Signs of Spring

My 3' x 5' strawberry bed. It was overflowing with
plants last year, but I have high hopes for their recovery.

    Our local weather has definitely been the topic of many conversations this last month. After the many inches of snow in January, we had an unseasonable warm spell last week. For about five days, we had gorgeous sun and mid - high 50s here. I saw many people working in their yards and it definitely put a bounce in everyone's step. I decided to go out and work on clearing out my strawberry patch. Last summer, the deer came and ate every green leaf out of the patch and I was sure I would have to start over from scratch this year. I started clearing, in one small patch and soon realized that buried under the weeds was a strawberry plant. I then changed tactics and used a little more care with what I was pulling out. Happily as I cleared more and more, I saw that my strawberries did survive that seemingly decimating blow last year. They are definitely a bit worse for the wear and not nearly as plentiful as they were at the beginning of spring last year, but giving them a nice year of tender - loving - care this year and keeping the deer away will hopefully be enough for them to fully recover.
 
    As the sun brought out lighter spirits, it also ignited my desire to get back into the kitchen. I recently have joined Pinterest and am delighted by the wide variety of items that appear on my page throughout the day. On Pinterest, I saw this recipe for Peanut Butter Bars and I made them one evening for dessert. I didn't really like how they weren't very 'solid' at room temperature and the amount of sugar also made me cringe a bit, so I decided to revamp them to be a bit more of a healthy dessert. I also made them more bite-sized by molding them in my mini-muffin tin, which also made the application of the chocolate a lot simpler. Without telling my kids they were a healthier version, I sent them to school in their lunchboxes for dessert. Rave reviews at the end of the day, they never would have guessed I had even changed the recipe. Here is the revised recipe, which (depending on your ingredients) is gluten-free and refined sugar free and packed with protein and vitamins. Below the recipe are suggestions for dairy-free or ingredient substitutes.


Hidden Health Peanut Butter Bites
[Printable Recipe]


1 c (179 g) creamy peanut butter
3 Tbsp (55 g) agave nectar
1/2 c (42 g) dry milk powder
2 Tbsp (12 g) ground flax seed
1/4 c (23 g) quinoa flakes
1 c (31 g) rice crispies


4 - 8 oz semisweet chocolate chips, separated


In a medium sized bowl, mix the first five ingredients, until well combined. Add rice crispies and mix with your hands until the rice crispies are fully incorporated and you have a crumbly mix that will just hold together when squeezed in your hand. Form 24 small balls of dough, approximately 1/2 Tbsp each. Flatten each to the size of a silver dollar.

       

Muffin tin with chocolate in bottom of
each cup and 24 balls of mixture

Flattened Peanut Butter Balls,
approximately silver dollar sized.

    In a microwave safe bowl, melt 4 oz of chocolate chips in the microwave on 30 second bursts, stirring in between, until fully melted; about 1 1/2 minutes. In a silicone mini-muffin tin or using waxed cupcake liners (or waxed paper cut to fit), spread approximately 1/2 tsp of chocolate in the bottom of each cup. Press each flattened peanut butter ball into the chocolate. You can refrigerate at this point or you can melt the remaining 4 oz of chocolate chips and put a thin layer of chocolate on top each cup, creating a sandwich of chocolate, peanut butter and chocolate. Refrigerate for 30 minutes or until firm. Remove from muffin tin and wrap in waxed paper. Store in the refrigerator.


    These work really well in lunch boxes, but I would not put them in with a warm lunch or in a bag where the chocolate would melt. They are solid at room temperature, but I recommend storing in the refrigerator until you are ready to serve them or pack them in your bag for a quick snack during the day.


Yield: 24 mini muffin bites


NOTE: To make dairy-free, try replacing the milk powder with equal amounts of dry milk powder, rice flour or garbanzo flour. If you can't find the quinoa flakes you can substitute gluten-free quick oats, though you may have to decrease the amount or add a bit of melted coconut oil to help bind the ingredients.