Savory Granola

Granola, my favorite snack. If you know me well or have ever read this blog you know this about me. I've posted a handful of granola recipes over the years, but this one takes the cake. 

Kathleen is the one who really got me on the homemade granola bandwagon and it's her recipe that helped me finally perfect it. Last spring or so, one of our friends said she had used Kathleen's recipe to make savory granola. Baaaack up, savory granola? Yes, please, and thank you. 

You take a lot of the same components, but add fun things like Worcestershire sauce and chili powder. This savory recipe really taps into the snacking part of granola. Skeptical? Let me give you some uses.

Currently between the handfuls going straight to my mouth, I'm topping creamy butternut squash soup (coming next week) with this mix. It's great sprinkled in plain or honey yogurt. I think it could be an amazing addition to a salad or even subbed in for the cornbread croutons in my Fall Panzanella Salad. But simply, I love packing a snack bag to take to work.

Savory Granola

Ingredients:
2½ cups old fashioned oats
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
2 Tbsp. maple syrup
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
2 Tbsp. brown sugar
1 tsp. chili powder
1 tsp. nutmeg
1 tsp. salt
½ cup pecans, roughly chopped
½ cup almonds, roughly chopped

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 300 degrees. Line a roasting sheet with parchment paper (for easy clean up), and set aside. 

In a large bowl combine all ingredients stirring well until everything is evenly coated. Spread out on your rimmed roasting sheet. Bake for 35-40 minutes. Stir after the first 20 minutes. Bake for 15 more minutes, check on it to see if it needs to go longer, being careful not to burn it. The mixture may still seem a bit wet and soft, but once you let it sit it will harden up. Let cool then break into chunks. Store in an airtight container or mason jar. 

A few months ago I picked up these wasabi sesame seeds from the local Asian market. I love spicy and I love wasabi. I've been using them as a topping on salads or sprinkled over fried rice. I tossed some in my jar of granola and love the little kick it gave the granola. 

Are you a savory or sweet granola person? Give this recipe a try then tell me!

Annie

The Mix

I apologize in advance. This snack mix is highly addicting. So addicting that I had to go brush my teeth in the middle of making it so I would stop eating it all. At the same time I kind of want to say you're welcome, because it's so good. 

My sorority chapter advisor used to make us a similar mix when we would have long chapter meetings or during rush week. I had her send me the recipe forever ago and I've been making my version ever since. I would make it as a study snack, party food and it's also great for a road trip treat. I bring you this mix just in time for Memorial Day. Perfect to bring to barbecues or to shovel down while stuck in a cabin at the lake!

No boring chex or weird breadstick things in this mix. The wheat thins and oatmeal squares are my favorite! Feel free to swap out or add any ingredients. Cheez-its are a great addition, I also think popcorn or cheerios would be good. The mix requires no baking either. Once you pour on the seasoning it's ready to eat!

The Mix
yields a lot

Ingredients:
1 box wheat thins
1 box Quaker Oatmeal Squares Cereal
1 bag pretzels
1 bag Bugels
1 bag oyster crackers

Seasoning:
1 pkg. dry Ranch Dressing seasoning packet
1 cup vegetable oil

Directions:
Pour the bags and boxes of mix ingredients into a large paper grocery bag, roll down the top to seal the bag and shake to combine (I use two bags, double-lined so the oil doesn’t seap out of the bags). Whisk the ranch packet and oil ingredients together in a small bowl or shake together in a mason jar. Pour over dry mix. Close up paper bag again and shake shake shake! Store in an airtight tupperware or large plastic bag.

Note: this is easy to half! I typically make a 1/2 batch at a time and keep the remaining ingredients to make a second batch soon after!

I have a huge bowlful packed and ready to head to the lake with me this weekend. That is if I can refrain from eating it all before we leave...

Annie

Sweet Potachos

I ate the whole pan. I thought I would just throw that out there at the beginning to give you a pre-cursor for how amaze these are. I'll also let you know that I thought these would be a huge fail, but they blew my expectations out of the water. Step aside tortilla chips, sweet potatoes just upped you.

Veggie chips can be a little tricky so I did my research to give you the best tips! Cutting your sweet potatoes super thin is key to get them to crisp up and hold all of your toppings. A mandoline makes it so easy, but if you don't have one just do your best to cut them as thin as possible. I'm slightly obsessed with my new mandoline (I got this one from Kuhn Rikon), and it is the main reason I came up with this dish.   I've been looking for any kind of veggie I can slice up thin. I'm weird. 

Tips:
-slice super thin
-bake on foil lined baking sheets
-coat the foil with oil, toss the sweet potatoes in oil too
-wait to salt until they are done baking
-let them finishing crisping with the oven door propped open and the oven turned off
-if some burn a little, that's even better (in my opinion)!!

Sweet Potato Nachos
serves 1-2 depending on how hungry you are

Ingredients:
1 medium sized sweet potato, thinly sliced
olive oil
sea salt
1/2 cup Mexican blend cheese
1/2 avocado, diced
1/2 cup leftover carnitas meat ;)
red onion, cilantro, plain greek yogurt, salsa

Directions:
Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Line 2-3 baking sheets with foil. Pour about 1-2 Tbsp. of olive oil on to each foil lined sheet. Use your hands to spread it around and cover the whole surface.

Using a mandoline or a really sharp knife, thinly slice your sweet potato. Place in a bowl and toss with another tablespoon of oil. Place each piece of sweet potato on a cookie sheet. Make sure they don't overlap or touch. Place all of the cookie sheets in the oven on separate shelves. Bake for 15 minutes, rotating which pan is on top after 8 minutes. Cook the last 7 minutes. Pull the sheets out and flip over all of your sweet potato chips. Sprinkle with a little bit of salt then place back in the oven. Turn off the oven and crack open the door. Let the chips dry out for about 20 minutes. 

Once your chips are crispy, pull them out and load onto a small baking sheet. I used my toaster oven because it is small and perfect for one batch of nachos. Layer the chips in an even layer, then sprinkle on half of the cheese. Top with the carnitas meat and then the rest of the cheese. Broil for about 5-10 minutes until your cheese is melting. Pull out and top with diced red onion, cilantro, avocado, salsa and plain greek yogurt as a sour cream replacement. 

Snap pictures of these to your friends and make them really jealous. 

My roommate took one bite, and said "ya, you need to make those a lot." I have another sweet potato in my pantry just waiting to be mandolined and made into sweet potatchos. 

Annie

Cookie Butter Popcorn

Yes you read that right, cookie butter popcorn. If you don't know what cookie butter is you live under a rock. Sorry if that was offensive...if you don't know what it is, it's basically Trader Joe's mascot. 

I have a weakness for white chocolate covered things. Pretzels, raisins, chex mix, strawberries, popcorn. You know that amazing white chocolaty mix people make at Christmas that has chex, m&ms, pretzels, etc? That stuff is my ish. Even though white chocolate isn't really chocolate, it still reigns supreme. Throw a little cookie butter in with white chocolate and it's basically game over. 

Cookie Butter Popcorn

Ingredients:
6-8 cups air popped popcorn (I used 1/2 cup kernels and 3 Tbsp. vegetable oil)
8 oz. vanilla almond bark
2 Tbsp. cookie butter or biscoff spread
sprinkles for decorating

Directions:
Pop your popcorn in a large pot over medium high heat, or in a popper. Melt the almond bark in the microwave in 30 second intervals, until fully melted. Stir in the cookie butter. In a large bowl mix the melted mixture and the popcorn together. Spread out on foil, decorate with sprinkles and let harden for at least hour. 

This popcorn would be perfect to take to your Super Bowl party. The Super Bowl is basically just an excuse to have a party, eat a ton of food, and drink on a Sunday. We all only watch it for the halftime show anyway #yonce. But still, bring the popcorn and people will love you. 

For more cookie butter deliciousness try these rice krispies.

Annie

Bites of My Life

I only feel a little bad when my bites posts are only full of food. I promise I have a life with un-edible things too. Although, this week was all about the noms. I stayed kind of on track, but it's time to grind out the fourth and final week of the Barre 3 challenge. Lord knows I need it coming off this food filled week. Coming for you strong B3. 

Things you miss from the picture below are; the first sights of sun in what seems like weeks (hallelujiah), a throwback 90s concert, trips to the Asian market, Mexican supermarket & Whole Foods #diverse, and quality bonding time with my puppy niece while her mom and dad are away.    

-Ultimate leftover shrimp fried rice. The perfect pairing for bachelor Ben viewing.
-Mason jar oatmeal is on repeat for an on-the-go breakfast during these freezing mornings.
-All my favorite healthy work snacks. Can't quite make it through the workday without some. 
-Added a little zest to your hump day with the recipe for Zesty Chicken Salad (It's like really stinking good).
-Not your average brownie, coming this week!
-Hands in the air for this Maple Pecan Crusted Salmon for our B3 meal of the week. 
-I woke up for breakfast, my friends woke up for brunch, but we didn't get out of the house until lunch. So Saturday's "breakfast" turned into veggie chili from The Red Cup. 
-The pregame snack to my favorite brunch. 
-You know that show The Best Thing I Ever Ate, on Food Network. If I was on it, this would be my bit. The Green Eggs and Ham from Stella just get me. Creamy herb baked eggs with prosciutto. It doesn't get better. 

Annie