Jars ceramics - The Seventh Sphinx

Few foodstuffs seem to me as sublime, as supremely edible as homemade granola. It needn’t be expensive, and you can chuck in all sorts of nice things.

I use a Fanny Farmer recipe as a base, which I’ve modified over time with a smidgen of every granola recipe I’ve liked or think I might like. The result is a bit different every time, and always to my liking.

Here’s roughly what I did this time, though the proportions can vary quite a bit before it becomes distinctly different. I say add more of what you like most. The main thing is having enough of the oil/honey mixture to coat the dry ingredients evenly.

3 c oats

1+ c almonds (flakes, whole, or both – I like extra)

1 c pumpkin seeds

1 c sunflower seeds

1 c coconut flakes

1/4 c dried cranberries (or any dried fruit)

1/4 c flax seeds

1/3 c sesame seeds (more like 1/4 c or none for normal people)

1/2 c pistachios or pecans

1 tsp cinnamon (adjust to your taste; the recipe can handle twice this if you like, also fine with half)

1/4 tsp nutmeg

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 c coconut oil (or you can substitute 1/4 c canola oil with a couple of tablespoons of butter, but the coconut oil gives excellent flavor. I often add a bit extra.)

1/2 c honey (can substitute maple syrup here, too, or add in addition. I go heavy on the honey, too)

2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix dry ingredients in a large bowl. Warm oil, honey, and vanilla in a saucepan and mix well into dry ingredients, coating evenly. Spread granola mixture evenly in a baking pan or sheet (line it with parchment paper for easy stirring and removal). Bake, stirring every 10 minutes, until granola is deep golden brown, about 35 minutes (this part is flexible as well, you can do 25 minutes for a chewier texture or 45 for more crunch. The shallower the mixture on your baking pan/sheet, the less time it will take). Add dried fruit around the last 5 minutes of baking time. Let cool before eating or storing (it will harden as it cools, so expect it to seem slightly underdone when first removed from the oven). Store in an airtight container.

Note that I mean raw nuts and seeds here. A few roasted ones tend to work out OK if you opt for a quicker cooking time and adjust salt levels accordingly (or don’t mind the extra crunch).

aside: I love pistachios

I often don’t bother baking the dried fruit at all, simply adding it to individual servings as desired.

Add berries and a fraction of coconut or almond milk. Maybe some maple syrup if feeling decadent.

Happiness.

Nothing reads cozy like a chunky knit. Really pleased with this find from Monki, which is in a lovely washed out periwinkle shade I realize I have so little of and wonder why. This is the kind of sky color I like best, a pale, slightly ominous blue-grey. I like it despite its somewhat maddening tendency to curl up at the edges like all of its stockinette-stitched brethren. So many compliments on the street with this, which I like, too.

These leather mittens are another effective winter acquisition. So soft (lined with rabbit fur) and insulating. I haven’t had mittens in years so there is a childlike element to wearing them, the pleasant sensation of the fingers all together, keeping one another warm.

Hot chocolate also key.

I would show you more of what I’m wearing but honestly it is so cold and dark out that a) I can’t be bothered and b) you aren’t missing much. I am either outside wearing a coat (this coat, usually) and muffled to the eyes or inside wearing a sweater. Like, one of three rotating sweaters. So many new things I want to show you, though. On the coldest days it cheers me to shop for another, warmer life.

Scarf from Monki (via asos), mittens from Pratt and Hart (truly wanted the red pair but they were sold out of XL…we’ll see if I forget but I may go for the red next year. Not that I don’t like brown. I do very much like brown.), golden akoya pearl earrings from Pearl Paradise, Old Navy sweater. On the lips: MAC Huggable lipcolor (their glossy new formula, on which more later) in Love Beam.

Tag: Jars ceramics

on the menu: homemade granola

the chunky knit scarf