Oatmeal Almond Crisps

Christmas baking is upon us all!  Honestly, I find all this baking ridiculously overwhelming....but then again....I’ve never claimed to be a baker.  I find baking to be a stressor whereas the opposite happens when I can get into the kitchen and make dinner or a savory treat -- I find that very relaxing.  

So -- when I am diving into the piles of cookie recipes I’ve collected over the years, I find myself counting ingredients and tossing the long recipes over my shoulder in disgust.  For that reason, this cookie recipe came to the top of my pile.  Short ingredient list? Check!  Ease of preparation? Check! Delicious? Double check!  My favorite thing about these babies is their lack of flour.  I love the texture as well -- almonds and oatmeal come together beautifully.  Not to mention they are the perfect crunch mate for coffee or tea!  

Oatmeal-Almond Crisps 

Martha Stewart

1/3 c. packed light brown sugar

1/4 c. (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted

1 large egg

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

1 1/2 c. rolled oats (not quick cooking)

1/2 c. sliced almonds

nonstick cooking spray

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. In a large bowl, whisk brown sugar, butter, egg and vanilla until smooth.  Mix in oats and almonds.
3. Drop mixture by level tablespoons onto prepared baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart.  Spray the underside of a metal spatula with nonstick cooking spray, and use to flatten cookies into 2 1/2 -inch disks.
4. Bake until golden, 14 to 16 minutes.  Cool completely on baking sheets. (Handle with care; cookies are fragile.)

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bites

Cheesecake freaks me out.  Let me be more clear....making cheesecake freaks me out....eating cheesecake is fantastic.  Pretty much anything that needs to be baked in a water bath intimidates the hell out of me and the thought of eating “no-bake” cheesecake makes me want to hurl so I thought I’d dive into cheesecake world with this bar recipe.  It seemed easy enough and let me tell you -- it was easy as pie!!!!

When I pulled the bars out of the oven and sprinkled them with the peanut butter and chocolate chips I had to restrain myself from digging in until they were cool.  Knowing how dangerous these babies were going to be, I cut them into mini-bites so I felt like I wasn’t eating as much.  You’re going to love these with a tall glass of icy milk {{or a shot glass of milk -- adorable serving idea!!}}.

Oatmeal Peanut Butter Cheesecake Bites

1 (17.5 oz) package oatmeal cookie mix {I used Betty Crocker}

1/2 c. chilled butter, cut into small pieces

2 (8 oz) packages cream cheese, softened

1/2 c. sugar

2 tbsp all purpose flour

1 large egg

2/3 c. peanut butter morsels

2/3 c. semisweet chocolate morsels

1. Preheat oven to 350.  Spray a 13 x 9 inch baking pan with nonstick spray.
2. In the bowl of a food processor, combine cookie mix and butter.  Pulse 4 to 5 times.  Press into prepared pan and bake 10 minutes or until lightly browned around edges.  Cool 10 minutes.
3. Combine cream cheese, sugar, flour and egg at medium speed with an electric mixer.  Spread over cookie crust.
4. Bake 20 minutes or until set.  Remove from oven and sprinkle with morsels.  Let stand 10 minutes or until cool.  Cut into desired-sized bars.

Overnight Crock Pot Oatmeal

So after 2 weeks of a free-for-all of eating -- let’s lighten things up a bit.  How many of you make your oatmeal from a packet and hot water or milk?  Guilty over here!  Now, how many of you really enjoy your oatmeal packets?  Guilty as well!  I do like a good quick oatmeal with instant oats, however, while in Omaha, my sister-in-law made crock pot oatmeal overnight and it was fantastic!  I am now an oatmeal convert!  The crock pot version is creamy, nutty and thick.  It sticks to your bones but is still a healthy breakfast. Make sure that you’re using steel cut oats.  They are coarsely ground and hold up well in the crock pot.  Any other oat will turn into mush. The nice thing about this recipe is it creates an oatmeal “base” -- you can add whatever toppings you like.  This means that you can keep it light or you can really pile them on!  

I topped my oatmeal with almonds, honey, and some fresh wild blackberries my husband and I picked.  We really hit the jackpot this year in the blackberry department!  

Other great toppings include chopped apples, dried fruit of any kind, sliced bananas, chocolate chips, cinnamon, brown sugar and/or a splash of milk.  Once you try this overnight oatmeal you won’t be reaching for that packet anymore!

Overnight Oatmeal

adapted from Food Network

1 c. steel cut oatmeal

4 c. water

1/2 c. milk (I used 1%)

1 tbsp vanilla extract

1 tbsp cinnamon

Combine all ingredients in crock pot and stir to combine.  Cook over low for 8 hours.

Serve with desired toppings.