2 TBSP milk

1 teaspoon lemon juice

two drops almond extract

additional chia seeds, 1 tsp or so.

Bake 30 minutes, or until set up. Pour glaze over bars and let cool. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Lemon Garlic Avocado Tempeh Sandwiches

1 Package Tempeh sliced into strips
1 TBSP garlic infused olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
2 teaspoons lemon garlic pepper blend
1 avocado sliced
Thinly sliced onion
Bread/bun of choice

Mix the oil, seasoning and lemon juice together and place the sliced tempeh in it and turn to coat both sides. Place onions on the bread, buns and broil until bread is toasted and onions begin to caramel use. Remove. Brown tempeh. Place tempeh over onions and top with avocado slices.  Serve.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Vegan Reuben Makings and Reuben Casserole

Took this to my church potluck and omnivores scarfed it down. One of my chief omnivore targets, the anti-veganist eater ever, raved about the reuben casserole at his table. Two of his table mates knew it was mine. They said, "Kelly made it, it's Vegan." His eyebrows shot up and he said, "Dang, why'd you have to go and ruin it for me." So. Just sayin.... this is pretty good. 

You can use the Thousand Island, sauerkraut and browned Pastrami Tempeh and make traditional Reuben sandwiches with Rye bread, too, and just serve the cole slaw on the side. You can add Vegan cheese like Daiya to the sandwich, but I don't know that it would add a lot to the flavor.
 

Thousand Island Dressing:

1/4 Cup pickle relish (I used sweet which made this sweeter, I'll try dill next time)
1/4 Cup ketchup
1/4 Cup mayo (Vegan)
1 pinch salt
1/4 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce (Vegan, check label)
 
Pastrami Tempeh:

2 Pkgs tempeh sliced
1/2 Cup olive oil
1 TBSP pepper
1/2 TBSP smoke seasoning (I used Trader Joe's grind your own).
1 tsp mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce (check label)
Pinch of cayenne pepper
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp onion powder

Marinate the tempeh slices or pieces for at least an hour. Brown in hot pan.

Coleslaw:

2 packages of cabbage slaw or 1 each of cabbage slaw and broccoli slaw
1/4 Cup olive oil
1/2 Cup vinegar (I used half apple cider and half rice vinegar)
1 1/2 TBSP sugar
2 pinches of salt

Rye Bread Croutons:

1/2 to 3/4 loaf rye, pumpernickel, or marble bread cut into chunks/squares.
1 to 2 TBSP olive or other oil of choice
1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder

Chop rye or marble rye bread into small chunks. Toss in a large ziploc. Drizzle with oil. Close and shake the bag. Reopened and sprinkle garlic powder in bag. Close and shake again. Dump on a pan, Stick in the oven (don't need to preheat). Bake approximately 1 hour at 275. Stir every 15 minutes until dried out.

Reuben Casserole:

9 x 13

Large can sauerkraut, drained.
1/2 batch of reuben tempeh
Rye Bread croutons
1/3 Batch Cole Slaw
Thousand Island Dressing

Slightly grease 9 x 13 pan
Preheat oven to 350

Put drained sauerkraut in bottom of casserole. Top with browned tempeh. 
Bake for 20 minutes.
Spread Thousand Island dressing over tempeh. Sprinkle half the croutons over the dressing. Layer on the cole slaw. Top with rest of the croutons and more Thousand Island if desired.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Garlic French Bread Pizza

Garlic French Bread Pizza

Make sure your bread is dairy-free, some bakeries may use an eggwash. 

Slice the bread in half lengthwise.  And then in half horizontally so you have four pieces of approx the same size. 

2 TBSP Earth Balance 
1 tsp (or to your preference depending on how much you like garlic, you might want to start with 1/2 teaspoon) garlic powder

Mix together and smear the mixture onto the four pieces of bread. (You don't want it to be thick, just a nice flavor enhancing covering.)

Let sit while you saute your vegetables. 

I used thin sliced asparagus, mushrooms and onions on this one. 3/4 to 1 cup of mushrooms and asparagus should do, the onion about half of that. Basil, tomatoes and garlic slivers would be amazing. As would olives. Just about anything you'd love on your vegan pizza would be tasty. This is a great way to use up extra veggies or leftovers.

Saute the veggies to doneness you desire. 

Broil the bread until the Earth Balance begins to brown. Don't let it get too brown. Ha.Ha. Like I did. When the middle of each section appears golden, add the veggies. Sprinkle. Really, lightly, you just want to enhance the flavor, not bury it in cheese, sprinkle, Vegan mozzarella over it. (Daiya or Trader Joe's are good choices) About 3 ounces or so. Broil again until the cheese melts. 

Scraps and Snippets ~ Asian Slaw Salad of Deliciousness....

One of my favorite salads of all time is a tie between Applebees and Panera. Same salad, just different versions. However. It contains meat and dairy, and well, it's a thing of the past. Goodbye Asian Chicken Salad. I do actually miss you. A little. Enough to try to create you Vegan style at home. 

If you've not tried the orange glazed Vegan chicken sub nuggets at Trader Joe's (Chicken-less Mandarin Orange Morsels). Get there and get some. Crazy good. Omnivores accused me of stopping by McD's and picking up a 20 pack of the dreaded mcnuggs...shudder...when they peeked inside my oven.

You bake em, you put glaze on them and then you put a few on top of this beauty. Oh YUM!

This makes a good sized salad. Enough to feed 8.

1 bag broccoli slaw  (standard sized)
1 bag cole slaw  (standard sized) (or shredded cabbage and carrot)
1 larger head of romaine (chopped)
1 bag pea sprouts

Rinse and drain and mix together in a big bowl. 

Add sides of the following for people to doctor their own salads custom style. I put some of the dressing on the salad and mixed well.

Toasted almond slivers. (ten minutes in a 300 degree oven does it.)
Toasted sesame seeds (ditto)
Sesame sticks
chopped green onion
grated fresh ginger
soy sauce
additional things that sound good to you
dressing
Chicken-less Mandarin Orange Morsels

Dressing: 

3 1/2 TBSP rice vinegar or mixture of rice and orange vinegar
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1/2 TBSP sesame oil
2 TBSP orange juice (Juice a fresh orange)
1 TBSP maple syrup or sugar

Mix well.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Chocolate Nachos

Nacho Chips

1 TBSP sugar
1/2 TBSP cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon

1 teaspoon melted coconut oil

6-8 tortillas.

Preheat oven to 225

Mix the cinnamon, cocoa and sugar together. 

Smear the coconut oil on the tortillas. Sprinkle the powder over the tortilla shell. Cut into triangles. We cut into wedges and cut those in half. Bake at 225 for 20 minutes. Then turn off the heat and leave them in the oven. 

Chocolate Strawberry Drizzle

1/8 Cup water
1/4 Cup strawberry jam
1/2 Cup chocolate chips

Heat the water until hot. Add the jam and mix together until it begins melting, then remove from heat. Add chocolate chips and stir until they are melted. 


Coconut Peanut Butter Drizzle

1 TBSP coconut oil
2 TBSP peanut butter
1/2 Cup chocolate chips. 

Heat peanut butter and coconut oil in sauce pan. When warm, remove from heat and add chocolate chips, stir until melted. 

Salsa

2 kiwis
1 Mango
1 orange
1 handful of blueberries


Other Toppings

Diced strawberries
Chocolate chips
Chopped peanuts
Coconut Whipped Cream
Marshmallows

Scraps and Snippets ~ Gingerbread Nachos ~

Gingerbread Nachos

I've included some easier store bought suggestions to substitute for the homemade version if you aren't a big fan of cooking and mixing. But it's as easy as making Christmas cookies. And of note, the homemade cookies and dips are lower in fat and contain healthier ingredients than standard holiday fare. Win. Win.

This recipe will feed lots of nibblers. (at least a dozen unless they are starved and this is the only thing you are offering them.) :  ) 
Gingerbread Men

(If you want to take a shortcut any vegan ginger or cinnamon cookies will do. In addition each of these dips would taste great on apple slices and pretzels so put those out as well.
These little guys are pretty simple to make.

Prep two to three cookies trays with coconut oil, spray or butter. Preheat oven to 350.

1/2 Cup coconut oil or non-dairy butter
1/2 Cup applesauce
1 Cup brown sugar (if you are a big fan of sweet add an additional 1/4 cup, these are not overly sweet but kids and adults alike liked them with the recipe as written.) (Also, you will use additional brown sugar as you roll out the cookies.)
6 TBSP molasses
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1 and 1/2 teaspoons of almond extract (can sub vanilla)
4 Cups flour (I used whole wheat pastry flour).

Combine room temperature oil/non-dairy butter and applesauce, add spices, soda and tartar and mix well. Add sugar and molasses and combine until completely incorporated. Stir in extract and mix. Finally add the flour and mix well. Chill for ten minutes. Grab about a 1/3 of the dough and roll it between two sheets of waxed paper to slightly thicker than pie dough or equivalent to sugar cookie dough. Sprinkle the dough with brown sugar. Cut out shapes with cookie cutters. Bake at 350 for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest 1 minute. Remove to cooling rack. Reroll cookie dough for another batch. If the dough starts to get sticky refrigerate for another 5 minutes or so. This will make 50-60 cookies depending on size. This batch made about 50 3 x 2 inch gingerbread and 20 1 and 1/2 x 1 inch mini guys.

Nacho Dips (There are five)

The Cran-Orange Dip and the Cinnavanilla Dips are as follows:

You combine the first three ingredients in a food processor and then divide that in half.

1 Can drained white (canelli/navy/white) beans (If you soak and cook your own 1 2/3 cups prepared)

1 Cup brown sugar

1 TBSP vanilla

Whir until smooth.

Place half this mixture (approx ¾ cup) into a serving bowl and stir in a strong ¼ teaspoon cinnamon.

To remaining dip in processor add the following:

Zest of one orange

½ Cup dried cranberries

Combine until cranberries are pulverized. Place in a serving bowl.

Place both of those dips in the refrigerator until ready to serve.

To make easy versions of these:

Cran-Orange Dip

3 TBSP non-dairy cream cheese

1 TBSP orange marmalade (Vegan)

1 TBSP finely chopped dried cranberries or canned cranberry sauce. Mix well. Refrigerate until ready to serve.

CinnaVanilla

3 TBSP Non-dairy cream cheese

1 TBSP brown sugar

½ teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon cinnamon. Mix well and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Peanut Butter Maple Caramel

¼ Cup brown sugar

1 TBSP coconut oil or non-dairy butter

2 TBSP milk

¼ Cup maple syrup

2 TBSP peanut butter

Combine all in a pan, bring to a rolling boil stirring constantly, boil 1 minute. Remove from heat. Place in refrigerator until ten minutes before you are ready to serve.

“Egg Nog” Dip

1 Can full fat coconut milk chilled for 2 days so the fat separates from the coconut water. (Use Thai Kitchen, Whole Foods 365 brand or Trader Joe's – not Geisha)

2 TBSP maple syrup

¼ Cup powdered sugar

2 sprinkles of cinnamon

¾ to 1 teaspoon nutmeg (start small, you can always add more)

Coconut milk makes great whipped cream. You scrape (some brands are thicker than others. Trader Joe's is the thickest and needs the least amount of time to separate/chill) the thick white layer into a bowl, leaving the watery layer behind (if you are a smoothie or juice drinker or like Thai food, you can save the watery leftovers for one of those). Whip the cream, add the other ingredients and whip until fluffy. It gets firmer in the refrigerator.

Pumpkin Cream Dip:

½ Cup  non-dairy cream cheese

          3 TBSP coconut oil or non-dairy butter

1 TBSP pumpkin puree

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

¼ teaspoon cinnamon

1 Cup powdered sugar

Mix well and refrigerate until ready to serve.

Scribbles and Scrambles ~ Cheez-a-Doodly Night

Brie and spicy jelly cream cheese

Last night was the great Vegan Artisan cheese unveiling at the Vegan Omaha meet up. 

As I mentioned earlier in the week, Lindsey and & have been busy little bees fermenting, curing, blending and shaping various cheeses as featured in Veg News magazine. 

They put together a brie, chevre, buffalo mozzarella, tomato, basil kabobs three cream cheeses and a sharp cheddar. 

The sharp cheddar had some firming issues so it became a cheese ball rolled in chopped pecans...and many people's favorite cheese of the night. 

We met at House of Loom and had sandwiches delivered by Block 16 (YUM). But, I think the cheese may have been the hit of the night. 

cheddar cheese ball and chevre

chevre, brie and fruit platter

I don't want to exaggerate and say that the Vegans fell on the cheese and devoured it....but....Lindsey and & have customer one and two locked in for the next batch. A vegetarian (those who eat cheese thank-you-very-much) said these cheeses were some of the best he's eaten. The brie won raves from two former brie fans. And those who went up to the cheese bar went back twice, thrice or embarrassingly uncountable times. The bowls and plates were literally scraped clean. Not licked, that would have been tacky, but scrapped indeed. The only thing left on the plates were two tiny bits of chevre which was hidden under an apple slice, a tiny smear of mozzarella and fruit. In a group of vegans who know that sometimes fruit is the only safe thing on the plate, to leave it behind makes a statement. 

Success and kudos. Deliciously good time had by all.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Oreo Bars - Plain, Peppermint and Vegan

These suckers are delish.

3 TBSP Earth Balance (room temp)
2 TBSP coconut oil (room temp)
3 TBSP vegan cream cheese
1 Cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 Cup flour (I used whole grain)
1/4 Cup chocolate chips (Veg of course)
12 Crushed oreos, Jo Jo's or Newman Os (set a handful aside for covering the bars)
 For peppermint 1/3 Cup crushed vegan candy cane or peppermints (save a small amount for topping)

Preheat oven to 375 and grease an 8 x 11 or 7 x 11 pan.

Mix Earth Balance, coconut oil and cream cheese together. Add sugar and vanilla and stir well. Pour in flour and mix. Finally add the chocolate chips, oreo bits (save some for topping) and if going peppermint add that and mix together.

Press into pan and add oreo bits and mint chips as topping. Bake 12-14 minutes.

Cool. Cut into bars.

Scraps and Snippets ~ Happy Accident Caramel Apple Pecan Shortbread Bars

So I had a Christmas decorating party Sunday night and needed to take a finger food. I whipped through a few cookbooks and found a delicious sounding shortbread bar. A caramel toffee chocolate bar. Win. Win.

I'd give you a review of that recipe but I totally flubbed the caramel. And therefore the recipe.

The shortbread crust went well. And tastes great. 

Crust:
1 Cup whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 Cup coconut oil
1/3 Cup powdered sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

Mix all the ingredients well and press into a greased 8 x 11 inch pan. Bake for 12-15 Minutes. 

Let cool. Then prepare the caramel.

Caramel Topping: (Amended in a panic)

1 Cup packed brown sugar
1/4 Cup coconut oil
4 teaspoons non-dairy milk
3/4 Cup applesauce
3/4 Cup oatmeal
1/2 Cup chopped pecans

Mix brown sugar, coconut, oil and non-dairy milk in a saucepan. Stirring constantly bring to a boil. Boil 1 minutes and remove from heat. Stirring. Add applesauce, oatmeal and pecans and stir well. Pour this over the crust and refrigerate at least 20 minutes. 

Cake. 

Once I fixed the fail. 

My fail was letting the caramel go too long. The first inkling of fear kicked up a notch when the sugar separated from the coconut oil after I left it on the flame. I was attempting to lose the grainy sugar texture and then, the bad just got worse. The caramel disintegrated into sugar again. Yikes. So. & suggested I turn it into a crumble topping. Problem, apple limitations. But I did have applesauce so I dumped it in to the sugar aka what once almost looked like caramel, stirred and was pleased to see things come together. I added chopped pecans and oatmeal and it was all good. Very good. Happy Fail.