Catherine's Recipe Box

Note: I hate to even say it, but I liked the way these came out even better than Alton's ! Sorry, Mr. Brown. I left mine out in the open for a few days, though, and you could probably chip a tooth with them. But they are still fabulous. Don't forget to put them in an air-tight container! Ingredients 2 cups oats ("old fashioned" is best, but anything you have around will work) 3/4 cup wheat germ 3/4 cup sunflower seeds 1 cup nuts, in small pieces 2/3 cup brown sugar 1/2 cup honey 4 Tbsp butter 2 tsp vanilla extract 1/2 tsp Kosher salt 1 cup dried fruit Directions 1) Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. 2) Mix oats, wheat germ, sunflower seeds, and nuts on a cookie sheet (one with sides). Toast them in the oven for 15 minutes, stirring every 3 minutes. 3) Line a 13x11 casserole dish with Reynolds Release foil. This stuff is amazing. You will be so happy. 4) Bring brown sugar, honey, butter, vanilla, and salt to a simmer in a saucepan large enough to hold t...

Note: The batter for this recipe stores very well in the refrigerator. In fact, the original recipe is for 48 muffins to be made over the course of no more than 6 weeks. A great idea if you have room in the refrigerator and your family prefers fresh muffins. Personally, I made them all at once and put some of them in the freezer and some of them went to work with me. The following recipe makes about a dozen and a half muffins. I found the batter much easier to work with after it was in the refrigerator for about a day. It is important to note that if your granola has sunflower seeds in it, they may turn green when they come in contact with the baking soda - this reaction has to do with pH levels and is perfectly safe to eat. Ingredients 2 cups granola cereal 1 1/2 cups sugar 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 tablespoons baking soda 1/2 cup vegetable oil 2 cups buttermilk (or substitute ) 2 eggs 1 cup blueberries (optional - or raisins, or cut up apricots, or chocolate chips, or your...

Note: This has coconut in it! I like it! It's a miracle. I'm not usually a fan of coconut. If you aren't sure where to get sesame seeds, you can get them in the spice aisle (I hit up the dollar store), or the "international foods" aisle. I liked this recipe much better than the last one I posted. It wasn't too much, there are more textures (the sesame seeds and the coconut add a nice touch), and it clumped better. I'm still not satisfied, though. When I'm finished eating this batch, there will be more testing! Ingredients 2 cups rolled oats 1 cup sliced (or chopped) almonds 1/4 cup sesame seeds 1/2 cup sunflower seeds 1/2 cup coconut 1/4 cup wheat germ 1/2 cup raisins 1/2 cup dried fruit 1/4 cup cooking oil 1/2 cup honey Directions 1 Mix oats, nuts, & grains together. Coat with honey & oil. 2 Bake at 300° for 35 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes 3 Add fruit & stir to combine source: http://community.livejournal.com/poor_skills/24728...

Note: this is one of my favourites at the moment. Here are some of the variations I have done so far: Raisins/Almonds (slivered or sliced) Pineapple/Almonds (also replaced the vanilla with about 1 shot of OJ) Dried Apples/Peanuts (I also added about a tablespoon of cinnamon) Ingredients: 2 cups -- Oats (old-fashioned rolled or quick oats work) 1/2 cup -- Raw sunflower seeds 1 cup -- Sliced almonds or your favorite nut (peanuts, walnuts, etc) 1/2 cup -- Wheat germ 1/2 cup -- Honey 1/4 cup -- Dark brown sugar 2 Tbsp -- Unsalted butter 2 tsp -- Vanilla extract 1/2 tsp -- Salt (regular or Kosher) 1 cup -- chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries, blueberries, raisins, pineapple, etc Directions: Butter a 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spread the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ onto a half-sheet pan. Place in the oven and toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. In the meantime, combine the honey, brown su...