Time to organize (and a good granola recipe)

Get ready for a barrage of new recipes! Zach is out of town again next week which means I get to experiment with random foods and recipes (all while feeding the boys their favorite kid meals of chicken nuggets, noodles and butter and the like. I still slip them a green smoothie every now again to give them some nutrients, I promise...).

BTW-how is the Quinoa tasting going? Anyone try it? I did find it bulk at "Better Health" which was a bit cheaper than at the grocery. It'll be on my menu next week for sure. And, I've got a new ingredient for you to try...but I'll fill you in on that next time. I'll let you hang on the suspense ;o) Ha!

I was wondering how to organize all of my favorite recipes so I have one "go-to" book with all of our tried and true foods in it. It seems I have a binder with loose recipes (rip outs from magazines, print outs from online, hand scribbles on napkins, etc.) and then a shelf full of cookbooks where I consistantly use a few recipes. It would be nice to have them all together. So that is my spring project; putting together a binder of all the Aeschliman best loved eats to avoid leafing through cookbooks and papers ("Now where did I put that Clean Granola recipe? Which cookbook is it in?"). I am slowly going to leaf through my dog-eared cookbooks and make copies of recipes (thanks to my new printer/copier/scanner...LOVE IT). And I have pile of tear outs from various magazines and websites that need going through as well. Who knows, if I get adventurous and anyone is interested I can copy you all the book as well. I'll keep ya posted.

Anyway, I've got a minute this morning before we hit the elementary school book fair (good times...good times...) so I wanted to share another granola recipe I tried from the Eat Clean cookbook with a couple of *Kim* changes. This is a great snack when I am looking for that evening sweet or great for breakfast with skim milk. I am not a yogurt fan, but you could certainly make a mean parfait out of it with fresh fruit.

Granola-The Eat Clean Way

3 cups multi grain cereal (by the oats)

1 cup plain rolled oats

1 cup raw, sliced almonds

1/2 unsalted sunflower seeds

1/4 sesame seeds

coating

1/2 cup Sucanat or Rapadura sugar (found Sucanat at Better Health but I think they also sell at regular grocery stores in baking section)

pinch sea salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 cup canola oil

1 tsp good quality vanilla

1/4 cup honey

at end:

1/2 cup raisins

1/2 cup dried cranberries

preheat oven 300 degrees. in large bowl mix all dry ingredients and set aside

in a small saucepan, place all coating mixture ingredients. gently warm contents and stir until honey is dissolved. pour liquid coating mixture over dry ingredient mixture in bowl. use large spoon or clean hands mix well until all ingredients are well coated. spread granola onto a large cookie sheet (with parchment for easy cleanup). Bake for 40 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes or so so everything is evenly toasted. transfer baked granola to cooling rack and sprinkle with raisins and cranberries. Let cool completely. When cool transfer to airtight container. Makes a whole bunch and will keep for about a week or you can freeze it as well. Throw in some mini chocolate chips for a tastier treat!

Stay tuned tomorrow - I'm trying out a "breakfast cookie" before my 10 mile run and I'll share our new challenge food :o) I know you are just hanging on the edge of your seat...