For many, the highlight of a hike is when snacks are distributed. A mix of nuts, dried fruit and chocolate is probably one of the most common snacks people bring to enjoy while hiking a long trail or when they reach the peak of a mountain.
Of course, you don’t have to hike to eat trail mix, nor do you have to use those particular ingredients for trail mix.
Let me introduce you to trail mix bar cookies. Filled with dried cranberries, pecans and white chocolate chips, they offer a fine mix of sweet, tart and crunchy. Plus, all of those sensations are delivered in a moist and sturdy bar cookie.
Although I am a fan of almost all varieties of cookies, I love the simplicity of a bar cookie. All the dough goes into one pan for one round of baking. Not that it’s difficult to bake two or three batches of cookies, but these cookies reward a little bit of laziness.
Even better than the easy baking is the fact that these treats are great for whatever cookout or barbecue you will be attending or hosting. Once they’re cooled, just cover the pan with some plastic wrap and you’re ready to go.
We’re in the midst of summer. You probably have gatherings to attend. The next time you’re asked to bring a dessert, give these bar cookies a try.
Michele Pesula Kuegler has been thinking about food her entire life. Since 2007, the New Hampshire native has been sharing these food thoughts and recipes at her blog, Think Tasty. Visit thinktasty.com to find more of her recipes.
Trail mix bar cookies Makes 24
1 cup unsalted butter, softened 3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed 3/4 cup granulated sugar 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 2 cups old-fashioned oats 1 cup white chocolate chips 3/4 cup dried cranberries 1/2 cup chopped pecans
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar on speed 2 for 4 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, beating to incorporate each. Add vanilla, and mix. Add baking powder, baking soda, salt and flour, and mix until incorporated. Add oatmeal, stirring until combined. Add white chocolate chips, dried cranberries and pecans, stirring until incorporated. Grease the sides and bottoms of a 13×9 pan with butter. Transfer batter to pan, using the back of a spoon or spatula to spread it evenly in the pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown. Cool in the baking pan on a wire baking rack before serving.
Thursday, July 8 Hillsboro Summerfest starts today and runs through Sunday at Grimes Field, 29 Preston St. in Hillsborough. Admission is free but bring money for parking ($10), the midway and carnival rides, beer tent, food vendors and more. The hours are 6 to 10 p.m. on Thursday, 5 to 11 p.m. on Friday, noon to 11 p.m. on Saturday and noon to 5:30 p.m. on Sunday. Catch live music (Decatur Creek on Thursday, Lonesome Train on Friday and Mosey Down on Saturday), fireworks on Saturday, a tractor pull on Friday, a women’s skillet toss on Saturday and a parade and a car and truck show on Sunday. Also on Sunday, children ages 10 and under can take part in a cupcake eating contest at 1 p.m. and there will be a pie eating contest at 1:30 p.m. Work up an appetite on Friday evening at the 5K race. See hillsborosummerfest.com.
Friday, July 9 Find more fair fun at the Raymond Town Fair on the town common, which starts today and will run through Sunday, July 11. Find them on Facebook @raymondtownfair, where you can see pictures of the bouncy jousting and climbing equipment and get updated on the scheduled live music (Carbon 14 will perform tonight at 6 p.m.). Tonight’s entertainment also includes a fire truck parade, a library book sale, a silent auction and bingo. The Saturday lineup includes a pancake breakfast, a town-wide yard sale, kid activities, a motorcycle show and fireworks. On Sunday, there will be more pancake breakfast, a fun run and a dog parade.
Friday, July 9 The Prescott Park Art Festival’s annual summer musical opens today. You’re a Good Man, Charlie Brown will run at the park through Sunday, Aug. 15, with shows at 7 p.m. on Thursdays and Sundays and at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. Go to prescottpark.org to reserve a table or blanket space.
Friday, July 9 Friday nights are Comedy at the Rex. This week, Corey Rodrigues is performing at the Rex Theatre (23 Amherst St. in Manchester) at 7:30 p.m. Tickets cost $25.
Saturday, July 10 Get your entertainment outside when Liz & Dan Faiella play Fletcher-Murphy Park (28 Fayette St. in Concord) as part of the Capitol Center for the Arts’ Music in the Park Series. The show starts at 6 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.). Tickets cost $12 plus a $3 fee (for $10, you can also livestream the event). See ccanh.com.
Sunday, July 11 Taste some wines and take a walk through the vines at LaBelle Winery (345 Route 101 in Amherst) at today’s event in the Walks in the Vineyard series. The program runs from 11 a.m. to noon and features wine educator Marie King and vineyard manager Josh Boisvert discussing the grapes and the wines (four LaBelle wines will be available for tasting). Tickets cost $27.25 per person (including taxes). See labellewinery.com.
Save the date! Sat, July 17 Colby Hill Inn (33 The Oaks in Henniker; colbyhillinn.com) has a special dinner featuring the wines of McPrice Myers of Paso Robles on Saturday, July 17. At 6 p.m. there will be a Spanish tapas garden party with rose wines and a three-course dinner featuring a summer dessert buffet and live music from Kimayo. The cost is $130 per person. Call 428-3281 to reserve a spot, which is required.
Just under a year ago I shared a recipe for double strawberry pavlovas. Today’s recipe is its more simplistic sibling. Sometimes I want a pavlova that is bursting with strawberry flavor, and other times I want a pavlova as plain as can be. When I was first working on this recipe, everything seemed to shout, “Since they’re vanilla, you’ll need to top them with berries.” So I made my first batch of pavlovas, macerated some berries, and served them together. The result was quite delectable. Looking at the leftover pavlovas, I decided to eat one just as it was. I fell in love. Sure, it was just a simple vanilla pavlova, but there’s a lot of deliciousness in that. There are the great pavlova textures — crispy and chewy — plus all of the sweetness. Make these pavlovas whichever way you prefer. You can’t go wrong no matter what you decide. Michele Pesula Kuegler has been thinking about food her entire life. Since 2007, the New Hampshire native has been sharing these food thoughts and recipes at her blog, Think Tasty. Visit thinktasty.com to find more of her recipes.
Pavlovas with (or without) berries Makes 8
1 cup granulated sugar 2 teaspoons cornstarch 4 large egg whites, room temperature 1 teaspoon white vinegar 1 teaspoon vanilla 1 cup blueberries 1 cup diced strawberries 1 Tablespoon sugar
Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Blend sugar on high in a food processor for 15 seconds. Measure sugar again. (You need 1 cup) In a small bowl, combine cornstarch and 2 tablespoons of the processed sugar. Place egg whites in the bowl of a stand mixer, and whisk on medium-high speed until foamy peaks form, about 1 to 2 minutes. Gradually add plain, processed sugar, 1 tablespoon at a time, to the egg whites, whisking until incorporated, about 1-2 minutes. Add cornstarch and sugar mixture, 1 tablespoon at a time, whisking until whites are stiff and glossy, about 1-2 minutes. Add vinegar and vanilla; whisk for 1 minute. Using a spatula, spoon meringue into 8 mounds on the prepared baking sheet. Using a butter knife, spread each into 3-1/2″ disks. After that, using the back of a spoon, make an indent in the center of each. Bake for 40 minutes. Turn off the oven, and prop the door open, placing a wooden spoon in the opening. Let pavlovas cool in the oven for an hour. Meanwhile, combine blueberries and strawberries in a small bowl; sprinkle with sugar. Stir well; allow to sit for at least an hour Transfer the pavlovas from the baking tray to a cooling rack. To serve, top with berries, if desired.
Photo: Pavlovas with (or without) berries. Courtesy photo.
Thursday, July 1 It’s a weekend of baseball! The New Hampshire Fisher Cats are in the middle of a run of home games at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium (1 Line Drive in downtown Manchester; nhfishercats.com) against the Portland Sea Dogs through Sunday, July 4. The games start at 7:05 p.m. Games Friday through Sunday will feature fireworks, including a “4th of July Fireworks Extravaganza” on Sunday. The Nashua Silver Knights also have a game this weekend; they’ll play the Pittsfield Suns on Saturday, July 3, with the game starting at 6 p.m. See nashuasilverknights.com.
Thursday, July 1 Kick off the weekend with some arts and music: the Currier Museum of Art (150 Ash St. in Manchester; 669-6144, currier.org) holds its weekly “Art After Work: Free Thursday Nights” tonight from 5 to 8 p.m. when admission is free but bring money for food and drinks at the Winter Garden Cafe. Catch live music tonight from Paul Nelson. Advance registration online is recommended.
Thursday, July 1 Hear some live music in the fresh air. Rebel Collective, who describe themselves as a “New England based Irish/American pub, Celtic folk/folk-punk band” (according to their Facebook page), will perform tonight from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in Eagle Square in downtown Concord.
Saturday, July 3 Get some laughs this holiday weekend with comedian Mark Scalia performing tonight at 8:30 p.m. at Chunky’s Cinema Pub in Manchester (707 Huse Road; chunkys.com). Tickets cost $20.
Sunday, July 4 Nashua will once again hold a Fourth of July fireworks, tonight at 9 p.m.-ish, according to the Nashua Public Works Facebook page. Holman Stadium will open its doors at 5 p.m. and there will be a Holman Stadium Hall of Fame presentation at 8 p.m., the post said. Food will be sold at the concession stand and from food trucks. Find more firework listings in our story on page 16.
Save the Date! Sunday, Sept. 26 Add the Capitol Center for the Arts (44 S. Main St. in Concord; 225-1111, ccanh.com) to the list of venues filling up their fall schedules with indoor shows. Get tickets now to shows such as John Hiatt and the Jerry Douglas Band on Sunday, Sept. 19, at 7 p.m. (tickets start at $49 plus fees), Eaglemania on Friday, Sept. 24, at 8 p.m. (tickets start at $35 plus fees) and An Evening with David Sedaris on Sunday, Sept. 26, at 7 p.m. (tickets are $49 plus fees). David Sedraris. Photo by Ingrid Christie.
Information from the New Hampshire Department of Health and Human Services
Covid-19 news
On Dec. 30, Gov. Chris Sununu issued Emergency Order No. 78, an order authorizing certain military service members and EMTs to obtain temporary statuses as licensed nursing assistants. The order comes less than three weeks after a similar order was issued allowing qualifying nursing students to obtain temporary licenses.
Also on Dec. 30, Sununu, along with the governors in each of the five other New England states and in New Jersey, issued a joint statement extending the suspension of all interstate youth hockey competitions for public and private schools through at least Jan. 31. A regional suspension had previously been in place through Dec. 31. The prohibition does not impact interstate collegiate, professional or national hockey team activities, according to the statement.
On Jan. 1, Sununu issued Executive Order 2020-25, extending the state of emergency in New Hampshire due to the pandemic for another three weeks through at least Jan. 22. It’s the 14th extension he has issued since originally declaring a state of emergency last March.
State health officials reported a record number of hospitalizations due to Covid-19 last weekend, with the number reaching 335 people on Jan. 2 before it fell to 325 people a day later. According to the state Department of Health & Human Services’ overall summary report, as of Jan. 4, a total of 916 people have been hospitalized for Covid-19, or roughly 2 percent of all of the overall cases, since the start of the pandemic in March.
Inauguration changes
Gov. Chris Sununu’s 2021 outdoor inaugural ceremony has been canceled due to public safety concerns, according to a press release from the Office of the Governor. Instead, Sununu and the Executive Council will be sworn in during a small ceremony that will include the leaders of both houses of the legislature, while all other members will attend virtually.
“My first responsibility is ensuring the safety of my family and our citizens,” Sununu said in the release. “For weeks, armed protesters have increasingly become more aggressive, targeting my family, protesting outside my private residence, and trespassing on my property — an outdoor public ceremony simply brings too much risk.” In response to Sununu’s announcement, Brennan Christen, one of the organizers of Absolute Defiance — the group leading the demonstrations at Sununu’s house — sent an email to the media saying that Sununu is being misleading in his statement about armed protesters trespassing on his property. Christen said that the group has a “consistent track record of peaceful, non-violent, law abiding demonstrators on a small park across the street from his house.” He wrote that there was one man who was lawfully carrying a concealed weapon and that he was on a public sidewalk at all times. “It is our belief that the Governor was concerned by a massive protest planned by COSNH, Reopen NH, and Absolute Defiance that sought to rally over a thousand people to protest his inauguration,” Christen wrote. “We believe these distortions are a tactic for the Governor to avoid the protest in Concord, and to evade it by holding it at a more private location not accessible to the public.” Sununu’s inaugural address will be delivered live at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 7.
License renewal
The New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles has released a new online driver license renewal portal, according to a press release. Customers who have received a renewal identification number in the mail are encouraged to renew their license online at dmv.nh.gov for increased convenience and safety. Other DMV online services that customers can take advantage of include appointment scheduling, not guilty pleas, ticket pay and the REAL ID document checker.
Holiday food baskets were donated to 1,319 families in Concord and 17 surrounding communities through the Capital Region Food Program’s 47th annual Holiday Food Basket program. According to a press release, the baskets included holiday meal items as well as two or three days’ worth of additional food items.
Exhibits from the Mount Washington Observatory’s Weather Discovery Center in North Conway, which is now closed, are being moved to the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center in Concord, according to a post on the latter center’s website. From now through Feb. 12, the Concord center will be closed as the exhibits from the Weather Discovery Center are incorporated into their new home. The McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center’s planetarium system will be getting a major upgrade during that time as well, according to the website.
A new local morning show is now airing on 96.5 The Mill, a Manchester-based rock station. The show is hosted by Jason “JR” Russell and Laura Stelchook and features music, news, weather and listener interaction, according to a press release. It airs every weekday from 5:30 to 9 a.m.
The Upper Room in Derry will kick off a new Sober Curious Group later this month. According to a press release, the three-week group is for young adults ages 18 to 25 who want to explore a lifestyle that focuses on health and positive activities. To register for the free program, call 437-8477.
