Fall Feels Like Granola

This is opening weekend of small game season (rabbit, bird, ???) so Tyler headed out to camp yesterday after work and left Fred and I to defend the homestead. We are choosing to spend this weekend mostly in a horizontal position reading and grading and eating. Today we ventured out to the Pick 'n Shovel to get some things for winterizing the chicken coop: extension cord, splitter, timer, light bulb. I want my hens to produce as many eggs as possible without freezing to death, so I had to install a light (they need at least 8 14 hours a day to produce) and will still need to purchase a water heater.

Fred didn't want to go to the Natural Foods store with me, so he stayed in the car while I picked up a bunch of bulk stuff to make granola and granola bars. A few weeks ago my dear friend Rebecca sent me a link to a granola bar recipe and she said they were really easy and good. While looking at the recipe I also decided that although I love Amy's Granola (made in Vermont), I can't stand paying $9 a bag at Shaw's for it when I could make it at home cheaper.

I found a recipe online that looked close to what I wanted, and modified it a bit. Here is what I came up with:

4 cups rolled oats
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup flaxseed meal
1 cup coconut
1 1/2 cups maple syrup (which I had to BUY at the farmer's market because we are all out!)
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 heaping tablespoons brown sugar (I wanted to use honey here, but it appears Tyler ate all ours)
1 cup dried sweetened cranberries

Preheat over to 275F. Mix maple syrup, brown sugar, cinnamon in a saucepan until it boils. (I actually microwaved mine...) Meanwhile mix oats, almonds, sunflower seeds, flaxseed meal, coconut in large bowl. Once syrup is boiling, mix in vanilla - then pour into dry ingredients and stir to combine. Grease 2 rimmed cookie sheets (I used cake pans so that my granola didn't spill while stirring) and pour granola onto sheets. Cook 30-40 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes. Add cranberries as soon as you take out of the oven. Continue to stir occasionally while cooling. Store in airtight container. Yum!

My final product made 16 servings (which are HUGE ) for less than $.75 a serving!

Next on the menu, granola bars and refrigerator pickles.  I made 2 quarts of these pickles a few weeks ago. We opened the first jar at our Harvest Festival last weekend and we finished the jar that night! Even though I didn't grow pickling cucumbers, my slicers are just perfect...