Two recipes in my permanent folder

There are two recipes I wanted to share with you all. I'm constantly on the lookout for good snacks that won't break the bank or diet and fell in love with Camie's Peanut Butter Granola Balls. I knew Camie back in the Midwest at a college town and was delighted when she shared her family cookbook on her blog. Here is one of her gems:
Peanut Butter Granola Balls
Great after-school snack that is healthy and easy. They taste like homemade granola bars.

¼ c. peanut butter
2 T. butter
1 c. crisp rice cereal
1 c. old fashioned oats (not quick cooking)
¼ c. dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, cherries etc.)

In a small saucepan over medium, heat honey, peanut butter and butter. Stir until smooth, 1-2 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in cereal, oats and dried fruit. Drop mixture by the tablespoon into mini paper cupcakes. Place on a rimmed baking sheet and refrigerate until set, about 15 minutes. To store, refrigerate in an airtight container up to 1 week. Makes 24.

I found that I could cut the butter in half without hurting the recipe, and used the antioxident dried fruit blend from Costco (holy cow, we shop there a lot) and it was perfect. We also tried making these with Cheerios, which made them a but more chewy than crunchy but the kids like it both ways. They sure don't late long around here. My melon baller makes quick work of measuring out nice, small lumps.

The other recipe is one that my mother in law clipped out of a news paper a few decades ago. When preparing freezer meals in anticipation of Frieda's birth we made up some barbecue beef. Man humbly insisted that we use his mother's recipe, and we did with excellent results. My sister in law emailed an image of the original clipping and here is my transcription:

Smoky Beef Brisket

4 lbs beef brisket
2 tablespoons garlic salt
2 tablespoons onion salt
2 tablespoons celery salt
2 1/2 ounces liquid smoke
2 1/2 ounces worcestershire sauce

1. Sprinkle both sides of brisket with garlic, onion, and celery salts. Place brisket in close fitting, glass dish. Pour liquid smoke over brisket. Tightly cover with foil. (odor of the liquid smoke will penetrate other items in the refrigerator if dish isn't tightly covered.) Marinate brisket in refrigerator 12 hours or longer. Turn meat occasionally during marinating period.

2. Line a shallow baking pan with sheets of heavy duty foil and make them long enough to completely cover the brisket. Place brisket on foil. Pour marinade and Worcestershire sauce over brisket. Seal brisket in foil, making double folds. Bake brisket in over preheated to 275° about 5 hours or until tender (shorten cooking time for smaller briskets.) Roll back foil. Cover top of brisket with a generous layer (about one-fourth inch thick) of barbecue sauce. Seal foil again and bake one hour longer.

3. Refrigerate brisket and pan drippings separately until fat rises to top of pan drippings. This can be done a day in advance of serving. Remove fat from drippings. Reheat drippings on top of stove. Reheat brisket wrapped in foil at 350° about 20 minutes or until warm. Serve slices of the meat with pan drippings spooned over them. The brisket also makes delicious sandwiches served at room temperature or cold on crusty French bread of onion rolls.

Folks, this is the best bbq beef I've ever had. We serve it up with French rolls, KC Masterpiece bbq sauce, steamed sweet corn, fruit salad, and tall glasses of whatever's cold. We froze family servings in quart sized ziploc bags as well as individual servings in snack sized ziplocs. A generous 1/4 cup frozen with the drippings and a squeeze of bbq sauce is just the perfect size for a hamburger bun and makes a great, easy lunch for Man.