Last week my son was at camp, but my daughter Abby stayed home with me. At first she was super bummed that she didn’t have camp, but I told her we could have “Mommy Camp” and do fun things together instead. As a result, we had a great week together! We spent time at a local bookstore, went for a long hike at Hanging Rock, NC, cooked a delicious dinner together, and developed a fun new recipe — Sugar Cookie Granola! …
Coffee Almond Butter Granola Bites
It had been way too long since I’d made granola, which is a shame because it’s a nutritious snack or breakfast that’s easy to take on the go or give to friends and family. I’ve found that the store-bought granolas are full of oil and sugar, and thus empty calories. So if I eat granola, I prefer to make it myself and use nut butter instead of canola oil, and maple syrup or coconut sugar instead of cane sugar. It’s still fairly high in calories, but it’s also packed with protein, minerals, and fiber to keep you full and energized.
For some reason I wanted to try my hand at a savory coffee granola because, duh, I love everything coffee-flavored. With Abby’s help, I came up with this nutritious coffee almond butter granola that my father-in-law described as “almost as good as [my husband’s] shot on hole 17” last weekend. Apparently it was his best golf shot of all time, so I decided to take that as a major compliment. …
Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
A few weeks ago I posted a recipe for homemade granola, so it’s no surprise that I decided to make granola bars, right?
My husband has been leaving for work early for meetings lately, so he has been requesting a breakfast he can grab and take with him. Loose granola lacks the convenience factor you get with granola bars, so I obliged and made two different bar flavors — peanut butter chocolate chip and banana blueberry with toasted coconut. After a few tweaks, I’m now very happy with the results — perfectly chewy, crunchy, slightly sweet, and nutritious! …