Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Breakfast in Bed: Peanut Butter Granola


Our theme over at I Heart Cooking Clubs this week is Breakfast in Bed, doesn't that sound fun? Breakfast is my absolute favorite meal of the day and I had a very hard time trying to decide what to make this week. There were a couple contenders such as Homemade English Muffins, Eggs Au Gratin, or even Hard-Cooked Eggs with Tomato Curry Sauce. Then a light went on and I remembered the recipe for this Peanut Butter Granola. It was quite literally an AHA moment! I am crazy for all things granola and even more crazy about all things peanut butter. Why not make Peanut Butter Granola?

Peanut Butter Granola
Adapted from How To Cook Everything Vegetarian by Mark Bittman
Makes About 8 Cups
6 cups rolled oats (not quick-cooking or instant)
2 cups mixed nuts and seeds (I used peanuts, pecans, and almonds)
1 cup shredded coconut (I omitted the coconut)
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, or to taste
Dash salt
1/2 to 1 cup honey or maple syrup, or to taste
1/2 cup peanut butter
1 cup raisins or chopped dried fruit
Preheat the oven to 300F. Put a 9x13 inch roasting pan (you will need one with high sides) over medium-low heat (put the pan over 2 burners if it's convenient). Add the oats and cook, stirring occasionally, until they begin to change color and become fragrant, 3 to 5 minutes.
Add the nuts and seeds and continue to cook, stirring frequently, for 2 minutes. Add the coconut and cook, stirring 2 minutes more. Add the cinnamon, salt and sweetener (honey or maple syrup), 1/2 cup peanut butter and put in the oven. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring once or twice so the peanut butter doesn't burn.
Add the dried fruit, stir, and cool on a rack, continuing to stir once in a while until the granola reaches room temperature. Transfer to a sealed container and store in the refrigerator; it will keep indefinitely.

Notes/Results:This was the first time I've made homemade granola and it was a lot of fun! It's definitely a tasty way to clean out your pantry. I used about a cup of leftover peanuts, a handful of almonds and a handful of pecans. I decided to omit the coconut since this was a peanut butter granola. I also didn't add in any dried fruit because I really wanted to taste the peanut butter flavor. I noticed the granola really didn't seem very crunchy after baking for 20 minutes, but I knew that it would continue to dry out while cooling. It was a good call because the granola was perfectly crunchy once it was finished cooling. I made the full recipe which yields a mountain of granola! Did I like the granola? Definitely. Would I make it again? Yes. I had a bowl of the granola this morning with some milk and really enjoyed it. The best part....after eating the granola, the milk was a lovely peanut butter color! I don't usually drink the leftover milk in my cereal, but peanut butter flavored milk......now that's another story!
I am submitting this to I Heart Cooking Clubs for this week's Breakfast in Bed theme.

31 comments:

  1. I've never made my own granola, goodness knows I have enough ingredients in my pantry to make several jars full. I love this idea.
    *kisses* HH

    ReplyDelete
  2. Great idea to make your own granola.
    That lonely strawberry needs some company. :)

    ReplyDelete
  3. oh my gosh, i've been wanting to do homemade granola for a while now, this looks wonderful!

    ReplyDelete
  4. This looks fabulous. I've never made granola because of the calories, but you've whetted my appetite and are crumbling my resolve. Have a great day. Blessings...Mary

    ReplyDelete
  5. I have never tried making my own granola either. This is one to try. Michael loves peanut butter, so I think I could probably persuade him to try this too. (He's not a big granola fan.) Peanut butter milk, that's too funny.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Peanut butter milk? Now THAT's and interesting idea...

    I wish I had the AHA moment to lead me to this granola before I had the AHA moment that led me to the recipe that I'll be making (can't tell..it's a surprise) because this looks supremely awesome! Oh granola. Good stuff.

    ReplyDelete
  7. This is indeed a grand recipe. I use Molly Wizenberg's recipe every winter and it lasts for four months. I love finding new recipes.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I made a Martha Stewart granola for my first time just months ago and I love it. But The Hubby wants a peanut butter granola and this looks like the perfect recipe to try! Stumbled!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Oooooooh! Definitely bookmarking this! I love making my own granola and actually made a batch the other day. A new recipe is always nice, so thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  10. Ahhhh! It was on my list to look for a granola recipe that did not require too much oil. This looks great. I like that I can add a bunch of things from the pantry.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I recently made homemade granola too. So good. Your peanut butter granola sounds like a great idea.

    ReplyDelete
  12. Yep, after making granola myself the other day I am resolved never to buy it again! I'll have to try the PB version next (still eating on the batch I made), it looks great!

    ReplyDelete
  13. What a fun different granola recipe. My kids think anything with peanut butter is their favorite food, so we may have to give this a try!

    ReplyDelete
  14. I like your idea that granola can be a "clean out your pantry" thing to make. Depending on how far you take it, it can get expensive! Why not use what you already have? I've made a very simple homemade granola, but never thought about adding PB. Great idea!

    Hope you don't have to make your own breakfast in bed on Mother's Day ;)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Wonderful! My hubby is on a granola kick lately. I'll have to remember this for him.

    ReplyDelete
  16. Granola is a wonderful treat and healthy, at that.

    ReplyDelete
  17. I haven't made granola in way too long! I love all of the goodness in this one. Very nice!

    ReplyDelete
  18. Hi Kim! Did you purchase a new camera? Your pictures are gorgeous!!

    ReplyDelete
  19. This sounds like a perfect breakfast. I love both granola and peanut butter!

    ReplyDelete
  20. I never made my own granola! But I love this peanut butter version - good call on leaving out the fruit. I put a spoon of PB and jelly in my oatmeal every morning. This would be a good option for me to eat during the summer when its too hot for my oatmeal.

    ReplyDelete
  21. I have never made granola homemade either. You have me all geared up to try, it sounds wonderful, Kim!!

    ReplyDelete
  22. I haven't made granola in ages - looks great! And now that my daughter is mostly vegetarian, I'll have to make a batch of this for her. :D

    ReplyDelete
  23. I make granola for my daughter all the time, but I sure have never added peanut butter! What a super idea!

    ReplyDelete
  24. I love this, pb granola and the leftover suprise of tasty milk, my girls would enjoy this..

    sweetlife

    ReplyDelete
  25. Ooooh. My daughters and I really like granola too, although I haven't made my own. YET. Now that I've seen this, I definitely want to try it.
    BTW, I'm commenting here WHILE flying home from Florida. Pretty cool, huh?

    Hope you're having a good week!

    ReplyDelete
  26. What a great, healthy breakfast! Thank you. I'm always looking for exciting breakfast ideas.

    Nisrine

    ReplyDelete
  27. This sounds absolutely delicious and I am with you on peanut butter flavored milk. Peanut butter just makes everything (okay most things) better!

    ReplyDelete
  28. I love granola also - and I have it every morning on my yogurt!

    ReplyDelete
  29. I'm totally starving...and pb granola sounds awesome to me right now...or any nut butter...yum! Perfect breakie :D

    ReplyDelete
  30. Granola with peanut butter, it couldn't get any better.
    Mimi

    ReplyDelete
  31. Bet my kids would like it. I'd have to leave the room for it (I dislike peanut butter, alot), but they would love it.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks so much for taking the time to leave a comment! At the moment I am having a huge problem with spam so I've had to add comment moderation and close off comments to anonymous users. I apologize for the trouble and hope to return my comments to normal shortly.