I happen to love granola. I could probably eat it everyday without getting sick of it- with yogurt, almond milk, crumbly, or in bar form…. Unfortunately, almost all granola in stores is loaded with sugar and/or various kinds of corn syrup and even ingredients I cannot pronounce. I recently bought Ina Garten’s “Back to Basics” book which I am making the Cookbook of the Month for September. It has some really great recipes that all rely on fresh, good-quality ingredients. The first recipe I tried from the book happened to be Ina’s homemade granola bars. I was happy to see that there was no corn syrup in sight! I even adapted the recipe to make it slightly healthier than it was. I’ve enjoyed these granola bars for a couple days now and am very happy with the results- they just taste more….real than those storebought ones. This recipe is super adaptable and you can definitely change the add-ins such as the types of dried fruit and nuts.

On another note, I cannot believe it is September tomorrow. Shocking! Once again it feels weird not to be going ‘back to school’ yet. I’m only taking one cooking class right now and it’s food safety…no ACTUAL cooking yet. I won’t be getting out my new knives and my chef’s hat until about a month from now. So, without further ado, here is my recipe for Ina Garten’s homemade granola bars and a picture of me dressed up as an 80′s rock ‘n’ roll’er (for a costume party) just for kicks! Bahahah

Homemade Granola Bars (adapted from Ina Garten’s Back to Basics)

• 2 cups old-fashioned oatmeal
• 1 cup sliced almonds
• 1 cup shredded coconut, loosely packed
• 1/4 cup ground Salba or ground flaxseed (if you don’t have these, use an extra 1/4 cup of wheat germ)
• 1/4 cup wheat germ
• 3 tbsp unsalted butter
• 1/3 cup honey (use 2/3 cup, if you don’t have Stevia, or you want less crumbly/more gooey bars)
• couple drops Stevia
• 1/4 cup brown sugar, packed
• 1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• 1/2 cup chopped, pitted dates (I used dried, but fresh would be better)
• 1 cup dried fruit (unsweetened is best) such as blueberries, cranberries, raisins, apricots

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter an 8 x 12-inch baking dish and line with parchment paper.

Toss the oatmeal, almonds, and coconuts together on a sheet pan and bake for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Transfer the picture to a large mixing bowl and stir in the Salba/Flax and the wheat germ.

Reduce oven to 300 degrees.

Place the butter, honey, stevia, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium heat.

Cook and stir for a minute, then pour into over the toasted oatmeal mixture.

Add the dates and dried fruit and stir.

Pour the mixture into the 8 x 12 pan. Wet your fingers and lightly press the mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, until light golden brown. Cool for at least 2 -3 hours before cutting into bars. Serve and enjoy!

Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day is an absolutely brilliant book. It contains recipes for breads and pastries from all over the world and most importantly, it truly revolutionizes the way bread is made. From a once labour-intensive activity to a simple and QUICK process, it puts the fun back into bread baking. I can’t say enough good things about this book and it’s delicious recipes.

There will be multiple recipes using breads from this cookbook as it has helped me create beautiful, tasty bread- EASILY! I am extremely impatient and it is wonderful to be able to throw a dough together in 5 minutes, in one bowl and be able to use it at any point with TWELVE days. AMAZING!!

May, May, May! The sunny weather is coming with the odd spring shower for my beloved garden! I have been planting, planting, planting today and now my garden is completely ready to just relax, drink some water, and GROW. In the near-ish future, I will be picking fresh strawberries, peas, yellow and green beans, carrots, 3 kinds of lettuce, swiss chard, every herb under the sun, tomatoes and eventually rhubarb and squash from my very own backyard! This is the first time I have really had a garden. I have grown strawberries, carrots and tomatoes before but that’s about it. I cannot wait for the moment when I can pick a beautiful organic vegetable or fruit from my garden and use it in my cooking. It’s all about sustainability and I’m going to put 100% effort into my garden’s success. If this year isn’t perfect though, there is always next year- it’s an experiment!!

Today I also had the opportunity to buy a cookbook that I have been eyeing for about a year… The Joy of Vegan Baking by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. The book features beautifully styled and photographed food and recipes for everything from smoothies and cobblers to cinnamon rolls and cheesecake. I’m looking forward to approaching these wonderful recipes and adapting them to be as nutritiously valuable as I can make them! There is a special birthday coming up in my house, so you may see some action from this cookbook very soon!!

This month’s cookbook of the month is a book I recieved for Christmas from my mom. It has beautiful pictures on every page and recipes galore. From western to indian to asian and even jamaican foods, this book has something to suit everyone- vegetarian or not! I’ve made a few recipes form this book and enjoyed them all. I’ll be posting a dish from Gourmet Vegetarian by Jane Price within the next day or two.