Granola

According to the website of dictionary.com, a crunchy granola person is someone who is characterized by or defining oneself by ecological awareness, liberal political views, and support the use of natural products and health foods. Don't believe me? Here.

Not related to anything like that, I made granola tonight like a super cool kid. I had been given a lot of random granola, so I hadn't been making it, but I finally ran out. 

Sad day.

This is my absolute favorite recipe because it's basically a dump recipe! I learned it in my food science class at university - that's like the only thing I took away from that class. Except, also, what a paring knife is. 

Okay.

So, you first create a 'base' of the recipe, then you add whatever you want. Your base? Honey, butter, vanilla, salt, and oats. 

Now, I don't measure when I cook/bake things like this, so sorry if I'm wrong on specifics. I'm going to try my best like a super cool kid!

Ingredients:
one stick butter
half cup honey
splash of vanilla
dash of salt
half container of oats (well, honestly, as many oats as you need to soak up the liquid)

SO. What you do! Melt down the butter, add in the honey after melting it. Add in, then, the vanilla, and salt.

My next step is to add in all the good, happy things BEFORE adding in the oats. I usually add...

Oh! How lovely. Before cooking.

- chia seeds
- flax seeds
- pumpkin seeds
- almonds (chopped)
- brazil nuts (chopped)
- macadamia nuts (chopped) <-- oh my gosh. Up until this very moment in time, I thought the word was macadamian. What the heck.
- cacao nibs
- raisins
- dried cherries
- chopped dates
- dried fruit
- random ingredients from the cabinet
- joy
- freedom
- America


Just kidding, you can't add America when you cook. That's weird.

But really, just add random things that are granola-related. I didn't add everything above this time, just chia, flax, pumpkin, almond, brazil, macadamia. It's what I had and that's more than okay.

I mix the random granola-like things into the honey/butter base, adding more honey/butter mix if it looks like I'm in dire need of some more liquid. It should look like everything is coated in a baby bit of the honey/butter base without there being a ton of extra liquid. 

This is the color it should be when it's done.

HOWEVER. If there is extra, that's more than okay! This is where the oats come in. Dump a little bit at a time (like a cup at a time) and stir. Stir. And then stir some more. All the stirs. After you finish adding all oats, it should look like the whole mix has a very light layer of the base (and random chia seeds should be all over. That's how chia likes to hang out). If you didn't have enough base, just make more and add it in!

The oven should be set at 375 degrees. Put the granola on a cookie sheet (or in a casserole dish) and pop it in the oven. 

Every 10 minutes or so, be sure to check the granola and stir it in the oven. This makes sure that none of it gets burnt and it gets an even cook all around.

After cooking it for...I don't know this. I didn't set a time. I just went off of color. It should look golden brown. If anyone knows how much time this is, hit me up. I'm without knowledge of this and it doesn't really bug me.


BUT. When it's all golden brown, take it out, stir it, and let it cool.

Look! Reusing again! Also, my mom got me
this sweatshirt and it's the best. Thanks, mom
and Goodwill.

You? Sip some tea. Why? You just made a boss batch of granola.

That's all.

Love it.

Peace.

PS - I definitely got to REUSE my old bags from previous granola when putting this granola away. It made me super happy. Thank you, Lord, for this world that we get to help protect.