Kitchen Creation Number Two: Oatmeal Cookies for One

You know what it's like. I can't be the only one. You get a craving for a cookie, so you get up and bake a batch. But if you're anything like me, a whole dozen cookies manage to disappear before you've even pulled the last sheet of cookies out of the oven. Not to mention what happens with the other two dozen or so cookies over the course of the next day or two. And it all started with a craving for just one cookie.

The following is a recipe I came up with that will help you satisfy your craving for a fresh-baked treat without facing the temptation of a whole 2-4 dozen cookies.

Note: These cookies will turn out rather cakey, so if you want a crispy cookie, this won't work for you.

Oatmeal Cookies for One

Ingredients:
1 pkg. flavored instant oatmeal (I used Maple & Brown Sugar)
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3 Tbsp. wheat flour

Mix, then add: 1/4 cup water

(Optional) You may decide to add a handful of chocolate chips, nuts, coconut, or whatever else you feel like.

Spoon onto greased baking sheet, and bake at 375 degrees for around 10 minutes.

I used my toaster oven, with the broiler pan as the baking sheet.

Makes approximately 4 cookies

The finished product. I'd already eaten two cookies before I thought to take a picture... 

Kitchen Creation Number One: Cereal Bars

A couple weeks ago I was out grocery shopping and came across these:

Since my 4-yo does not like to eat cereal with milk, I thought I'd give these "cereal bars" a try. If he liked them, I figured I could take a look at the ingredients list on the box and create some cereal bars of my own. He liked the bars well enough, so last weekend I set about gathering the ingredients I did not already have. And this morning, I set up my laboratory and began experimenting...

Some of the *possible* ingredients (I did not end up using all of these):

And, tools of the trade (I am ready for anything!):

I begin with one cup of  Life cereal, and crush:

I add 1/4 cup "bottom of the box" Shredded Wheat (this is the stuff you find left-over after you've eaten all the intact pieces; I always save it for potential future uses like this):

I then add 1 packet unflavored gelatine, 1 T. flax meal, 1/4 t. salt. I add 1 T. each molasses, honey, and olive oil. After mixing (not pictured), the molasses taste is a little too strong, so I add another T. of honey. Then I mix it all up. Looks yummy:

Finally, I mix in 1/4 cup dark chocolate chips, and 1/4 cup raisins:

Now on to the milk filling (in the original store-bought product, this is sandwiched between layers of cereal). I start with 1/2 cup nonfat dry milk:

I add 2 T. sweetened condensed milk. Gooey:

It's pretty dry, so I add olive oil 1/2 t. at a time as I continue to mix:

This looks nasty:

Starting over, with the dry milk and condensed milk. Then instead of oil, this time I just add water, 1/2 t. at a time, for a total of 3 t.

I also add 1/4 t. salt and 1/4 t. vanilla. After tasting, though, it is too salty. So, I add another 1/2 c. dry milk and 2 T. condensed milk, and another 3 t. water. Now it looks (and tastes) perfect:

I decide against the layering technique, and just dump the milk mixture into the cereal mixture, and mix:

I line a baking sheet with wax paper and dump:

Then I spread it out:

I put it into the oven and bake at 200 degrees. I keep it in for an hour or so (I lost track of the exact time). Then, I take out of pan still with the wax paper, and set it onto a wire rack to cool:

Once cool enough, I turn it over and carefully peel off the wax paper:

Then, I cut it into bars:

Here's my official taste tester:

Hey, he likes it!

By the way, you've gotta watch your step in my kitchen:

And here, the final product. Eight individually-wrapped cereal bars:

I decide to try the same recipe again, only this time using Honey Bunches of Oats in place of the Life, and wheat germ in place of the Shredded Wheat:

I left out the molasses this time and added an extra T. of honey in its place. I add a knife-full of peanut butter:

I also mix and add the milk mixture, and bake as before. When I peel off the wax paper this time, it is a little sticky on the underside, so I put it back into the oven with the bottom side up for another ten minutes just to dry it out a little more. And it comes out beautifully once again:

Don't forget to clean up your laboratory...I mean, kitchen, once you have finished experimenting...I mean, baking.

And there you have it. Homemade cereal bars, a whole lot better for you than the store-bought variety (and tastier, too, in my opinion).

The complete recipes

Life/Shredded Wheat and Molasses Cereal Bars

Cereal mixture:

1 c. Life cereal, crushed

1/4 c. crumbled Shredded Wheat

1 T. flax meal

1 packet (1 oz.) unflavored gelatine

1/4 t. salt

1 T. molasses

2 T. honey

1 T. olive oil

1/4 cup dark chocolate chips

1/4 cup raisins

Milk mixture:

1 cup nonfat dry milk

4 T. sweetened condensed milk

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. vanilla

6 t. water

Combine cereal mixture and milk mixture.

Spread on wax paper-lined baking sheet. Bake in oven at 200 degrees for 60+ minutes, until bars are no longer sticky.

Take out, cool on rack. Peel off wax paper and cut into bars.

Honey Bunches of Oats and Peanut Butter Cereal Bars

Cereal mixture:

1 cup Honey Bunches of Oats cereal, crushed

1/4 cup wheat germ

1 T. flax meal

1 packet (1 oz.) unflavored gelatine

3 T. honey

1 T. olive oil

1-2 T. peanut butter

Milk mixture:

1 cup nonfat dry milk

4 T. sweetened condensed milk

1/4 t. salt

1/4 t. vanilla

6 t. water

Combine cereal mixture and milk mixture.

Spread on wax paper-lined baking sheet. Bake in oven at 200 degrees for 60+ minutes, until bars are no longer sticky.

Take out, cool on rack. Peel off wax paper and cut into bars.