Granola

Today I thought that I would talk a little bit about granola.

Sometime last year, I decided to try to make my own. I burned it and it went right in the trash. Fail.

I then became addicted to Kashi's Mountain Medley Granola and ate it almost daily while I was pregnant. Mountain Medley is an expensive habit. The smallish box costs $4.99 and I would say that each box averages about three servings (the box says seven, but I say more like three).

Which brings me to my next point -- I like granola but I would also like it to be good for me (otherwise why not just have blueberry pancakes and bacon for breakfast?). Well, if you eat a third of a box of Kashi's Mountain Medley Granola, you have put back over 500 calories worth of granola.

Then last week, I came across a website called MixMyGranola.com and I thought that it was totally idiotic to pay other people to mix dried fruit with oats for you. However, it did inspire me to try my hand at making my own granola again.

So on Saturday Ellie and I whipped up a batch. I looked at Alma's recipe that I had bookmarked months ago and I also reviewed a recipe from Epicurious. And then, unable to use restraint, I added a bunch of other stuff.

We loved it. Here is generally what I did.

4 cups of oats

1/2 cup of pecan pieces

1/2 cup of sliced almonds

1/4 cup of sweetened coconut

2-3 Tbsp. of unsalted butter melted

2-3 Tbsp. of honey

2-3 Tbsp. of maple syrup

Dash of cinnamon

1/3 cup of unsalted, roasted sunflower seeds

1/2 or more dried cherries

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Mix the melted butter, honey, maple syrup and cinnamon together. Add the oats, pecans, almonds, and coconut and stir to coat. Bake for about 30 or 40 minutes on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Cool completely. Add in the sunflower seeds and dried cherries.

So obviously, you could make all sorts of changes to this general recipe. Any types of nuts or dried fruit would work. I think that the key is to have enough liquid to coat everything and get it to clump together a bit and to cook at a really low temperature. I am going to try to make my next bunch clumpier, but other than that, a success.

What's Growing On

Lavender

Strawberry pickin' in our own backyard

Arugula

The most delightfully yellow lantana

Our pink-flowering miniature dogwood

What I've Been Up To

Life is busy. In my spare moments, I have been able to have a few (very, very few) coherent thoughts. Here they are:

Do you know where the best Chicago-area family-friendly beaches are? I do. Summer 2009 Going Places

I say why buy sugar-and-high-fructose-laden popsicles from the store with pictures of Dora on them when you can make your own (they will taste better and be better for you anyway). Also in Summer 2009 Going Places.

And finally, over at the Chicago Moms Blog, a mini-rant against those "natural parent" types (some, not all) who make you feel like they are better than you because they use cloth diapers and you don't.

Happy weekend.

He's A Mom-Eater

When he isn't depositing buckets of drool on my shoulder or tasting a fistful of my hair, Colin is likely engaged in some other sort of messy oral exploration.

Like trying to stuff his entire hand in his mouth. Or devouring his stuffed giraffe or munching a corner of a throw pillow.

But mostly he is all over me -- sucking on my cheek, licking my neck, or trying to eat my nose.

This is full-contact lovin'.

She Won!

My Mom won a much deserved day of pampering! This news makes my Mother's Day. Thanks to those of you who voted!

It's A Girl!

This little love bug is the newest member of our family. Her name is Saoirse (pronounced SEER-sha).

My brother and sister-in-law are now the proud parents of two boys and a girl.

And as the proud parent of two boys and a girl myself, I can say with certainty that they are lucky to have such a nice little group.

Apple Pie Sky

My apple tree is blooming.

It only produces fruit every other year and this is the first time I have been here to see it in the springtime.

I see apple sauce. And apple crisp. And apple strudel with dried cherries. Maybe baked apples with cinnamon and brown sugar.

I see a delicious fall.