April 03, 2011

Granola

Six days. Six days! That was it! I was feeling tip top shape after my lung infection for only six days before catching a cold. Itty bitty is already improving. Me, not so much. I couldn't sleep last night with a nose that was draining like a faucet, fever, and a hacking cough. Finally fell asleep sometime after 11 p.m.

Woke up in the morning at 4:30 feeling like I couldn't breath. My chest was so heavy. I dragged myself out of bed and made a large hot cup of tea with cinnamon honey. Thankfully that opened my airway a bit and soothed my raw throat.

With not feeling well I have let the household chores go by the wayside a bit. Mr. Sideline Chef is sitting at the airport waiting to come home and after surveying the site I can tell you I need to get my ass in gear and make it look somewhat presentable. Itty bitty sure makes a lot of messes in a day. Thankfully I have six hours to accomplish the task at hand. I've already had to stop and take some hot tea breaks. I'm determined to get this done and then I'll let Mr. Sideline Chef pamper me while he's home until I feel better.

I've had no appetite this morning but needing to feed itty bitty I decided on a simple recipe out of the Flat Belly Diet Cookbook. Granola is an easy enough breakfast. The original recipe leaves room for adjustments. You can customize it to your tastes but you shouldn't leave the MUFA out if you are following the Flat Belly Diet.

I had to leave out the unprocessed bran and crystallized ginger since the local market didn't carry it. I wasn't about to go hunting down those ingredients. Maybe another day when I'm feeling up to it. The granola didn't seem like it was lacking taste without those ingredients. Then again my tasters are off from this cold. Then again itty bitty helped himself to quite a bit of the granola.

While I think this granola is tasty I still think my Apple Cinnamon Granola tops this.

Granola
Makes 10 Servings (Serving size = 3/4 cup)

Stars of the Show:
  • 2 cups oatmeal
  • 1 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup unprocessed bran
  • 1/3 cup ground flaxseed - I used whole golden flaxseed.
  • 1/3 cup apple juice
  • 1/2 cup maple syrup
  • 1 tsp minced crystallized ginger
  • 1 cup chopped dried apples - I used organic apple cinnamon chips. Just apples and cinnamon! Love that there was no added sugar.
  • 1/3 cup dried sweetened cranberries
And Action:

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Spray a rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. Combine the oats, bran, and flaxseed in a large bowl.

Combine the apple juice, syrup, and ginger in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat until the mixture simmers. Pour over the oat mixture and stir to coat.

Spread onto the baking sheet. Bake for 25-35 minutes or until lightly browned. Mine took the full 35 minutes. Make sure to stir twice. Place the granola in a bowl and stir in the apples and cranberries.

Nutritional Information Per Serving:
MUFA: Walnuts (Or other nut or seed of choice)
Calories: 294
Protein: 7 g
Carbohydrates: 43 g
Fat: 12 g
Saturated Fat: 1 g
Cholesterol: 0 mg
Sodium: 112 mg
Fiber: 8 g

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

I've never made granola but I love it in my yogurt. So sorry you're sick again, glad Mr. Sideline Chef (love that nickname, lol) is home now to pamper you.

Priyanka said...

Hi...Have an award waiting for you in my blog....Do claim it... :)

Chelle B said...

Brenda - I love granola in yogurt with bananas and raspberries. You should check out the Granola Parfait I made. Yummy! Jason's nickname is perfect for him since he always gives me pointers on how to make something better the next time. Haha!

Priyanka - Thank you! I will check it out!

Brandie said...

Oh girl, we have had colds here too. I feel your pain. And Mommas never get a sick day!
You did great with the Granola though. We love to munch on granola all the time. I like the sound of this one too. And the dried apples in there sound sooo good!

Ang said...

Just when I thought we escaped the winter colds, my Ave woke up yesterday coughing and feverish. Ugh, and I'm feeling a little under today too. Darn you colds!!! The granola looks good though, but I sure hope you feel better:(

Anne @ Quick and Easy Cheap and Healthy said...

I love that this recipe uses apple juice and maple syrup. Any ideas for what to replace the nuts with? Nut-free here.

Kelsey said...

I love making homemade granola and this recipe looks wonderful. Thanks for sharing. Hope you feel better soon!

Chelle B said...

Ladies - I'm feeling much better!

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