Homemade yogurt and granola

Here's a healthy, 100% homemade snack or breakfast dish you can make for your family: Greek yogurt with granola. Add fresh fruit (or leave it out). Drizzle on some honey (or don't). Make your yogurt nice and thick (or leave it a bit thinner). Make the granola as nutty as you desire (or keep those nasty nuts outta there).

Do you get the idea? This is completely customizable; you can make yogurt and granola just the way you like it.

I have only made yogurt once, but it turned out perfect the first time, so I wanted to share the recipe with you!

Yogurt {crockpot}

8 cups whole milk

1 cup (or less) dry milk powder

1/2 cup plain yogurt (this is your "starter")

Pour milk into a 5-qt crockpot and cook on low for 2 hours and 45 minutes. (If using a 2- or 3-qt crockpot, cook for 2 hours and 30 minutes. Turn off crockpot and unplug it for 3 hours (this allows the milk to cool down enough to make sure the starter won't be killed by too much heat.)

Take 1-2 cups of the warm milk and stir in the dry milk powder and yogurt starter until completely combined. Then whisk this mixture back into the crockpot of warm milk. Replace the lid and wrap 2 thick bathtowels around the crockpot. Let it sit for 8-12 hours (this is the culturing process).

If you want thick, Greek yogurt, pour your yogurt into a cheesecloth-lined fine-mesh strainer set over a bowl. Place a bowl on top of the yogurt to apply pressure to the yogurt as it strains. Place in the refrigerator while it strains. Strain as much or as little as you like! (I strained mine for about 2-3 hours and it turned out about the same consistency as the Greek yogurt I buy at Trader Joe's.

For the best consistency, refrigerate overnight before eating.

Granola

3 cups old-fashioned/rolled oats

1 cup walnuts, chopped coarse

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/2 cup slivered almonds

1/4 cup sesame seeds

1/2 cup safflower oil (or other vegetable oil)

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup dried cranberries

1/2 cup dried Montmorency cherries

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. In a large bowl, combine oats, nuts, coconut, and sesame seeds. In a small saucepan, combine oil, maple syrup and honey and heat until warm. Pour over dry ingredients and mix well.

Spread evenly onto a foil-lined baking sheet and bake for about 15 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes.

Remove from oven and sprinkle dried fruit over the surface. (If you want larger clumps, press granola tightly down against baking sheet; this will help it dry into larger pieces.)

Keep granola in an airtight container for up to seven days. I usually make a double batch, divide the resulting amount into four ziploc bags, and freeze three of the bags. It freezes wonderfully!

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Baked Oatmeal

Now that autumn is finally here (YAY!) it's time to start breaking out the baked oatmeal on a regular basis. I love it because it's quick, healthy, and delicious. Let the kids pick what they want to put in it, experimenting with various fruits and/or nuts. I have also included a recipe for apple-cinnamon topping, which is delightful.

BAKED OATMEAL

Ingredients:
3 cups old-fashioned oats
4 1/2 cups boiling water
2 eggs
1/2 cup light brown sugar or 1/4 cup maple syrup
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 cup milk
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup oil (for a healthier version I fill the measuring cup most of the way with mashed banana first. You can also use applesauce of pumpkin puree.)
1/2 cup chopped nuts, raisins, or other fruit


How to Make It:

1) Mix oatmeal and boiling water in a large bowl. Let stand 15 minutes.
2) Add all other ingredients. Mix well.
3) Spread in greased 9x13 pan.
4) Bake at 350 degrees for 30-40 minutes or until knife inserted in center comes out clean.
5) Serve warm with either fruit, nuts, milk, sugar, or apple-cinnamon topping.


Apple-Cinnamon Topping

1 1/2 cups water
1/2 - 3/4 cups sugar (depending on sweetness desired)
1 tsp. cinnamon
3 cups apples, peeled and cubed
2 Tbsp. cornstarch dissolved in 1/4 cup water

1) Heat water, sugar, and cinnamon together in a small pot.
2) Add sliced apples.
3) Cook slowly for 5 minutes or until apples are tender.
4) Thicken with cornstarch and water mixture. Cook until thickened.
5) Serve warm over baked oatmeal.

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Orange Sauce, Blueberry Sauce

I am not a morning person. That, combined with the fact that my husband doesn't really eat breakfast (I know, I know, it's the most important meal of the day; but he gets along fine without it), means that breakfast around here is usually cereal. However, once in a while, I make breakfast for dinner; and that is a fun treat that definitely makes my boys happy.

When I do, I often make these two sauces which are great on either waffles or pancakes (and would also be great on Dulcimer's french toast which she paired with a delicious raspberry sauce that is similar to this blueberry one...if you need a pancake recipe, check out this one from Lisa).

Orange Sauce

What You Need

1/2 c. butter

1/2 c. sugar

1/2 c. frozen orange juice concentrate

What You Do

Combine ingredients in a pan. Bring just to a boil, stirring occasionally.

Blueberry Sauce

What You Need

1/2 c. sugar

3 tsp. cornstarch

dash salt

1/4 c. water

1 pint blueberries

1 tbsp. lemon juice

What You Do

Combine sugar, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in water. Add blueberries. Bring to a boil; simmer until clear and thickened, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat, and add lemon juice.

Happy breakfasting! (Even if it is 6:30 PM, not AM...) :)

"When you wake up in the morning, Pooh,"

said Piglet at last,

"what's the first thing you say to yourself?"

"What's for breakfast?"

said Pooh.

"What do you say, Piglet?"

"I say, 'I wonder what's going to happen exciting today'?"

said Piglet.

Pooh nodded thoughtfully.

"It's the same thing," he said.

~ A. A. Milne

in The House at Pooh Corner

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Sconies

I am a cookie fanatic. I estimate that I spend approximately one-third of my life thinking about chocolate, and half of that time is spent thinking about cookies with chocolate. So when I started baking scones a few years ago, I kept thinking there had to be a way to retain the creamy crumbliness of a scone and still make it yummier . . . like a cookie. So over time, my scones became more cookie-like -- sweeter, moister, more chocolatey -- and of course, I threw in my very favorite dried fruit: cherries.

Sconies are some of my favorite things to make (and it took me a long time to decide whether or not to share this recipe). It only takes me a few minutes to whip up a batch, and they always seem to hit the spot, whether it's 7 a.m. or 10 p.m. Savor them with a cup of tea or coffee, or treat them like the cookie cousins they are and wash them down with a tall glass of milk.

Sconies

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

1 tablespoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

5 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into very small cubes

2/3 cup dried Montmorency cherries

2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup heavy cream

Coarse sugar, for dusting

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Whisk together the flour, 1/4 cup sugar, baking powder, and salt. Scatter butter cubes across the flour mixture and use a pastry blender to cut in the butter until the mixture resembles cornmeal. Add dried cherries and chocolate chips.

Stir in the cream with a rubber spatula until a soft dough begins to form (there will be lots of floury crumbs). Then, to bring it all together, reach your hands into the bowl and knead the floury bits into the moist dough until just combined. (If you prefer, you could turn the mixture out onto the counter and knead it together there.)

Turn the dough out onto a counter (or into a 9-inch pie plate) and form the dough into a 9-inch disc. Cut the disc into 8 wedges and sprinkle with coarse sugar. Place sconies on a parchment-lined cookie sheet.

Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees just before placing sconies in the oven and bake until the tops are just beginning to turn golden in spots and they are nicely browned on the bottom (usually about 12 minutes, but I watch them carefully).

Eat them with people you love.

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Crispy french toast with raspberry sauce

A few weekends ago, my husband and I rose early, sneaked out of the house and high-tailed it out of the city. Not long after seven, we were taking a window seat at a cozy diner in a quaint suburb and telling the waitress to keep the coffee coming. We had free childcare, and we needed a date.

My breakfast that morning — a plate of french toast with raspberry sauce — was perfect. And because I can't sneak out of the house every Saturday morning, I challenged myself to recreate the recipe for home consumption, and I think it comes pretty close.

Aside from the thick, tangy raspberry sauce (which, in my opinion, is truly superior to tooth-achingly sweet syrups), the exciting twist in this recipe is the crunch.

Here's how you make this decidedly un-soggy breakfast dish:

Crispy french toast

1-2 Tbsp. butter

4 slices bread

1 cup corn flakes

4 eggs

3-4 Tbsp. milk

Place corn flakes in a ziploc bag and crush until the pieces are quite small, but not until they form a powder. Transfer to a shallow dish.

Beat eggs and milk in another shallow dish.

In a skillet, melt butter on medium-low heat.

Dip slices of bread first in the egg mixture, then in the corn flakes.

And fry that bread until it gets a nice golden color. Top with raspberry sauce and powdered sugar.

Raspberry sauce*

3 Tbsp. cornstarch

1/4 cup sugar

1/3 cup water

12 oz. frozen raspberries, thawed

In a medium saucepan, dissolve cornstarch and sugar in water. Add raspberries and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture comes to a boil. Stir for one more minute (the sauce should turn from a pink to red as the cornstarch is activated) and remove from heat. It's done!

*Note: Since this is a breakfast dish, it's nice to have the sauce already prepared (I made it a day in advance, stored it in the fridge and warmed it up in the microwave while the french toast was cooking).

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Lighter-Than-Air Pancakes

We're usually Krusteaz buttermilk pancake people...it's just good stuff! But this morning I wanted to try this recipe. With resounding approval, I think I'll be making these again soon! Lots of, "yum! they're SO good!"



What You'll Need

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups buttermilk
1/4 cup sour cream
2 large egg yolks, room temperature
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
4 large egg whites, room temperature
1/8 tespoon cream of tartar
vegetable oil for pan



What to Do

1. Whisk the flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt together in a large bowl. In a medium bowl, whisk the buttermilk, sour cream, egg yolks, and melted butter together, In a large bowl, whip the egg whites and cream of tartar with an electric mixer on medium-low speed until foamy, about 1 minute. Increase the speed to medium-high and whip the whites to soft peaks, about 1 to 3 minutes. 
2. Make a well in the center of the flour mixture, pour the buttermilk mixture into the well, and gently whisk together until just incorporated with a few lumps remaining (do not overmix). Carefully fold in the whipped whites using a rubber spatula until just combined with a few streaks.
3. Heat a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat for 3 to 5 minutes. Brush the pan bottom with a thin layer of oil.  Using 1/8 cup of batter per pancake, add batter to skillet. 
4. Flip pancakes and continue to cook until golden brown, about 1 1/2 minutes. Serve the pancakes immediately, while repeating with the remaining batter.

Recipe from America's Test Kitchen Family Baking Book.

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