A Southern Grace: crunch fitness

August 16, 2013

crunch fitness

Yum

When did granola become the go-to snack for hikers and the like? I'm not sure, but as far as I'm concerned, that's just a marker of good sense and good taste.


There are certain food items that are overwhelmingly better when made from scratch instead of purchased at the store, and for me, granola falls completely into that category. I can control everything, from the sweetener(s) to the add-ins to the baking process. Plus, it's one of the most versatile things in the food world--you can vary all those conditions and end up with a entirely different (yet still amazingly delicious) product!

Granola bars, on the other hand, find themselves in the store-bought category from time to time. For that reason, I was delighted to try the six crunchy granola bars made by Clif Bar. The flavors range from honey oat (my favorite!) to white chocolate macadamia nut (a close second!) to peanut butter. The bars are made with 70 percent organic ingredients, and each bar includes 3-4 grams of protein as well as one serving of whole grains. These aren't break-your-teeth crunchy granola bars; rather, the blend of grains has been specially designed to create a lighter-textured crunch.

The view from Stone Mountain in NC.

My boyfriend loves to hike and has convinced me of its merits as well. I'll never forget the snack he brought along on one of our first adventures--it was some sort of strawberry waffle that looked about as tasty as cardboard. That said, I'm especially excited to share these bars (and my granola) with him.

Good Ol' Granola
Ingredients:
  • 3 cups rolled oats
  • 1 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 cup sliced almonds
  • ½ cup sunflower seeds
  • 2 tablespoons flax seeds
  • 1 tablespoon cinnamon
  • ¼ cup maple syrup
  • ¼ cup honey
  • ¼ cup butter, melted
  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • ¼ cup golden raisins
  • ¼ cup dried cranberries
  • ¼ cup dried cherries
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
In a large bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.
Combine the syrup, honey, melted butter, and oil and pour it over the dry mixture; stir until everything is evenly coated.
Spread out the granola on a greased nonstick baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes or so.
Remove from oven, allow to cool completely and mix in the dried fruit.
Store in an airtight container.


*Though I received free samples from Clif Bar, the opinions in this post are my own.

20 comments:

Rosa's Yummy Yums said...

A wonderful breakfast treat!

What a goregous landscape/view.

Cheers,

Rosa

Blond Duck said...

Sounds good to me!

Angie's Recipes said...

Great for either breakfast or on the way...

~~louise~~ said...

Nothing, and I mean no thing, beats Good Ol' Granola!

Thanks for sharing, Grace...

Valerie Harrison (bellini) said...

Granola has to be one of the best scack foods. I also love it on Greek yogurt.

Lorraine @ Not Quite Nigella said...

I'm definitely no hiker but I love granola as a late night snack! :D And I'm with you: home made is the best! :D

Joanne said...

With all these fun mixins I feel like I'd be eating this nonstop...breakfast, snack, second snack, third snack... :P

Kalyan Panja said...

Just mouthwatering...looks delicious!

Rosita Vargas said...

Granola es muy saludable para un buen desayuno me encanta,lindo paseo a la montaƱa,hugs,hugs.

Carolyn Jung said...

A strawberry waffle to nosh while hiking??! LOL Well, I'd give him an "A'' for effort even if it might not have been the most practical of eats. ;)

My Kitchen Stories. said...

Granola is most delicious to me when eaten as this kind of snack. Home made is def the best

I Wilkerson said...

Granola is a must have to top yogurt for me (also love cashews and fruit)

Lisa-Marie said...

I love granola. I have to say, I shop buy sometimes, but I'm always looking for good recipes! Yum!!

lisa is cooking said...

Granola bars and hiking aren't meant to be together. And, I love making homemade granola. This versions sounds like a great one!

dessert girl said...

Everyone makes fun of me because I eat granola without milk for breakfast, but when you eat it while you're hiking or camping you don't use milk! It makes total sense to me. :-)

kellypea said...

Mmm...granola. I've only made it once for some bizarre reason. Maybe it's because we just eat plain ol' cereal. But I agree about the Clif bars. I think they're the best on the market -- my husband loves them. As for hiking, I like that, too, but the hiking around here is mostly hot & dry. That I don't like. Love that view!

Jenn said...

Strawberry waffle? I'd like to say I expect more from my brother, but that sounds
about right. Your granola sounds amazing. I think I'll surprise my husband with some
on his next camping trip.

grace said...

@Jenn: your brother is doing an excellent job of exposing me to foods i've never tried, so hopefully i can broaden his culinary horizons too. :)

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Nutmeg Nanny said...

Wow, what a fantastic view :) I love granola, yours sounds so good!