top shelf oatmeal muffins

extra cinnamon + granola topped variation

there is a bakery in Austin that makes what I consider to be the perfect oatmeal muffin -- kind of plain, lightly sweet, a bit chewy with old-fashioned oats -- nothing fancy, but just right. I think I've come very close to cracking the recipes here. these are just as good, if not just a teeny bit better, in my humble opinion. super-easy to make. give 'em a try!

• 1/3 cup light brown sugar
• 1/3 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 3 eggs
• 1-1/3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (not instant!)
• 1-1/3 cups buttermilk
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1-1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda

preheat oven to 400 degrees F. line muffin pan with paper liners (or butter and flour thoroughly if not using liners. add brown sugar and butter to the mixer, and start blending. add eggs one at a time, then add oats and buttermilk. add flour, kosher salt, cinnamon, baking powder and baking powder, and finish mixing when just combined (don't overmix). divide mixture into muffin pan wells and bake for 22-27 minutes, until golden brown on top, and done inside (a clean toothpick emerges without batter or crumbs stuck to it). cool on a wire rack and consume in good health! I used to pay over $1 per muffin; this entire batch of 12 muffins cost around $3 total.

variations -- any one or two of these would work well, or even all at once! 

• substitute yogurt thinned with water or milk to buttermilk consistency
• use a full teaspoon of cinnamon and add 1/3 cup raisins (golden raisins are especially nice here)
• add the zest of 1/2 an orange and add 1/3 cup sweetened dried cranberries
• before baking, top each muffin with about 1 teaspoon granola

fully-loaded everyday granola

my favorite way to eat this delicious granola is in a bowl of Greek yogurt, with lots of chopped fresh fruit added, along with a drizzle of honey. it's also fantastic on ice cream.

• 42 ounce* (large) canister old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 ½ cups unsweetened coconut flakes (optional)
• zest of 4 oranges (organic preferred)
• 1 ½ cups extra virgin coconut oil (refined or unrefined; whatever you prefer)
• 2 cups sweetener (any combination of maple syrup, honey, brown sugar, etc. -- I typically use 1 ½ cups brown sugar and ½ cup honey)
• 2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ¾ teaspoon nutmeg
• 2 cups dried fruit (cranberries, apricots, tart cherries, blueberries, apples, etc., in any combination), chopped if they’re larger than cranberries
• 1 cup raisins
• 1 ½ cup toasted nuts (slivered or flaked almonds, chopped pecans, etc., in any combination)
• ½ cup toasted pumpkin seeds (optional)

preheat oven to 275 degrees F. line two half-sheet pans (or the equivalent of large baking pans) with parchment paper or foil. place oats and coconut in a large bowl and mix. in large (quart size or larger) glass bowl or measuring cup, combine coconut oil, orange zest, sweetener, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg, and microwave for about 3 minutes (alternatively, cook over medium-low heat in medium saucepan, stirring constantly, until all sweetener and oil are melted and warm -- do not boil). pour the oil/sweetener mixture over the oat mixture and combine thoroughly. spread out on parchment-lined or silpat-lined half-sheet pans in an even layer and place in oven for 60 minutes, stirring mixture every 20 minutes & rotating pans on shelves for even toasting. it will turn light golden brown near the end, but won’t crisp up until it starts to cool.

while granola is baking, toast each type of nut and/or seed used individually, in a skillet with a bit of coconut oil, until done to your taste -- do NOT allow them to burn! add them to the bowl that held the oat mixture, and add in the dried fruits and combine.
when oats are done, allow pans to cool on wire racks for a few minutes. tip oats into the bowl with dried fruits and nuts and allow to rest and cool for a few more minutes while you clean the baking sheets (if you let it sit in the baking sheets/pans, it really sticks to them and it's hard to get it all out). stir it all together, let cool completely, and then pack into two gallon-size ziplock bags. I always save an oat container from the previous time and pack the ziplocks in the oat containers to keep them intact.

*note: it’s fine to pull out 1-2 cups of oats to use in a recipe before making granola -- it will come out about the same. I usually take out around 1 ½ cups oats to make a batch of oatmeal muffins.

olive oil granola with fresh cranberries

sounds ridiculous, doesn't it? olive oil in granola? fresh cranberry sauce baked into granola? how? why?

why olive oil? actually, you're food-savvy; you probably heard of it before I did. granola made with extra-virgin olive oil is rich, delicious and deep -- a perfect combination of sweet & a bit salty; totally addictive. there are quite a few recipes going around the interwebz; Melissa Clark's recipe for Olive Oil Granola with Dried Apricots and Pistachios from the New York Times is excellent, and possibly what started the trend back in 2009. so then, you may ask, why cranberries, Diane, why??? simple: I had leftover fresh cranberry sauce from Thanksgiving, and I wanted to use it somewhere I could taste it, because I love cranberries. they're very good in this granola; so good that I made a new batch of cranberry sauce just to refine/test this recipe. of course, if you don't have leftover cranberry sauce hanging around, or if you'd prefer a different berry, you can substitute raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, etc. -- just use a bit less sugar to compensate for sweeter fruits. you can also leave out the fresh fruit entirely, and just add plenty of dried fruit at the end. you can easily leave out the coconut and/or nuts and it still works; this is one of many delicious variations. by the way, if you've read this far, leave me a comment to let me know. if you can make it through my verbiage, I'll at least name a recipe after you. anyway...

however you make it, I highly recommend you try making olive oil granola. then be prepared to lock it up tight, because it will disappear at an alarming rate. it's that good. this recipe will yield about 6 cups of granola.

• 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not instant, not steel-cut -- only old-fashioned rolled oats will work for this recipe)
• optional: 1 cup unsweetened, flaked coconut (I don't like the combination of coconut and cranberries, so I left it out, but I'd definitely use it with just about any other fruit)
• 1 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup honey (you can substitute 1 cup maple syrup for the brown and/or white sugars and water, or substitute 1-1/4 cups maple syrup for the sugars, water and the honey)
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
• 1/2-1 cup leftover (or freshly made) cranberry sauce, however much you have
• 1/2 cup dried fruit (I used reduced-sugar dried cranberries; just about any kind of dried fruit will work here, as long as it's somewhat soft -- no leathery un-sulphured apricots or the like, but just about anything else will work)
• 1/2 cup golden raisins
• 4 ounces toasted nuts, such as chopped pecans, sliced almonds, roasted shelled pistachios, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds -- whatever combination you prefer

place the oats (and optional coconut) in a large bowl. combine the brown sugar, white sugar and water in a medium/deep saucepan and heat over medium-low heat, covered, stirring occasionally, until sugar is dissolved. after your sweetener has cooled a bit, whisk in the honey , olive oil, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cranberry sauce, and combine thoroughly. pre-heat the oven to 275 degrees F. pour the sweetener/olive oil mixture over the oats in the bowl and mix in completely. oil a couple of baking sheets and spread the granola out into even layers and bake for 60 minutes or so, until golden brown and crunchy, stirring gently/rotating trays every 15 minutes. remove to racks and allow to cool a bit. n.b. don't let the granola cool in the pans unless you *really* enjoy soaking & scrubbing -- otherwise, tip it out while it's still a bit warm. while still a bit warm, scrape the granola off the baking sheets into a large clean bowl, allow to cool completely, and mix in the dried fruits (and optional toasted nuts). taste for seasoning, and add a pinch more salt or cinnamon if you'd like. whatever you do, don't break up the big clusters of granola that form -- you know those are the first pieces you're going to eat! I don't know why, but they're the most desirable pieces of granola, so let them happen. seriously: every time you break up a cluster of homemade granola, somewhere a tiny kitten cries. so just don't do it. store this granola in large jars in the freezer (it will get stale in the fridge), except for the jar from which you're currently munching -- that can be kept safely at room temperature for at least a few days. if it lasts that long. 

eat over greek yogurt and fresh fruit, with milk, or any way you like granola. I must confess: I ate every bit of this granola plain, pouring myself small cups full as snacks/desserts. it's definitely that good!