Homemade, Easy and Delicious Granola!

last night we had an impromptu dinner and dessert making night! it was pretty fantastic. my husband and i have been having one of those weeks where it’s full of really exciting and great ‘ups’ and then 5 minutes later filled with pretty crazy ‘downs’ so it’s been one heck of a ride! apparently organizing a world record is way more of a big deal than we anticipated but it’s coming together (reminder, it’s april 16th and we will need your help to break it. more soon).

as i left for the store, my husband hollered “i’ll make you whatever you want for dinner just get the supplies!” um, that’s a pretty solid deal. i chose fieeeesta night!

and then Eminem cooked up the chicken.

it was delicious and i’m only going on this tangent before getting to the granola so i could show you my cute husband with his hood up. and this.

(mine is the one with a bite out of the tortilla). i don’t know why i was so silly and only prepared one burrito for me initially because i definitely went back for another one.

okay enough of my tangents…let’s get to the granola-because it’s pretty out of this world. and it’s only 7 ingredients (salt and olive oil not pictured because i was still in a burrito-induced-food-coma and almost forgot them).

first, mix all of your dry ingredients together like the old fashioned oats, coconut, pumpkin seeds and sunflower seeds and whatever else fun things you want to add!

in a separate bowl, mix together the 100% pure maple syrup, olive oil and a dash of salt and drizzle it on top of the glorious dry mixture.

then get your hunky husband to spread it on an un-greased baking sheet that has an edge to it otherwise you will have quite literally a hot mess of granola everywhere. also, please note that the slices almonds are waiting patiently to be added later, halfway through the cooking time.

spread your glorious mixture all over that baking sheet and stick it in a preheated oven that is 350 degrees F. after it’s been baking for about 15 minutes, remove from the oven and then flip/toss the granola around so it cooks evenly on both sides because you aren’t making oatmeal, people-you are making granola and that stuff is crunchy. add the almonds (i’ve found this saves them from getting too crispy or burned).

i found my sliced almonds at trader joe’s. if you don’t have a trader joe’s close to you, i’d recommend moving.

throw it back in the oven (actually, do this very carefully because burning granola on the bottom of your oven smells good at first then gross) and bake for another 10-15 minutes.

you house is going to smell amazing, so be prepared. also be prepared to find yourself eating close to a cup of this because it’s so delicious AND healthy, particularly when warm out of the oven. please drink a lot of water because this is a hefty amount of fiber.

fill a mug full of your new homemade granola, sit down and watch “breaking bad” like all the cool kids were doing 2 years ago and enjoy!

you  may notice that i painted my nails. oh, you didn’t? well neither did my husband because apparently “it’s the exact same color as your skin and is really pointless.” in my defense, it’s like the trendy thing to do. at least it is on emily from ‘revenge.’ actually, i think mine needs a little more pink in it (i can truly feel my husband’s eyes rolling as he reads this statement in 5 minutes).

source

back to the granola-we love to add this to our smoothies,  as cereal, on frozen yogurt, straight from the tupperware with your white-folk-flesh-colored-nail polish; basically anyway that involves it touching your tastebuds is a good bet. the recipe specifics are below!

H O M E M A D E  G R A N O L A

ingredients:

• 4 cups of old fashioned rolled oats (not the quick cook kind)
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/4 cup of unsalted pepitas aka hulled pumpkin seeds (usually found in the bulk aisle)
• 1/4 cup of shelled sunflower seeds
• 1 cup sliced almonds (save for half way through baking time)
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons of olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• add up to a cup of whatever you heart desires of dried fruit like craisins, raisins, blueberries etc.

process:

• heat the oven 350 degrees F
• mix together the dry ingredients (excluding the almonds)
• in a separate bowl- mix the maple syrup, olive oil and salt together
• pour this mixture into the dry ingredients
• spread on a rimmed baking sheet
• bake for 15 minutes, then toss the granola so the other side gets cooked
• add the almonds before putting back in the oven
• continue baking for another 10-15 minutes until golden and crispy.
• add the dry fruit later if you so desire

ps. shout out to the best mama in the whole world because today is her birthday!! here she is with the wreath i sent here (and yes, i totally had to google how to send a wreath through the mail). love you and happy birthday! xo.

questions:

1) are a fan of granola? have another recipe i should try?
2) do you paint your nails? (i very rarely ever do)
3) one of the trickier things you’ve sent through the mail?