Cinnamon PB Granola

I’m back today to complete my More Than Alive baking challenge! Today we’re making granola. Granola is one of the top 5 foods in this house. We all LOVE it! I’m always looking for good granola recipes, my favorite one being Maple Granola. This Cinnamon PB Granola is a Stacy original……a Stacy original that didn’t bomb. I have bombs regularly. To complete my box of supplies, I used organic rolled oats, organic cinnamon, and Rapadura (sucanat).

Let’s DO THIS! In a small saucepan, mix together some honey, maple syrup, Rapadura, coconut oil, and peanut butter. I used some homemade Cinnamon Raisin peanut butter (recipe coming soon), but you want to make sure to use natural peanut butter with no sweetener in it…..or else there will be sugar overload. Heat the mixture only until everything melts and combines. After that, add some cinnamon and give it a good stir. Refrain from sticking your finger in there to test it, because it’s hot and might burn the tar outta you. Or so I hear from OTHER PEOPLE. *Cough*

Grab a big mixing bowl and throw in some rolled oats, slivered almonds, and sesame seed. I love adding sesame seed to my granola – it gives it a nice extra touch. Forget that the raisins are in this photo. I decided after all was said and done that I didn’t want to add them. Raisins are always added after it cooks, so it gave me plenty of time to ponder this decision – it was not one I reached lightly. I pondered on it for a whopping 45 minutes. Deep thoughts. I’m a woman and it’s my prerogative to change my mind whenever I want.

Enter, sunflower seeds! I had some in the cabinet, so I dumped those in too. I won’t eat them plain, but I’ll eat them in things. I’m a weird one. They were a very nice addition.

After you get all your dried stuff mixed together, pour the liquid mixture over everything and stir well until everything is coated with the peanut butter mixture. Stir really hard and get some out on the cabinet, forcing your daughter to tell her Mama that she’s “messy.” You’ll be really tempted to take a big ole bite right now. It’s okay to give in…..you need to make sure it tastes right. And then you need another taste to make sure your original thought was correct.

Pour your mixture into a greased pan. A cookie sheet would work…if you’re a normal person. As we’ve already discovered, I have issues keeping things nice and clean when I’m stirring. So, I used a 11×15 cake pan for mine. It’s my official granola pan. Do YOU have an official granola pan? Pop your pan into a 300 degree oven and bake for 20 minutes. Make sure you’re around to hear your 20 minute beeper go off. Ahem. Stir the whole thing up very well and pop it back in the oven again for another 15 minutes. Make sure you’re around to hear your 15 minute beeper go off. Stir everything up again and let it bake 10 more minutes, for a total of 45 minutes. I’m good at math.

*Note: I’ve gotten so bad at listening for my beeper that Annie now tells me “Beeper Mama.” Guess she got tired of smelling the burn.

It should look nice and golden like this when you’re done. If it’s black, you most likely did something wrong. Start over. It should also smell wonderful in the house. If it smells like fire, you likely did something wrong (listen for the beeper!). Start over.

Spread the mixture out on some wax paper to cool completely. Of course, I used cereal bags because that’s how I roll. Let it cool completely before putting in an airtight box to store. Try to make this when your husband and child aren’t around. Or else there will be a granola party with everyone standing around eating the granola off the paper…and you really don’t want to share this. It’s quite tasty if I do say so myself.

You really can’t go wrong when you combine oats, cinnamon, and peanut butter. Even if all you did was mix it up in a bowl and eat it….not like I know from experience or anything. It’s just what I hear from OTHER PEOPLE. *Cough*

I only had one thing I didn’t use: cloves. Barry is not a huge fan of cloves, but I still wanted to work them in. So, I did the same thing my Mama has done my whole life. I grabbed a saucepan and filled it with water. I dumped in some cloves and a few cinnamon sticks and then put it on the stove on medium low heat. It will warm up and make your whole house smell like Christmas. Yum! Just make sure you don’t let all the water boil dry. *Cough*