Homemade Granola Recipe

I decided to make my own granola this past week because I keep hearing about how easy it is, and why not make your own so that you can be sure to include all your favorites? Plus it's good in bento and easy to take along as a snack during your kids' summer adventures. One of the best things about a recipe like this is that you can change it up however you like to your taste; there's no making a mistake here. I didn't add any dried fruit this time, but I might try raisins and dried apricots next time, since we always have those lying around the house. Just as I was spooning some out into my kids' cereal bowls, I heard about a recipe contest over at Nuts.com for National Trail Mix Day, which is coming up this month. Well, I had just made some granola so... in honor of National Trail Mix Day, here's my:

Basic Granola Recipe

1 1/4 C rolled oats
1/2 C each chopped assorted nuts (I used almonds, pistachios, and hazelnuts)
1/2 C pepitas
1/2 C sunflower seeds
2T uncooked quinoa

2T olive oil
2T honey
1 egg white

Combine all the dry granola ingredients in a large bowl. Mix together the oil, honey and egg white, then pour over the dry ingredients and toss to coat everything. If you have a lot of dry ingredients, you may need to increase the oil and honey.
Spread the mixture in a sprayed baking pan.
Bake at 325℉ for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.
After cooling, I tossed in a few spoonfuls of cacao nibs for fun. These aren't sweet, so I didn't use too much. You might use chocolate chips instead, or sweetened cacao nibs.
This granola comes out crispy and crunchy and tastes delicious on fruit, ice cream, yogurt, cereal, smoothies, and more... such as on its own as a Trail Mix!

Chop chop chop.

Then just spread in a pan and bake.

We ate some sprinkled over a bowl of fresh cut mango and cottage cheese. Yum!

You can also sprinkle cinnamon into the cooled mixture; it's a delicious addition. Hope you can try it!

Skewers of Sausage, Mushrooms and Peppers Bento

My first bento of the year, and it's a quick and easy one. I pan-fried an all-natural preservative- and nitrite-free chicken sausage alongside some halved mushrooms and chopped red capsicum. Little skewers make it fun to eat with little fingers. I added greenery with a few green lettuce and pickled cucumbers. Everything fits perfectly in my LunchBots Clicks. This box is stainless steel with a translucent plastic airtight locking lid; I love that it's easy for kids to open and close, and adds security for those lunchbag-swingers. I also put some sliced cara cara oranges in a round EcoDippers side box along with a cup of pepitas and chocolate raisins. This bento will go to school with TinySprite. Let's see if it comes home empty^__^

Penne Pasta Bolognese Bento

Penne Pasta Bolognese Bento, a photo by sherimiya ♥ on Flickr.

Last time I made bolognese (here) I showed you TinySprite's bento. This time I'll show you MisterMan's version. It's the same, except he gets regular wheat pasta; this penne is made with tomato and carrot puree so it looks orange. I lay the pasta on a bed of lettuce, then spoon the sauce over, and top with parmesan and a few steamed Okinawan sweet potato cut into star shapes. In the upper tier of this cool EcoLunchBox he gets Greek yogurt with pumpkin seeds and wheat germ, and the usual fruit and veggies to the side (carrots, broccoli, strawberries and grapes).