Cranberry and Orange Zest Granola

This is another one of my family's favorites. It is very similar to the other granola recipes, but I mix in orange zest and cranberries.


You will need:

*in the same measurements as the Pecan and Cherry Granola
butter (or substitute)
oats
sugar
flour
pecans (finely chopped)

to that add:
2 Tbl Orange zest
2 Tbl vanilla extract
1 1/2 Cups dried cranberries

** to make it soft add the milk

Mix all and follow baking instructions for the Cherry and Pecan Granola.

Pecan Cherry Granola

I love to make granola, especially around the winter time when it is cold. I also love to make my granola soft, almost like I took an oatmeal cookie and crumbled it up. Eating it like cereal with warm milk is the best on a cold morning!


You will need:
3 cups oats
1 1/2 all whole wheat flour
1 1/2 cups pecans
1 cup dried cherries
1 1/2 cups brown sugar
1/2 cup softened butter ( I use a vegan substitute )
1/2 cup honey or agave syrup
cinnamon and all spice to taste


Preheat oven for 350d. Spray down a cookie sheet or two and mix all the ingredients together in a bowl. When the ingredients are all mixed, spread out on the cookie sheets and bake. If you want softer granola for cereals, put it all on one cookie sheet with edges, if you want crunchier granola spread it out over two. Bake until you feel the top get crunchy and pull it out to mix it up and bake it some more. Because there is nothing that needs to cook all the way through you may bake it as long or as short as you want, or until it is the consistency you want. Let the granola cool on the cookie sheet completely. The honey or syrup will continue to cook the granola outside the oven and will let the crunchy chunks set, so this is important. Bag up and enjoy!

Garlic Bread Crunchies

I work in a preschool and we hate to waste money but no one could figure out how to get the kids to eat bread ends, until I threw this together for an afternoon snack!


You will need:
Bread, each slice cut into four rectangles
olive oil
s/p
garlic
parsley or basil or oregano ( or Italian seasoning)
*opt* Parmesan cheese
** keep in mind that the quantities will change depending on how many people you are serving or how much you want to make.


Preheat oven to 350d. Toss bread with oil and seasoning until the bread pieces have a light coating and bake until golden brown. Great with soups, on salads, pastas or finger foods. And you can use those bread ends and no one will know!