according to ms. bartlett, "all packaged, dry cereals are produced by a process called 'extrusion' which involves high heat and high pressure," killing off the good stuff (aka: most nutrients and added fortifying vitamins). sadly, it also "ravages amino acids (the building blocks of protein) rendering them highly toxic [and] proteins structures are vastly altered, and as a result, new compounds form which are completely foreign, potentially harmful" (which means that protein packed "good-for-you" cereal...quite possibly even worse). boo. you hear that? that is my heart starting to crack...
then...any of the fortifying vitamins that make it through the extrusion process are really of little use to your body anyway. emily goes on to explain that these vitamins added into the cereal are synthetic and your body is unable to absorb and use them as desired. in fact, she states that "many synthetic vitamins are actually treated as toxins and are eliminated by your body as quickly as possible [and] can also cause imbalances in the body that may lead to health problems in the long run". double boo. ...aaaaannnddd...heart is broken.
but, never fear...emily delivers a smashing solution: homemade coconut almond granola! oh. my. gosh. a-mazing! here is the recipe and my adventure making it! i should note: it looks much more intense than it really is. i don't think i spent more than 10-15 minutes per day working on it. and it was totally worth it. i made a half batch (i don't have big enough bowls or baking sheets for the full one!) and we devoured it. i'm getting ready to make another batch at the end of the week!
ingredients (for a half batch):
*4 cups rolled oats
*1/4 cup melted butter
*1/4 cup melted coconut oil
*3/4 cup whole-fat yogurt
*1 cup water (filtered)
*1/4 cup raw honey
*1/2 teaspoon salt
*1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
*1/2 cup coconut sprinkles (unsweetened dried shaved or grated coconut and maple syrup-the good/real stuff...none of that mrs. buttersworth business)
*1 cup thinly sliced almonds (buy pre-sliced)
tools:
*one big bowl (no joke...especially if you're going to make a full batch- 8 cups oats!)
*one small bowl
*a sauce pan
*2 baking sheets (possibly more if doing the full 8 cups batch)
*parchment paper (just-in-case note: this is different than wax paper ;p)
*oven that can be set to 200 degrees fahrenheit
here we go:
day one:
*in a large bowl, mix together oats, yogurt, water, butter and coconut oil. pat it down, cover with a plate and let it hang out on your counter for two days. yes, two days....no more or it will go bad. :)
*in a small bowl, cover your almond slices with filtered water. place a light-weight towel over the bowl and let soak (on counter) until day two (i started mine in the evening of day one and let them soak until mid-day on day two...)
*make your coconut sprinkles by combining coconut shavings (1/2 cup) with 1/8 (give or give...i don't like the take) cup of maple syrup (remember...only good stuff). spread out on a parchment covered cookie sheet and let bake at 200 until crispy. break apart and store in airtight container until used- i didn't have parchment on day one, so i actually did this on day two, with my almonds.
yogurty, buttery, coconut oily, watery oats ready to sit
soakin' nuts
oats and nuts preparing for deliciousness. pay no mind to the failed sourdough starter to the left. :(
day two:
*drain your soaking nuts, spread them onto a parchment covered cookie sheet and bake at 200 degrees overnight or until completely dry and crispy.
coconut shavings and maple syrup all ready to bake
...and done. sorry about the yellow hue...evening/night time in my kitchen...
soaked almonds ready to go into the oven
*preheat oven to 200 degrees. place honey, salt and cinnamon in a small glass bowl and (carefully) place it into a sauce pan of simmering water until the honey becomes thin. stir it up and add it to the oat mixture. note: the glass bowl will be crazy hot...be cautious and don't burn yourself...or drop the glass bowl into the oats and then onto the counter while your baby is asleep...what? my own experience?? maybe. whatever.
*spread the whole thing as thinly as possible onto two parchment covered baking sheets and bake for several hours or overnight until completely dry and crispy. i did overnight and got to wake up to an amazing cinnamony smelling house. it was heavenly.
cinnamon, salt and honey in a bowl...in a pot of simmering(ish) water
heated until honey thins and all stirred up
oat mixture and honey mixture all mixtured (hehe) together, spread out and ready to bake
the next morning...delicious, delicious crispy oats
day four:
*break apart crispy oat business and mix it all together with the almonds and the coconut sprinkles.
*pour yourself a bowl...or store in airtight container until the first possible chance to eat it. :)
*enjoy it with some whole fat raw milk to really get the whole bang for your buck. :) we also drizzled a little more honey on top for added knock-your-socks-off yum.
all mixed together!
breaky! oj (1/2 diluted with h20, water, multi-vitamin (organic and food based), fish oil, cranberry pill, pears, an egg cooked in butter and the delicious homemade cereal with whole fat raw milk. yumm!
nolan LOVED it! he also really likes using a big spoon (or fork, as needed...not for cereal)...ha...silly boy
~thank you emily for helping me feed my family healthy food!~
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