Homemade Granola

This stuff is so darn good!  I'm kicking myself for not making it sooner.  I love that you can can do so much with it.  And well, let's be honest.  I like that I can make it with all my favorite ingredients.  I'll never buy it again, it is so easy to make & keep on hand.  Add it to some yogurt or ice cream.  Or, if you're like my family, just eat it with some milk like cereal. It's quick, easy, & good for you!!  It makes for a great present too.  Make it for holidays, bake sales, or any occasion! 

Ingredients:

3 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats

1 cup Sliced Almonds

1 cup Halved or Chopped Pecans

1/2 cup Dried Cranberries

1/2 cup Raisins

1/3 cup Vegetable or Canola Oil

1/3 cup of Honey

1/4 c Light Brown Sugar

1 tsp of Cinnamon

1 tsp of Vanilla Extract

1 tsp Kosher Salt

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. 

In a large bowl combine all the ingredients except the dried fruit. 

I used a stand mixer, but you could do it by hand.

Spread the mixture onto a sheet pan.

Bake at 350 degrees for 20-30 minutes, stirring half way through.  It should be a nice golden color.  Don't be alarmed that it is still soft.  It hardens as it cools. 

Let it cool completely on the sheet pan.

When the oats & nuts have cooled, place them in a mixing bowl & add the dried fruit.

Stir to combine well. 

Store in an air tight container.

Fill Mason Jars & tie with ribbon for gifts. 

Enjoy! 

Extra Nutty Banana Muffins

 

This is a slightly different recipe than my Banana Nut Bread.  It's super quick & easy with lots of pecans- just how we like them!  My husband prefers the muffins to my bread, although I don't think it has anything to do with the flavor.  It's simply faster for him to get them in his belly!  He can grab a couple on his way out to work in the morning with coffee & he's a happy man. 

Ingredients:

4 ripe bananas, smashed

1/3 cup butter, softened

¾ cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tsp. baking soda

Pinch of salt

1 ½ cups flour

1 cup chopped pecans

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.In a large bowl, mix the butter into the mashed bananas.  I used my stand mixer, fitted with the paddle attachment.  

 Mix in the sugar, egg and vanilla. Add the baking soda and salt. Add the flour and mix until just incorporated.

Fold in the chopped pecans.

Pour mixture into prepared muffin tins, lined with cupcake liners or sprayed with non stick spray.  I made both mini & regular sized muffins.  I used paper liners on the regular & non stick spray on the minis. Sprinkle additional pecans on the top.

 Bake the mini's 12-15 minutes & the regular 15-20 minutes, until golden brown or once a toothpick inserted into the center of the muffin comes out clean.

This made 24 mini muffins & 10 regular sized muffins.  If you just make regular sized, you should get 18 from the recipe. 

Allow to cool some before taking them out of the tins.

I found this wonderful recipe here.

Banana Nut Bread

Old fashioned, comforting, & delicious Banana Bread!! My daughter loves this stuff! It's so easy to make too, the hardest part for my family is keeping bananas in the house long enough to over ripen! Ingredients:

1 3/4 cup All Purpose Flour

1 cup White Granulated Sugar

2 tsp Baking Powder

1/4 tsp Baking Soda

1/2 tsp Salt

3/4 cup chopped Pecans

2 eggs

3 ripened Bananas

1/2 cup Vegetable Oil

1 tsp Pure Vanilla Extract

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease & Flour your loaf pan. (I used cooking spray & flour, my loaf came out of the pan perfectly.)
Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, sugar & salt. Set aside. Chop the Pecans. You want to use extra rip bananas so they are really soft, almost mushy.

Mix together the sifted dry ingredients, stirring in the nuts, eggs, bananas, oil & vanilla.

This is what the batter will look like.

Pour it all into the greased & floured loaf pan.

Bake for 50-60 minutes, until an inserted tooth pick comes out clean.

Let it cool in the pan for 10 minutes.

Remove it from the pan & let it continue to cool on a wire rack.Slice & enjoy!

Chicken Salad with Green Grapes & Pecans

I love this chicken salad. It's my version of Ina Garten's (The Barefoot Contessa) Chicken Salad Contessa. It is great for sandwiches, wraps, on crackers or a sliced baguette. I wish it photographed better, because this picture really doesn't do it justice!

Ingredients:

3 medium sized boneless, skinless chicken breast

1 cup pecans

1 cup green grapes, cut in half

1/2 cup Mayonnaise

1/2 cup Sour Cream

1 tbsp Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt & Pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan. Drizzle with about a tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil & season with salt & pepper. Roast for about 35-40, until completely cooked. Set aside until it is cool enough to handle.

Pour the nuts onto another sheet pan & roast for about 8 minutes in the oven with the chicken breasts. Be careful not to burn them. Set aside to cool. While the chicken is cooling, combine the mayonnaise, sour cream, salt, pepper, & some of the parsley. Save a little of the parsley for sprinkling on top when finished.
Cut the grapes in half.
When the chicken is cool enough to handle, chop into grape size pieces (about 1/2" cubes).

Add the chopped chicken, grapes & nuts to the mayonnaise mixture & stir to incorporate. Taste to check your seasonings, add more salt or pepper if needed. Sprinkle the remaining parsley on top. Serve immediately or refrigerate.