The Best Almond Granola

I love granola, but over the years, I found myself repeatedly buying granola that just wasn't exactly right. So naturally, I decided I could make it better and healthier by myself. This is the recipe I came up with after some trial and error. I have been making it regularly for a couple of years. While I have worked on variations, this is the staple that everyone loves:

Granola

Ingredients:

• 8 cups rolled oats
• 2 cups puffed brown rice cereal
• Pinch of salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 1 cup unsweetened coconut
• 1 cup coarsely chopped raw almonds
• ½ cup raw pecan or cashew pieces
• ½ cup pure maple syrup
• ½ cup honey
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• Coconut oil, melted (a little less than 1/2 cup)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Stir together all dry ingredients in a very large bowl.
3. In a small bowl, stir together maple syrup, honey, and vanilla.
4. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix well.
5. Add a few tablespoons of melted coconut oil until the mixture is all slightly damp.
6. Pour into a single layer on two large cookie sheets coated with cooking spray.
7. Bake for 15 minutes. Stir contents, arrange in single layer again and continue baking until it just starts to turn tan, stirring every 10 minutes. Mine usually bakes for a total of about 30 minutes. Granola becomes crunchy as it cools. After cooling, you can stir in dried fruit if you want.

I find that it stays fresher if stored in a glass container.

Sausage and Pepper Risotto

This is a staple at our house. It is tried and true and enjoyed by all. It serves my family of 7 with enough leftovers for 1-2 lunches. While it takes a bit of time to make, you don't have to stir constantly while the liquid is being added, so you can load/unload the dishwasher or do other kitchen tasks while it cooks. It can also be made with frozen vegetables. I always freeze enough shredded zucchini from my garden to last a whole year. When I find bell peppers on sale, I stock up and slice and freeze them for later. When using frozen vegetables, the vegetable mixture will be a little watery. I simply drain the extra liquid into the small pot of simmering water/stock before I transfer the vegetables to the food processor. 

Ingredients:

• 32 oz. vegetable (or chicken) broth
• 1/2 cup water
• 1 T olive oil
• 1 small onion
• 3 small bell peppers (red, yellow, orange, or any combination), seeded and coarsely chopped
• 2 cups zucchini, sliced
• 8 oz. Italian sausage, browned and drained
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1/4 tsp oregano
• 1 1/2 cups Arborio rice
• 1/2 cup shredded parmesan cheese

Directions:

1. In a small saucepan, heat broth and water over low heat. Let simmer.
2. In a large saucepan (I use a wok), heat half of the oil over medium heat. Add onion and peppers to pan, cook about 5 minutes, stirring. Stir in zucchini, garlic, and oregano. Cook 4 minutes.
3. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a food processor and pulse until finely diced. Set aside.
4. Add remaining olive oil to pan and heat briefly. Stir rice into the pan and cook 1-2 minutes, or until lightly toasted. Add warm broth, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring frequently with a wooden spoon and waiting until liquid is absorbed before add another 1/2 cup. Continue this until rice is tender (you might have to add more water, or you might not use all of the heated liquid). This will take 20-30 minutes.
5. Once the rice is tender, stir in the sausage and the vegetable mixture and parmesan cheese. Cook to warm through and serve immediately.