​If you’re storing up all the wheat, flour, and other grains recommended, you’ll need to have the ability to use it.  (You know-- "store what you eat, and eat what you store!") The most common way to do this is to grind the wheat into flour to make bread and other baked goods.

My mom taught all of us kids how to make bread when we were young. I still use her recipe today; it has good flavor, is immensely adaptable, and works well with quite a bit less yeast per loaf needed than many other recipes call for.  That recipe is found on my website under “Making Bread”. There are two amounts of ingredients- one for a two-loaf batch, and another for a six-loaf batch (the size that fills my oven-- because it's the same amount of dishes and time to make 6 as it is to make 1).

Wait until the bread is cool before slicing and bagging it. The exception is the loaf you eat while it's still hot!  But be patient for 10-20 minutes after it's out of the oven; it continues to cook during that time. It will mash if you slice before then.  Bread freezes exceptionally well, so I always put in the pantry only the bread we'll eat in the next three days, when fresh bread is at its best. The rest goes into the freezer; it will taste fresh-baked when you thaw it later. (The best way to thaw is in its bag at room temperature for a few hours. The next best way-- which we do more often-- is to put it in the microwave for 60 seconds. Be sure to remove any metal twist tie on the bag!)

This recipe works whether you’re making it in a big bowl with a strong wooden spoon, or if you have a stand mixer.  (Mom made me learn initially with the bowl and spoon, because, she said, “You won’t always have a mixer.”  That turned out to be true. I made my bread all through college with nothing but a bowl and wooden spoon.)  If you’re new to making bread, make your first few batches with all white flour.  It’s easier to make good white bread with than it is to make good whole wheat bread.

A new electric grain mill generally costs somewhere around $200. There are hand mills sold for much less money – around $80—but it’s a whole lot of work and time to get enough flour for a batch of bread with one of those. I like having one as emergency backup, but not for normal use. The electric mill can give you finer flour anyway. 

If you want to start using your wheat for bread and don’t have a mill, try this recipe: Really Good Whole Wheat Bread Without a Grain Mill. It's the bread version of Blender Pancakes; this kind of pancake recipe can also be found in the Wooden Spoon: Wheat section, and in the Bee Prepared Pantry Cookbook.
​
What if you don’t have yeast?  Use a sourdough start or “everlasting yeast” to leaven it.  (Maybe that should be the topic for next week’s post—What do you think?)

What if I ruin the batch of bread?

First of all, everyone makes a ‘bad’ batch every now and then.  See if you can figure what went wrong, and learn from it.  Meanwhile, here are some common problems and how to use the bread anyway.  Ruined doesn’t need to mean wasted.

BURNT BREAD- Scrape off the darkest parts, or cut it away in the thinnest slices you can manage. 

BREAD WON’T RISE- Make fried scones. If you’re unfamiliar with the term, they’re a kind of yeast-raised Indian fry bread or sopapillas. Here in Utah, we just call them ‘scones’. Heat a 1-2” deep layer of cooking oil to 350 degrees, pinch off golfball-sized pieces of dough and stretch or roll them about ¼” thick. Fry 3 or 4 at a time, turning them over after about a minute. Drain on paper towels and serve as the base for Navajo Tacos, or with butter and honey or jam.

BREAD IS UNDERCOOKED- if the bread is still hot, put it back in the oven for another five minutes.  Check again. Cook longer if needed.  If the bread was no longer hot when you discovered the problem, slice it a little thinner than you normally would, and toast it. Now it’s cooked. 

BREAD IS CRUMBLY. (Or stale)- This is a problem you see only after it has cooled; warm bread is almost always amazing and not crumbly. The solution next time is to get the gluten to develop better. (Unless the problem is the bread is several days old and dried out. These solutions still apply.)

• Make it into French toast, egg toast, or bread pudding. (Try Caramel Pumpkin Bread Pudding or Pineapple Coconut Bread Pudding!) 

• Use it for sandwiches with a creamy filling, like egg salad or chicken salad.

• Use it up sooner than usual and freeze everything that you won’t use within a day, rather than the regular 3-day window I usually keep it out for. 

• Cut it into ½” cubes, toss with a little oil and whatever seasonings you like, and toast them in a skillet or in the oven to make croutons.

• Make bread soup. This is an Italian specialty, and you can find lots of recipes.

• Make cream of tomato soup using bread in a surprising way to make it thick and creamy.

• Make a batch of bread crumbs- either toast them to dry them out, or if you want the fresh, soft bread crumbs, store any extras in an airtight container in the freezer. 
​___________________________

What other bread problems would you like a solution for?  Comment below, and I’ll do my best to answer.  If there's a way to mess up a batch, I've likely done it.  :) Experience is a good teacher.

Your week 16 assignment:  Buy for Three.

Two houses, four wards, and almost ten years ago, a friend and I were on a quest to find two things--
the perfect pancake recipe,
and a perfectly adaptable muffin recipe. 

We measured, stirred, cooked, talked, shared and compared.  (I still think the ‘Foolproof Pancake’ recipe is tops.)  And after all that, Laura compiled what I learned about muffins with what she learned about muffins, and the “Anything Goes” Muffin recipe is the result. 

It’s a basic recipe that you can customize- whether sweet or savory, it will make good muffins.  Lemon-blueberry, bacon-cheese mufins, spiced applesauce muffins, oatmeal cinnamon muffins, chocolate raspberry or chocolate banana muffins, and much more.  Do you have a couple overripe bananas sitting on your counter?  This will help you use them up. How about a wrinkly apple that has gone mealy?  It will be delicious chopped or shredded into muffins.
After you've used this recipe-- or formula-- a few times, you'll get to where you don't even need the recipe to make any kind of muffin you can think of.

What will you make with this recipe? 

Or, what did you make?

Do you want a lovely, hot breakfast, but need to speed it up?  Or do you simply want to have complete control over what goes into your food?  Either way, this pancake mix is your friend.   

Don’t want a mix, just a good pancake recipe?  Here’s one I’ve used for 25 years—“Foolproof Pancakes”.  The original recipe was clipped out of a local newspaper when I was a newlywed. I can't tell you how many other recipes I tried first.  This was the best.
 

Pancake Mix

12 c. flour (I like to use 6 c. white flour, 6 c. whole wheat flour)
3 c. dry milk powder
¼ c. sugar
2 Tbsp. baking soda
2 Tbsp. salt
1 cup coconut oil or shortening

Mix together the flour, milk powder, sugar, baking soda, and salt. Add the coconut oil or shortening, and cut it in until well distributed.   Store in a container with a tight-fitting lid.  Makes about 16 cups.

To use it, combine 1 1/4 c. mix, 1 egg, 1 cup water.  You'll get about 12 batches this size from the whole mix.  
 
You can make pumpkin pancake mix, too!  


Want to make simple gourmet fruit syrup?  

Your assignment this week is to look through the grocery ad for things on your inventory list that you need. With the budgeted amount of money you have (ballpark figure is $14 per week, per person) buy your three months' worth of however much you can on your list.

Do you like to use instant oatmeal?  You can save money (and know exactly what you're eating) by making your own. It's so quick and handy to have it all made up!
 
Homemade Instant Oatmeal 
4 cups quick oats (oatmeal), gluten-free if you need them
1-3 tsp. cinnamon
½ - 2/3 cup brown sugar*
½ - 1 tsp. salt
optional: 1/2 cup dry milk powder
optional: 1 c. chopped dried fruit or toasted nuts

Put 1 ½ c. of the oats in a blender; blend on high until almost powdery.  Dump this into a medium-sized mixing bowl; stir in cinnamon, brown sugar, salt, and milk powder and fruit/nuts if you’re using them.
 
After making it for the first time, see if it needs adjusted for your family’s tastes-- take 1/4 c. of this mix, combine in a bowl with ½ cup water, and microwave for 60 seconds. Taste it.
Is it great? Does it need more cinnamon? Sugar? Salt?  Add as needed, then cook another bowlful to see.  Take notes so you don’t have to do this next time.  😊 
 
Store in a canister, a quart-sized ziptop bag, or pre-portioned into snack-sized ziptop bags.
This batch can easily be doubled or tripled.
 
You can pre-portion these into snack-size baggies (then reuse baggies!), or just keep a measuring cup in the canister or bag. If you want individual servings measured out ahead of time, place either 1/2 c. or 1/3 c. mix in each baggie.

TO USE:
One large serving:  use ½ c. mix and 1 c. water.  Microwave 90 seconds; let stand. 
One small serving: use 1/3 c. mix and 2/3 c. water.  Microwave 60 seconds; let stand.
For four large servings (or 6-8 small ones), use four cups boiling water and add 2 to 2 ½  cups oatmeal mix.
Adjust water and/or mix to make it as thin or thick as you like.  

    
* For children who aren't yet accustomed to sugary oatmeal, use 1/2 cup brown sugar.  For those sugar-addicted husbands, you may need to add more. Regular sugar, evaporated cane juice, or an appropriate amount of stevia may be used. 
If your brown sugar is lumpy, it can be added to the blender with the 1 ½ c. of oats and blended with them.
 
Here are some flavor combinations; the sky's the limit!

Apple Cinnamon- Use the higher amount of cinnamon; you might even go up to 1 ½ to 2 Tbsp. Stir in 1 c. chopped dried apples.

Apricot Almond- Add 1 tsp. almond extract to the oats being blended.  At the end, stir in ½ c. finely chopped dried apricots and ½ c. chopped toasted almonds.

Banana Maple- Add ½ tsp. maple extract and ½ to 1 c. banana chips to the oats when they’re blended.

Chai Spice- Use 2 tsp. cinnamon, 1 tsp. ginger, ½ tsp. cardamom, and ¼ tsp. cloves. (If you like, you can also add ¼ tsp. ground black pepper and ½ tsp. allspice.)  For Vanilla Chai, add 1 Tbsp. vanilla to the oats when they're blended, or use vanilla powder.
 
Date Nut- Use the higher amount of cinnamon. At the end, stir in ½ c. finely chopped dates and ½ c. toasted chopped walnuts or other nut.  TIP- if you chop the dates and the nuts together, the dates won’t stick to your knife as badly.
 
Dinosaur- Use the higher amount of cinnamon. Stir in ¼ c. dinosaur-shaped sprinkles.
 
Maple Brown Sugar- Add ½ tsp. maple extract to the oats being blended. Use the higher amount of brown sugar (dark brown if you have it), and the lower amount of cinnamon.

Pumpkin Spice- Use 2 tsp. cinnamon, plus 2 tsp. ginger, 1 tsp. nutmeg, and 1/2 to 1 c. pumpkin powder. Best if you also use the 1/2 c. dry milk powder.

Raisin, Apple & Walnut- Use the higher amount of cinnamon.  At the very end, stir in ½ c. chopped raisins, ½ c. chopped dried apple, and ½ c. chopped toasted walnuts.

Strawberries and Cream- Use either ½ c. dry milk powder, or ½ c. powdered creamer. Stir in 1 c. chopped dried or freeze-dried strawberries. You can also make Raspberries and Cream, Blueberries and Cream, or Peaches and Cream this way.
 
Very Berry- Add 1 tsp. vanilla to the oats being blended. Use the lower amount of cinnamon.  Omit brown sugar, and use 1 c. of the berry drink mix from the Home Storage Center. Stir in 1 c. chopped dried cranberries or other dried berry.

Pineapple-Coconut Bread Pudding 
1 (20-oz) can crushed pineapple
¾ cup sugar, divided
2 c. cream or coconut cream*
½ tsp. salt, divided
1 loaf stale French bread, cut in 1" cubes, or a pound of other bread, cubed
1/2 tsp. cardamom
3-4 eggs 
1 c. whole milk or coconut milk
2 tsp. vanilla
1/2 c. shredded coconut

If your bread isn't already stale and dry, put the bread cubes in the oven at 375 until they're dried out.  
Make a caramel sauce- combine 2 Tbsp. juice from the canned pineapple with 1/2 c. sugar in a saucepan.  Heat on high until brown, stirring often.  Add 3/4 c. cream; stir until the caramel chunk has dissolved.  Add 1/4 tsp. salt.  Pour about half of this into the bottom of a greased 9x13 pan.  Save the rest.
Mix together bread, undrained pineapple and cardamom.  Dump into a 9x13 pan.  Using the same bowl as before, beat the eggs, then stir in 1/4 c. sugar, the remaining cream, milk, vanilla, and 1/4 tsp. salt.  Mix until  sugar dissolves.  Pour all of this over the bread and let sit for 5-20 minutes to soak.  Sprinkle the coconut over the top.                                          

Bake at 375 degrees for 30-35 minutes, until center is set.  Serve warm, with a little of the remaining caramel sauce drizzled on top.

*If you don't have cream, use milk instead, for a total of 3 cups.  Also melt 1/4 c. butter and beat it in with the eggs.

 

Mmm.... bacon, eggs, and toast!   

Or not.

Toast:
Pound cake, sliced and toasted.  Then buttered.

Eggs:
The white:  I used some quick frosting  (1 cup powdered sugar, 2 tbsp. melted coconut oil, a bit of vanilla, and enough milk-- any kind-- to let it softly hold its shape.)  Other options include nearly-melted commercial vanilla frosting, stirred sour cream, stirred vanilla yogurt, or stirred Greek yogurt.
The center is a dried apricot, plumped in hot water for about 20 minutes, then blotted dry and shaped by hand to look more round.  I stuck a whole almond inside to make the 'yolk' stand up better.
To make the 'yolk' look more wet, I brushed it with a little bit of corn syrup.

Bacon:
Today I found some natural fruit rolls that I'd not seen before.  I bought some, and found that rather than being the smooth, flat rollup I expected, it was full of different thicknesses in the stripes the machine put down.  This enabled it to pull off in strips to eat.  And it resembled bacon!  One roll yields about four  1 1/4" wide strips, which I cut using a pizza cutter.   Make them ripple a bit when you put them down.

We have one peach tree, a fairly early variety.  The little thing produced itself proud this year; we kept thinning, and thinning those peaches throughout the season, fearing the weight of the ripened ones would damage its fairly young form.   We still got somewhere around 1 1/2 to 2 bushels of ripe ones.  Most of them were preserved as rolls of fruit leather, with many more eaten fresh, made into creamy smoothies, or baked into this favorite coffeecake, which we serve as breakfast food.  I got the recipe when I was nineteen and in college, from a friend my age who also loved to bake.  She ended up living in the same apartment complex and I, and we shared several food-related experiences.  She and I drowned our boy-centered troubles one night by staying up late, crying with each other's stories, and consuming an entire cheesecake.

But back to the peaches...
There's nothing like biting into a warm, juicy peach fresh off the tree... or a tree-ripened peach from wherever you can buy them.  If you're not so fortunate, you can use either fresh, frozen, or canned (and drained) peaches for this, but the best flavor- as you'd expect!- will be from using the freshest, sweetest, juiciest peaches you can get.  

Peachy Pecan-Streusel Coffeecake
Cake:
1/2 c. butter, softened 
3/4 c. sugar (1 cup if you like things very sweet)
2 eggs
2 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. sour cream or yogurt
1 tsp. vanilla
2 c. sliced peaches

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Butter or spray a 9x13 pan; set aside.  Cream together the butter and sugar; beat in the eggs.  combine all dry ingredients, add to butter mixture alternately with sour cream and vanilla.  Beat just until smooth.  Spread batter in prepared pan.  Arrange peach slices over batter.  Combine the streusel ingredients and sprinkle over peaches.  Bake 25-30 minutes or until toothpick inserted into center of cake comes out clean (no batter clinging, only crumbs if anything).  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Streusel:
1 c. chopped pecans
1/4 c. brown sugar, packed
1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Warm, chocolatey, just sweet enough, high fiber, and with little pockets of gooey melted chocolate chips!   My sister-in-law posted a similar recipe on Facebook.  It sounded delicious and had very little added sugar.  The original recipe called for applesauce instead of oil, but I'm a fan using healthy fats alongside carbohydrates so that my kids and I aren't hungry again an hour after breakfast!  It helps you process the fiber in these, too.

Chocolate Fudge Banana Muffins - makes 12
(can be gluten-free and dairy-free)

3 medium bananas, very ripe, mashed (about 1 cup)
2 eggs
1/4 brown sugar
1/4 c. oil or melted butter (I like coconut oil in these)
1/3 c. cocoa powder
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/3 c. oat flour (or you can use all-purpose flour or whole wheat flour)
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
chocolate chips, optional (1/4- 1/2 cup)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Grease a 12-cup muffin tin.  
Whisk together eggs and brown sugar.  Mix in the oil, cocoa powder, and vanilla.  Mix the dry ingredients and add to the wet.  Stir in chocolate chips.

Divide between the muffin cups; bake about 17-23 minutes, or until the top of a muffin springs back lightly when gently pressed.

This is a great fresh jam to eat fresh. It also freezes well, so is a good freezer jam.  Since the berries are not cooked and there's not enough sugar to help preserve it, its fridge life is fairly short.  If you're keeping it in the fridge, try to use it within about a week.  If left too long, it will get moldy (you'll know if it does!)   But it's SO GOOD fresh!  My eight-year-old made a batch two nights ago; we ran out yesterday.  I made another batch this morning, and between spreading it on our pancakes at breakfast, and using it on warm bread this afternoon, it's gone again!

Pectin-free Strawberry Freezer Jam
1 pound strawberries, washed and hulled (green parts pulled off)
2 Tbsp. honey (or to taste; use any sweetener you prefer)
2 Tbsp. chia seeds, OR 1 Tbsp. ground flax seeds

Mash the berries with a fork, or chop in a blender until they're the consistency you want.  Stir in the honey (or other sweetener) and the chia.
 After this sits for about half an hour, the chia (or flax) will gel as they absorb the extra liquid.  Keep refrigerated or frozen.

Makes about 2 1/4 cups.

Come to think of it, a drop or two of orange essential oil would be really, really goo

Today I read a research article about how having breakfast as your biggest meal of the day  rather than dinner can lead to both better insulin sensitivity and increased fertility.  In the study, they had women consume about 980 calories at breakfast, which was just over half the amount for the whole day.  If you use two slices of homemade or other good-quality whole-wheat bread (about 120 calories apiece), one large egg  (80 cal), and a one-ounce slice of real cheese (about 100 cal), you're almost halfway there.  I love to eat this with a fresh apple (a medium-large apple is about 100 calories).  

OK, so that's still not up to the numbers in the study.  But it's a great breakfast anyway.  Maybe make two?  

In less time than it takes to go through the drive-through, you can have a breakfast sandwich you made yourself.  At the bargain-hunting prices I pay for food (including making the bread), a two-slice sandwich costs just under $ .30.  (The bread costs me about $ .50 for a 1 1/2 pound loaf.  See the recipe here.)  
Dress it up with anything you want on it, or leave it simple.  I don't add salt to the egg because the cheese and bread are salty enough for me. For more flavor, add a sprinkle of oregano or other seasoning.  You can make it as healthy as you like; I use homemade whole-wheat bread for a breakfast that sticks with me for more than an hour.

Here are the quick instructions:  microwave one beaten egg for about 45 seconds, top it with a slice of cheese, put this on top of a slice of toast.
If you want a sausage-and-egg sandwich, before cooking your egg, put one precooked sausage link into the cereal bowl, chop it up with the fork, then add the egg and beat it. 

The photos below have more detailed instructions.

 Today I have a free e-book offer for you, a cookbook, “The Egg and I.” It has tons of recipes for making omelets and frittatas, along with great tips on mastering eggs in the kitchen.

It's just over 40 pages of recipes for all kinds of omelets plus pages of frittatas

You can get it here, and you'll get to choose from four formats: PDF, Microsoft Word, HTML, or Kindle. 

Here's what Dennis Weaver, the cookbook's author, says:

The difference between a frittata and an omelet is that the ingredients in the frittata are mixed into the eggs instead of folded into an omelet. Usually a frittata is started on the stovetop and then baked in the skillet in the oven. They are sometimes called flat omelets or farmers’ omelets. They are larger and cut into slices to serve.

This is not your ordinary e-Book!  It has 31 different scrumptious omelet recipes. Omelets you won’t find anywhere else plus more than $30 in recipe books. Plus it tells you how to make them and gives video instructions.  Start making omelets like a pro. You can 
eat them for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.  

The last time we visited my son and his family in Minnesota, we stopped at Keys Café in Saint Paul where I had “The Loon Omelet” which personifies how versatile an omelet can be. The Loon Omelet is made with wild rice, mushrooms, onions, tomatoes, Swiss cheese, turkey, and topped with a hot mushroom sauce.

You can even make a party out of omelets, or host the next family gathering with an omelet bar. You’ll learn how here.

Omelets are easy, you can make one in as little as five minutes. You can make American omelets, Italian omelets, puffy omelets, and Irish omelets; even an omelet casserole.

Breakfast at your house will never be the same.

Everyone knows you can make bread with zucchini- but what if you have a giant yellow summer squash hiding in the garden?

Both zucchini and yellow squash-- either straightneck or crookneck-- are summer squash, with a similar flavor and texture, and CAN be interchanged in recipes.

My family's favorite quickbread is Lemon Zucchini Bread- so today we got Lemon-SummerSquash Bread.  I no longer shred zucchini -or this squash- for recipes, but puree it instead.  No more strings.  As a bonus, if I'm freezing some for later use, the texture does not change when thawed, unlike shredded squash.  

AND, if you're pureeing it, you can have the blender (or food processor) mix all the wet ingredients for you.

This bread is great for breakfast.

The recipe is found over here, though the blender method is below. 

Do you love German Pancake but don't have enough time in the morning to bake one?

Try the microwave!   The five minutes, above, includes the time to mix the batter; it takes under one minute to cook.

It won't get brown and crispy on the edges, but it tastes pretty close to the same, especially if you happen to have some browned butter or ghee to use at the bottom of the cup.

This version makes 4 individual servings, or cut everything to 1/3 and have one little bit larger serving.

Five-Minute German Pancake

1 cup milk
1 cup flour
3 eggs
4 tsp. melted butter, ghee, or browned butter

Whisk together milk, flour, and eggs until smooth.

Pull out 4 (6 oz.) microwave-safe cups/bowls/mugs.  Place 1 tsp. melted butter in bottom of each.  Pour 1/2 cup batter in each; microwave until puffy and almost dry on the center top, about 45 seconds.  Drizzle with lemon juice and sprinkle with powdered sugar, or use whatever toppings you prefer.

Start with regular bread dough- and turn it into a treat!

I love the flavor combination here- the bright flavor of candied orange peel, the sweet-tartness of snipped dried apricots, and the hearty depth from pecans. This bread is at its best after a day so the orange has a chance to permeate the whole loafwhen toasted: great with butter, but heavenly with cream cheese.  Yum.  I like it for breakfast.

This batch was made using 100% whole wheat dough, but use whatever you're making anyway.

Mix up a batch of dough (like this one).  Set aside one loaf's worth of dough.  Stretch or roll it to about 8x16 inches.  Sprinkle evenly with 1/3 cup diced candied orange peel, 1/3 cup (2 oz) dried apricots, snipped, and 1/3 c. pecan pieces.  Roll up starting with the narrow end.  Place in a greased 8x4 loaf pan, seam side down.  Let rise and bake as usual, adding 1-2 extra minutes to the baking time.  Cool and slice.

A few years ago, I opened up the Foods section of my local newspaper and spotted a recipe called "Just-the-Best Cookies".  The version there was intended to be a healthier one, having reduced the nuts, coconut, and switching to oil instead of butter.  Well, I've reduced the sugar and changed it to use honey, then added back the bigger amount of coconut and nuts, since we know now that healthy fats are, well, healthy!  In moderation. And I love the crunch and flavor of coconut and nuts.

We have two breakfast times at my house- one for my highschoolers and husband, who have to be out the door by 6:45, and one for the rest of us, because some of them leave at 8:00 for the elementary school and Jr-High.  These cookies make a fantastic, no-work breakfast for that earlier group- I make a batch, put them in a big ziplock bag after cooling, and pop them into the freezer. Then my early group can even grab and go, when needed.

These cookies are high in fiber as well, and lower in sugar than most.  Two cookies are about the same nutritionally as one homemade, normal-sized muffin, and much better for you than commercially-made muffins!  Two made without raisins contain 16 grams of sugar, which is less than you'd get in a bowl of cereal with milk. Especially if you count the size bowl my teenagers think is a serving.  (I keep hiding the bigger bowls...)

Enjoy!

Just-the-Best Breakfast Cookies
1/2 c. coconut oil or butter
1/2 c. honey
1/2 c. brown sugar
1 large egg
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla
1/4 c. water
2 c. whole wheat flour
2 c. quick-cooking oats
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 c. shredded sweetened coconut
1/2 c. chopped pecans or other nuts, optional
1/2 c. chopped raisins, optional

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease or spray two cookie sheets.  In a large bowl, beat together coconut oil and honey, then mix in egg, vanilla, and water.  Add the flour, oats, baking soda, and salt and mix well.  Stir in coconut, nuts, and raisins.
Roll into 1 1/2" balls, a little larger than a ping-pong ball.  Place on cookie sheet, flatten slightly, and bake for about 12 minutes.  Let the cookies cool 2 minutes on the cookie sheet before removing to a cooling rack. Makes about 36.

To make breakfast bars instead, spread all the dough onto one well-greased cookie sheet.  Bake at 350 for probably 25 minutes.  I don't know for sure because the idea popped into my head just now...    Cool and cut into whatever size bars you like.