Getting Crunchy

I decided that it was finally time to start a food blog. The hubby and I have been talking about it for years. It only makes sense that a former chef and a domestic diva would want to share their culinary experiences with the world!

Fair warning: We're kinda crunchy. As the stereotype goes, we have a backyard garden, shop locally when we have the time, carry-in our own bags at the supermarket when we don't, and we cook with lots of fruits and vegetables (we do use a fair amount of animal products too).

In keeping with this image, this morning, I made my own granola. It was yummy and quicker than I remembered. As we were sitting down to a bowl of crunchy goodness, Blue asked me, "So, who taught you to make granola?" Silly man. "I did!"

I remember when I was working at the Thomas Family Winery, a couple of friends who ran a local B&B commented that they had been on a homemade granola-making marathon the previous night. I thought. . . humm. . . maybe that's something I should learn to do.

I looked it up that night. Turns out, it's more of a method than a recipe. You need certain things to do granola well: grains, fats, binders, and flavor-enhancers all in proportion. Grains are primarily oats but could also include wheat germ or flax. Fats typically come from vegetable oil, but you can use butter if you want a chewier texture or certain specialty oils which change the flavor. Binders would be things like honey, maple syrup, molasses, etc. Flavor-enhancers include nuts, coconut, dried fruits, vanilla, or spices.

Here's a very basic recipe which evolved in my kitchen over the years:
3 c. Quick Oats
1 c. Wheat Germ
1 c. Coconut
1 c. Chopped Pecans
1/3 c. Canola Oil
1/3 c. Honey
1/3 c. Real Maple Syrup
1 tsp. Pure Vanilla Extract

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl. Heat the last 4 ingredients in a small sauce pan just until they begin to meld (you don't want it hot). Combine the wet and dry ingredients and stir to coat. Place in a 9x12 baking pan. Cook at 300F for 60-90 minutes, stopping to stir every 15 minutes. When the granola is golden brown, take it out, and DO NOT stir it this time. You want it to clump up, so let it cool. As an extra tip: You don't need to grease the pan itself, but it does help to use spray oil on the top of the granola while it's cooling. It just binds it all together. Once it's cooled, break it up with a spoon or spatula, and serve with milk or yogurt and fruit. Store in an air-tight container or Ziploc bag.

I used to do this ALL THE TIME, but I gave it up because it was too expensive. What I didn't realize at the time is that granola is pretty cost-effective when you just make a simple recipe like this. Once you start getting into "Tropical Paradise" with dried pineapple and coconut oil, and "Triple Berry Macademia Nut Surprise," it gets a little pricey. If you buy your nuts in bulk and stick to the basics, it's not bad at all. It also freezes well, so if you want to do a big cooking session like my friends, that works well.