Homemade Granola

The past few weeks have been quiet and for that I apologize. We've been very busy looking at houses and going to loan appointments which is very exciting but also cuts into blog writing time. I'm back for now and during this new post I would love to talk about our newest obsession; HOMEMADE GRANOLA!

I love store bought, don't get me wrong, but it's pretty expensive for the small amount you get. I also find many varieties have way more sugar than I feel comfortable consuming in a food that's supposed to be "healthy".  By buying the ingredients and making it myself I end up making a whole boatload of granola for a pretty small price as well as being able to control the amount of sugar and the like. I'm warning you now if you're a new follower or reader that I am awful with recipes. I never follow them and I never write any because I NEVER measure! I just go by what looks about right and of course, what tastes right.

To start gather up rolled oats, nuts, dried fruit, maple syrup, cinnamon and oil. Seriously, that's it. I used Maine grown organic oats I picked up at my favorite health food store, raw peanuts, golden raisins, and canola oil. I usually throw in some flax seeds too. You could use another sweetener like agave nectar or honey as well and really any nut or fruit you have around. I tend to stick with canola but you could definitely try another oil although I wouldn't recommend olive because of it's strong taste.

Get a mixing bowl and add (these are all approximations, add a little more or less)
2 cups of oats
3/4 cup of your nuts
1/2 cup of your sweetener
1 tsp of cinnamon (go crazy and add cloves and nutmeg too!)
3 tb oil
Optional, 1/4 cup flax seeds

Preheat your oven to 325. After you mix all your ingredients spread the mixture on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, stir, and then bake for another 20 minutes. I usually find that the granola is still a little too "wet" for my liking so I turn the oven off and let it sit in there another 10 minutes. Once the granola comes out of the oven add your dried fruit. Again I don't measure the dried fruit I just add until the fruit to oats ratio seems right to me. Once it's cool put it in your storage container (or dive right in).

This recipe makes quite a bit although I'm not sure how many "servings" it is. My favorite way to munch it is to grab a jelly size canning jar, put in about a 1/2 cup of yogurt (local! handmade!), a handful of organic blueberries, a shake of flax meal, and a handful of granola. I throw on a screw on top and bring it to work as my mid-day snack. You could also eat it with milk as a cereal or alone as a trail mix type deal. This is just a very bare bones basic recipe you can definitely experiment to your heart's desire! I hope you enjoy it!

Until next time,

xoxo Stacie

Kimchi LOVE

Last night I went to an amazing Kimchi workshop at Urban Farm Fermentory. I've never been before and when I walked in and the smell of fermenting food hit me I knew I'd have a great time. They make Kombucha and a few different blends of hard cider in house, as well as hosting a multitude of workshops. My dad just went about a month ago to a mushroom growing class and he had a blast! We had an "Intro to Kimchi" power point lecture by the teacher, Andy Lindberg, and then dove right in to cutting up and smashing our veggies. Kimchi is really simple and easy to make but totally fun and great tasting.

Dad and I chopping veggies! (Photo credit UFF)

All in all it was a great time and we learned a lot and tasted some awesome ferments. Plus, we got to sample UFF's prototype ginger Kombucha which was totally awesome. We left with a big canning jar full of our Kimchi and instructions to let it ferment for 10-12 days unscrewing the lid once every 24 hours to let the gases escape. I'll let you know when we dig in how they turned out!

Now our jars are hanging out working on turning into something wonderful! Have you ever tried fermented foods? We are big fans of them around here both for the taste and the health benefits. If you don't know much about ferments I highly suggest you pick up the book "Wild Fermentation" by Sandor Katz at your local library. It'll give you a history on ferments as well as the process that creates them and ideas on what to try out at home. I hope you'll check it out!

Until next time, 

xoxo Stacie

The Inevitable Christmastime Crunch

First of all, I would just like to say a big THANK YOU to the state of Maine for being 50 degrees in the month of December. It's making climate adjustment so much easier. Yet, we had snow in October? New England makes no sense (but we love it anyway).

So I've got 17 days until Christmas and way too much stuff to do. How about you guys? Three Christmas parties to cook something for, lots of presents to make or buy (and relatively no money to do so). I'm also finding it really hard to just buy things for people. I look at things and they are just so wasteful and such throwaway gifts. I wanted to go out on Small Business Saturday and get some holiday shopping done but instead went to visit my Uncle who had just had his kidney removed. Obviously a visit to a recovering family member was way more important than Christmas gifts. I'm thinking since today is my day off I'll make the rounds down in Norway center and check out the bookstore and yarn store. My mom wants this specific cable needle she can't find anywhere and the one thing my dad will NEVER complain about is a book. Or, even better, I'll check out the second hand bookstore. I have always been frugal (aka cheap) but being BROKE around Christmas time is making me really think about every single gift I'm purchasing. It's a big eye opener. I've also been trolling the internet for good DIY gift tutorials. If anyone has a good link, please post it in the comments. I'm thinking I'm going to try making soap as well to give away with some crocheted washcloths. I'm also thinking that this is going to be the most last minute (and least consumerist) Christmas EVER.

How about you guys? Are you making an effort to buy or make handmade or to buy local? Do you have any good tips? Or any great (and CHEAP) Christmas potluck recipes?

Until next time,

xoxo Stacie