Oh Nuts Blog

The holiday of Passover is soon approaching, and if you observe Passover, you know that you'll bid a temporary farewell to leavened breads and ingredients like flour, baking powder, and baking soda--the building blocks of tasty sweets! What's a dessert-lover to do?

Fortunately, I have the perfect solution for you Passover cookie monsters out there. Coconut macaroons are cookies made with shredded coconut and ground almonds, making them ideal desserts for Passover. Plus, the coconut and almonds available from Oh Nuts are certified Kosher for Passover and Parve! Even if you don't observe Passover, you'll love the tropical coconut flavor and contrasting semi-sweet chocolate in these crisp and chewy cookies.

Passover Macaroons Recipe
yield: 15-20 macaroon cookies

• 4 large egg whites, room temperature
• 1.25 cups sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tbsp honey
• 2.5 cups shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup whole blanched almonds or 1/4 cup almond flour
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 4 oz (about 2/3 cup) chopped semi-sweet chocolate (optional)

The secret to making these macaroons Passover-appropriate is using almond flour or almond meal instead of regular wheat flour. If you have almond flour handy you can use that, but you can also easily make your own by grinding fresh blanched almonds. So put your almonds in a food processor high-speed blender...

And process the nuts in short bursts until they're ground into a fine powder. Homemade almond flour isn't as fine as the kind you can buy, but for this recipe a little texture is no problem at all. If you've made your own almond flour, measure out 1/4 cup and if you have any extra, set it aside to use in another recipe.

Now combine that 1/4 cup almond flour with the egg whites, granulated sugar, salt, honey, coconut, and vanilla extract in a medium-sized saucepan with a heavy bottom.

Place the saucepan over medium-low heat and stir until the egg whites moisten everything, the sugar melts, and you have a gorgeous gloopy mess.

Cook the macaroon mixture, stirring constantly so it doesn't scorch on the bottom of the pan. As the egg whites heat, it will look creamy and almost foamy, as pictured above. We want to gently cook the whites and cook off some of the liquid, so slowly heat and stir the macaroons for about 5-7 minutes.

As the macaroons cook, they'll go from loose and creamy to a texture that's more sticky and gluey. The whole mixture will start to hold together in more of a clump. It shouldn't reach a point where it gets dry, pasty, or crumbly.

Once the macaroons are done cooking, scrape the dough into a bowl and press a piece of cling wrap on top of it. It needs to cool and set a bit before you can form and bake the cookies, so either let it cool at room temperature for several hours, or put it in the refrigerator to speed up the process. At this point, you can pause the process and chill the well-wrapped dough for up to a week, or freeze it for up to two months.

When you're ready to bake, preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, and use a cookie scoop or a tablespoon to form 15-20 cookies. They don't spread at all, so you can place them close together on the baking sheet.

You can bake the cookies as they are, or if you want to make the traditional "haystack" shape, wet your hands and pinch and press each cookie into a triangle. Don't make them too thin and pointy on top, or the tops will get very dark before the rest of the cookies are done baking.

Once all of your cookies are formed, bake them in the preheated oven for 18-20 minutes, rotating them halfway through the baking time so they bake evenly.

When they're finished, the macaroons will be golden brown all over and have a crackly, glazed finish.

Now, you can stop right here and have an awesome Passover macaroon. Crunchy on the outside, soft and chewy on the inside, it's pretty much my idea of heaven. But why stop when there's a bowl of chopped chocolate we haven't even gotten to yet?

If you want to add a touch of chocolate to your macaroons, let the cookies cool completely. Melt the chopped semi-sweet chocolate and dip the bottoms of each cookie in the chocolate, then place them back on the cooled baking sheet to set.

If you have melted chocolate left over, scrape it into a plastic Ziploc bag and cut a small hole in the corner. Drizzle the melted chocolate over the macaroons for a beautiful, tasty finish! Briefly refrigerate the tray to set the chocolate completely.

These Passover macaroons are so good, you'll be looking for excuses to make them year-round! Store them in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week, or in the freezer for several months.

You can also checkout our selection of Passover Cakes and Cookies

All text and images (c) Elizabeth LaBau

Last week I wrote about Coconut Macaroons, one delicious way to enjoy sweets during the upcoming holiday of Passover. Today I have another great Passover-ready dessert for you: Passover Chocolate Toffee Matzah.

Matzah, an unleavened bread similar to a cracker, forms the base of this sweet-and-salty Passover treat. The matzo boards are covered with a buttery brown sugar toffee, then after it's baked until crispy, slathered with chocolate and topped with chopped nuts.Yes, it is as delicious as it sounds. Ready to work a little matzo magic?

Matzo Toffee for Passover

• 5 matzos
• 1 stick (4 oz) butter
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 2 cups chocolate chips
• 1/2 cup chopped, salted nuts (I recommend almonds, peanuts, walnuts, or cashews)

  

  Start by preheating your oven to 350° F and lining a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper. Spray the baking sheet with nonstick cooking spray to make the toffee easy to remove later.

  

  Arrange the matzos on the bottom of the pan so that they cover the entire area. You'll probably have to break or cut a few to get them to fit, and you might have a little left over. Nibbles for the chef!

  

  Combine the butter and the brown sugar in a small saucepan. If you're using unsalted matzos and unsalted nuts, you'll want to add a pinch of salt to the pan as well--about 1/2 tsp should do.

  

  Place the pan over medium heat, and stir while the butter melts and the sugar dissolves. Continue to cook the sugar, stirring frequently, until it starts to boil. Once it's at a full boil, cook it for 1 minute, stirring constantly.

  

  After one minute, take the pan off the heat and pour the sugar syrup all over the matzos in the pan. Try to drizzle it so it's evenly spread over the pan.

  

  Take a knife or a spatula and gently move the toffee around so it's covering most of the matzos. Work quickly so it's still hot and liquid. It will spread in the oven, so don't worry if you miss a few spots.

  

  Place the tray of toffee-covered matzo in the 350° oven and bake it for 5-7 minutes, until the toffee is bubbling all over, like so:

  

  Isn't that beautiful? Don't you just want to dive in right now? Resist. It's only going to get better. Let the toffee rest for just one minute after you pull it out of the oven.

  

  Then sprinkle the chocolate chips all over the surface of the toffee, and let them rest for an additional minute. The heat from the toffee will soften and melt the chocolate.

  

  Use your trusty spatula or knife to spread the melted chocolate chips all over the toffee, so that every inch is covered. Now is a good time to mention that you can use any type of chips or chocolate you like: white chocolate? Peanut butter? Butterscotch? They would all be amazing, and would all work equally well on this matzo toffee.

  

  Sprinkle the top of the wet chocolate with your chopped nuts. I'm using peanuts, but any toasted, salted nut will do. Press them gently into the top of the chocolate so they adhere. Refrigerate the tray of matzo toffee until the chocolate is cool and set, about 30 minutes.

  

  Once it's set, take the tray from the refrigerator and peel off the foil or parchment baking. Break the matzo toffee into small pieces using your hands, or you can cut it into small squares with a large knife.

  

  Store your Passover matzo toffee in an airtight container at room temperature. If it's very warm where you live, the chocolate might start to get soft, so refrigerate the toffee if the chocolate seems to be getting sticky. Technically this will stay fresh for about a week, but I've never known a batch to last longer than a few days.

  

  If you weren't already sold on these candies, here's one final close-up of the beautiful toffee layers. Crunchy, slightly savory matzo, buttery caramelized toffee, semi-sweet chocolate, and salty toasted nuts. Don't miss the rest of the Oh Nuts selection of Passover cakes and cookies, too!

  All text and images (c) Elizabeth LaBau

Candy-filled Easter baskets are one of the great Easter traditions, along with dying Easter eggs and holding Easter egg hunts. I am not one to complain about a basket full of candy (in fact, I wish every holiday had that tradition) but what if the basket could be improved upon? What if the basket, itself, was edible? And not just edible, but what if it was a sweet sugar cookie, filled with frosting and topped with coconut and candy?

Now that is a tradition I can get behind.

Easter basket cookies require a little assembly, but the basics couldn't be easier. They call for store-bought dough, frosting, and candies, making them a snap to put together with young helpers as a fun edible craft project.

Easter Basket Cookies
yield: 24 Easter basket cookies

• 1 1-lb package refrigerated sugar cookie dough (or homemade dough)
• Assorted colored sprinkles
• 1/2 cup frosting, canned or homemade
• 1/2 cup shredded coconut
• Green food coloring
• Specked jelly beans
• Pastel Jordan almonds
• Licorice string (pipe cleaners are a non-edible substitute)

This recipe will make 24 cookies in miniature muffin pans, or 12 large cookies in regular muffin pans. Spray your pans with nonstick cooking spray, and preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Use a tablespoon or small cookie scoop to form balls of cookie dough. Roll the balls in the colored sprinkles until they're completely covered, then place them in the miniature muffin pans.

Once all of your dough is formed into balls, bake the cookies in the 350° oven for about 12-15 minutes--just until they're set around the edges but are still soft in the middle.

While you're waiting for the cookies to bake, place the coconut in a large Ziploc bag and add a few drops of green food coloring. Massage it through the bag to spread the food coloring throughout the coconut and dye it a light green color. Add more food coloring if necessary to get it to a shade of green that resembles grass.

After the coconut is dyed, unwind the licorice strings and cut them into 3-inch sections to form the basket handles. Licorice strings or ropes can sometimes be difficult to find, so you can substitute any other thin candy for the strings, or use pipe cleaners as a non-edible alternative to licorice.

Once the cookies are baked, take them from the oven and immediately start pressing your fingers into the middle of each cookie to form an indentation. If the cookies are overbaked this will be difficult and they might crack, so it's much better to err on the side of underbaking and have soft sugar cookies. After all the indentations are made, let the cookies cool completely.

Put the frosting in a plastic bag and snip off the corner. Pipe a little dollop of frosting into the center of each cookie, just until the hole is filled.

Sprinkle the top of the frosting-filled cookie with the green coconut, until all the frosting is covered and it looks like the cookie basket is filled with grass.

Press the ends of a licorice string into the frosting to form the handle. If you're using pipe cleaners, bend them into a U-shape and stick them either into the frosting or just poke them into the top of the cookie.

Lastly, fill your Easter basket cookies with goodies! I recommend using speckled jelly beans, pastel Jordan almonds, or any small Easter candy that you enjoy.

Ta-da! Your Easter basket cookies are finished and ready to be enjoyed. Store them in an airtight container at room temperature, and enjoy them within 2-3 days of making them.

These Easter basket cookies would make great placesettings at an Easter dinner, or are nice gifts when individually wrapped in cellophane bags. Or...and this is a crazy thought...consider filling an Easter basket with Easter basket cookies. (Too M.C. Escher?) However you choose to display them, I'm sure you'll love these cute, colorful Easter basket cookies!

All text and images (c) Elizabeth LaBau

This Chocolate-Peanut Butter Granola recipe all started innocently enough. I had a bag of fresh roasted peanuts and decided to make a nutty peanut butter granola. I wanted to cut down on the fat and sugar, so I used a mashed banana to replace some of the oil and sweetness. Of course everything is better with a little chocolate, so I decided to sprinkle some chocolate chips in at the end. And then it hit me.

Peanut Butter + Banana + Chocolate = ELVIS

Yes, almost without realizing it, I had made a granola recipe fit for a king--or, to be more precise, fit for The King. Elvis's favorite flavor combination works surprisingly well as a breakfast cereal. The banana adds a mellow fruity note, the peanuts and peanut butter give it a salty, savory twist, and who could argue with a little bittersweet chocolate to round things out?

Maybe you have a "Suspicious Mind" and don't believe me. Well, check out this granola recipe and these photos and tell me it doesn't sound divine. "Don't Be Cruel"--try this Chocolate-Peanut Butter Granola today!

Chocolate-Peanut Butter Granola aka "The King's Granola"
yield:about 8 cups granola

• 4 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup oat bran (can substitute wheat germ)
• 1 cup roasted, salted peanuts, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup maple syrup or honey
• 1/3 cup chunky peanut butter
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 banana, very ripe
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup mini chocolate chips, chocolate chunks, or chopped chocolate

Preheat your oven to 275 degrees F/ 135 degrees C. In a large bowl combine the old-fashioned oats, the oat bran, and the chopped peanuts, and toss them together with your hands until they're "All Shook Up."

Take your extra-ripe banana and mash it until it's completely liquid, using a potato masher, a fork, or even a blender. The riper the banana, the easier it will be to mash and the more sweetness it will add, so don't be afraid to use a really soft brown one. Set the banana aside for a few minutes.

Combine the vegetable oil, maple syrup or honey, peanut butter, salt, and cinnamon in a medium saucepan.

Place the pan over medium-heat, and stir while it heats up and the peanut butter melts. Stir frequently so that the bottom doesn't scorch. Cook until the mixture is thick and bubbling.

Now take the pan from the heat and add the vanilla extract. Remember your mashed banana? Add that too, and stir until all of your liquid ingredients are well-mixed.

Pour your beautiful banana-peanut concoction over your big bowl of dry ingredients and stir, stir, stir.

Stir until all the ingredients are completely coated and there aren't any dry patches remaining. At this point the granola smells fantastic, and if it weren't for the whole wet-texture thing, it would taste pretty good too. But since the whole point of granola is crunchy clusters, we'd best get to baking.

Cover a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper, and spread the granola out all over the baking sheet. It's fastest and easiest if the granola is in a single layer, so if your baking sheet is on the smaller side, it's better to spread the granola over two sheets so that it bakes faster and more evenly and avoids "Trouble."

Bake the granola for about an hour. Stir after every 15 minutes so that it cooks evenly. Stirring is a bit of a tricky proposition--you want to move the granola around so it doesn't get burned, but you also want to try and keep some larger chunks together so that you have lovely clumps instead of just individual oats. Just do your best to move the granola around without disturbing all of the clumps--and if you do, it'll still taste delicious!

Bake the granola until it is very fragrant and an even, golden brown color all over. If you feel it with your hands, it will probably still feel somewhat soft and not done straight from the oven. As it cools, it will crisp up, so don't be alarmed if it doesn't have the texture you're expecting right away. It's more reliable to judge its readiness by color than by feel.

Let the granola cool completely before adding the final--and most important!--ingredient, the mini chocolate chips. Warm granola will make the chips melt, so definitely exercise patience on this one to avoid melted chocolate and "Heartbreak Hotel." Add the chocolate and toss everything together with your hands.

Enjoy Chocolate-Peanut Butter Granola as a breakfast cereal with sliced fruit, on top of a bowl of yogurt or oatmeal, as a pre-workout snack, or even as an ice cream topping! If you wanted to really push it over the edge you could eat it with chocolate milk, but don't tell your nutritionist that I'm the one who gave you that idea.

This granola keeps marvelously in an airtight container for up to a month. If you're a slow granola eater, you can portion it out and keep it in plastic bags in the freezer for up to six months. I'm willing to be that won't be a problem, though, and after one taste you'll have a "Burning Love" for this Elvis-inspired granola!

All text and images (c) Elizabeth LaBau