Tag Archives: granola

Pumpkin Granola

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I really wish I could take little videos of what goes on at my work everyday and show you all. There is some pretty funky stuff that goes on there.

I work at the pool, in case I have not said that before (pretty sure I have, though). It is quite the hot spot for the middle schoolers. Side note- I really, really, really hope I was not nearly as annoying as the middle schoolers now a days, when I was in middle school.

Back to the story. Not only do we have endless amounts of middle schoolers at the pool, we also have nursing mothers. For some reason the sand pit tends to be quite the hot spot for that kind of business. Now I understand babies have to eat and what not, but these ladies could at least be a bit more subtle. Or more private. I don’t know…I’d just feel a bit uncomfortable taking half my swimsuit off in front of a boatload of people. They are really just quite comfortable with themselves I guess.

Back to the middle schoolers. They think everything that is against the rules is like the funniest thing in the history of the world. Honestly the “I need a catch at the bottom of the slide” joke is not that funny. Really. Because some of these middle schoolers look like they are 4, which is a totally reasonable age to get a catch, but I never really totally know how old they are. So it ends up being a predicament for me. They also like to make these little kissy kiss sessions on the hill where it is totally completely awkward for me to break it up. But that is not just them, it’s also people my age, and adult people. THAT is when it is awkward for me to break it up. It’s really hard to yell at someone older than you to stop making out. Just try it once.

Anyways I made pumpkin granola and it is very delicious. I LOVE granola and this is delicious version that [unsurprisingly] tastes like pumpkin granola bars-also delicious ;-) . Laterzz

Pumpkin Granola

5 cups oats

1 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/8 teaspoon allspice

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

3/4 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup maple syrup (or honey or corn syrup)

1/4 cup applesauce

1 cup chopped walnuts

  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly spray a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
  2. In a large bowl, mix together oats, salt, and spices. Set aside.
  3. In a medium bowl, whisk together brown sugar, vanilla extract, pumpkin puree, syrup, and applesauce. Whisk until smooth. Pour this mixture onto the dry ingredients and mix until combined. Stir in chopped walnuts. Spread mixture onto the prepared baking sheet.
  4. Bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven. Remove from oven and stir slightly. Bake for an additional 15-20 minutes or until the granola is golden and crisp. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Store in an airtight container until ready to eat!

Random Fact of the Day: Fireworks were originally invented in 7th century China to scare away evil spirits.

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M&M Cookie Bars

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I have a slightly embarrassing story to tell.

There is an Aldi grocery store quite conveniently placed by my house. I often go there for my daily needs like their delicious ice cream sandwiches, granola bars, carrots, butter, bananas, you know how it goes. Well I also happen to love their Double Mocha Cappuccino.

There has been a crisis over the past two weeks….

Double Mocha Cappuccino has been nowhere to be found the past few weeks. Needless to say, I’ve been going through withdrawal. My life has been turned upside down. I’m not totally sure which way is up. I haven’t been eating raw cookie dough lately. I’m not really sure what is going on.

 

So I sent an e-mail to Aldi.

I won’t show you the exact e-mail because that is just TOO embarrassing, but it was something along the lines of “WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON WITH THE DOUBLE MOCHA CAPPUCCINO!? I LOVE THAT STUFF”. I got a quite nice e-mail back from Aldi saying, don’t fear, the double mocha cappuccino was a seasonal item but has now turned into a regular, all-year product and should be on the shelves soon.

*PHEW*

The day I see that stuff back on the shelves will be a quite glorious day. Until then, we can eat some M&M Cookie Bars. Their great by themselves and awesome crumbled over some ice cream. Make them if you know what’s good for ya.

M&M Cookie Bars

1/2 cup whole wheat flour (all-purpose is fine, too)

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/3 cup butter, melted

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract (yes, a WHOLE tablespoon)

1 egg

1/2 cup M&M’s

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F and lightly grease an 8 x 8 inch square glass baking pan.
  2. Sift flours, baking powder, salt, and baking soda. Set aside. In a medium bowl, mix brown sugar, melted butter, and vanilla extract. Mix in egg. Slowly add in the dry ingredients and mix until fully combined. Stir in M&M’s. Spread dough in prepared pan. It will seem like a thin layer but it will bake up a bit.
  3. Bake in preheated oven for 25 minutes. When done, let cool on cooling rack for about 30 minutes then cut into squares and enjoy!

Random Fact of the Day: The average duration of a high school relationship is one month. Doesn’t shock me..

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Week in Review (2/27-3/2)

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Monday I shared with you guys February’s SRC post. Holla for the Secret Recipe Club! Love that thing!! Anyways, I made Old World Pumpkin Bars, and they ware pretty gosh darn fabulous, so I recommend you check them out and this lovely lady’s blog from whom I got the recipe from. Loved getting to know her a little more and try one of her recipes.

High school soccer tryouts also started, those are always fun…in the 40 degree weather. outside.

Tuesday was actually a somewhat exciting day for me, I got accepted into The National Honor Society! It was kind of cool, throughout the day people go around to classes who have kids invited to the National Honor Society and hand out these pretty little flowers to those who are accepted. I can see how it would be totally annoying for people who didn’t get accepted because some people really just parade those flowers around. But anyways being accepted in the National Honor Society is really quite a load off my chest, it makes me feel a little less stressed with the whole college thing since it looks pretty good to schools. :)

Wednesday I decided to share another pumpkin recipe. What can I say? Monday kinda got me in the pumpkin mood. Plus I had a little left over pumpkin puree I wanted to use up. I made some white chocolate chip pumpkin granola bars. ohmygawd. ah-mazing. Best granola bars I have ever eaten. Better than those Quaker ones. (Not to toot my own horn or anything, but… TOOT TOOT!) Trust me. Just make them.

Also, Wednesday was Leap Day! Woohoo!! Happy February 29th. Do you know anybody who was born on the 29th?! That has got to be a crazy birthday to have.

Thursday was pretty much like a Friday for me since we didn’t have school Friday! Woohoo! But then again, I also had soccer tryouts. We have been 2-a-days all week so I was pretty worn out and there was not way I was going to try and look presentable and go out when I got home at like 9:15.

Friday I shared with you guys a cheesy baked potato soup. A perfect meal for Friday during Lent. When we ate this, it wasn’t on a Friday so we had it with ham sandwiches but this soup is hearty enough to have a nice big bowl on it’s own, or with some bread, or even a nice grilled cheese sandwich!

Random Fact of the Day: Snails can sleep for 3 years without eating

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White Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Granola Bars

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I have made granola bars on here before , and it just so happens that they were during Lent last year, as well. (Oh gosh…it’s almost already been a whole year since I’ve started the blog!!! *Cheerleader scream!*)

Granola bars are perfect little snacks to have around when you are trying to stay away from the sugar loaded, buttery cookies and treats. I loved the granola bars I have made before (the peanut butter and the chocolate chip), but this time they are even better!

The pumpkin in them is not super over-powering, but it keeps them nice and moist so you don’t end up trying to eat piles of crumbs. I chose to use white chocolate chips because white chocolate and pumpkin seemed like a perfect combination to me. I’m sure regular chocolate chips would be ah-mazing, too!!

So here you have it. These granola bars are really going to help hold me over when I get those cravings for something sweet.

Oh yeah, another plus on this recipe is that there is absolutely no butter and oil. You would NEVER, EVER be able to tell that if I hadn’t told you that…or if you, of course, looked at the recipe. But I think you get the point-these guys are delicious and nutritious ;) …and make ya feel ambitious!!!

White Chocolate Pumpkin Granola Bars

3 1/4 cups oats

1/8 teaspoon ginger

1/8 teaspoon allspice

1/2 heaping teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup applesauce

1/4 cup honey

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup white chocolate chips

  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Prepare an 8×8 inch glass baking dish by spraying it with cooking spray
  2. In a large bowl, whisk together oats, ginger, allspice, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt until completely mixed.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk brown sugar, pumpkin puree, applesauce, honey, and vanilla extract until smooth. Pour pumpkin mixture over oats and stir well, until all of the oats are moist. Stir in white chocolate chips.
  4. Press oat mixture into prepared pan in an even layer. Bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes or until golden. Don’t over bake these, you probably want to be able to hold your granola bar without it crumbling into a bajillion pieces! Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes then cut with a sharp knife and enjoy!

Random Fact of the Day: There is more alcohol in mouthwash than in wine.

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My Favorite Cereal-HOMEMADE!

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About 8 months ago, I was at a soccer tournament. I think it was in St. Louis, but I don’t quite remember. I don’t even remember how we did in the tournament. But what I do remember was the granola at the little, dinky continental breakfast bar. 

I had never tried granola before. Sure, I loved granola bars. But granola..what’s granola? Well, I was intrigued. I tried it the first day, and became absolutely hooked. I brought that stuff with me everywhere. I would even take a coffee cup and fill it with granola in the morning to save for later. 

I became a granola monster. 

So as a result of this new addiction, my mom made up some homemade granola when we got home. It was fantastic. We make this stuff almost weekly, always having a batch made up in the house. 

It truly is addictive. I eat it out of the container all the time…shh! don’t tell ;)  

Anyways, this is an awesome recipe because it is very basic. You can add pretty much anything you want and it will taste amazing. Personally, I don’t like dried up fruit and stuff in there, I’m more of a fresh fruit person myself. But hey, if that is your kind of thing, all power to ya!

Granola

(from Alton Brown)

6 c. rolled oats

4 c. nuts, chopped (any type of nuts works fine)

1 1/2 c. shredded coconut

3/4 c. dark brown sugar

3/4 c. maple syrup or corn syrup or honey

1/2 c. vegetable oil

1 1/2 t. salt

  1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
  2. In a large bowl, combine oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar.
  3. Add syrup ( or corn syrup or honey), oil, and salt. Combine all ingredients together. You may need to get in here with your hands to mix it all up to it’s full potential.
  4. Pour granola onto 2 baking pans with rims. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes in preheated oven, stirring every 20 minutes to achieve an even color.
  5. Remove from oven and let cool before serving or storing in Tupperware. 
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