This year, in addition to my favorite gift to give…a tea mug filled with indulgent loose tea, I’m also going to try something new.  It’s inexpensive, original, and heart-warming – a jar filled with homemade granola.  Who doesn’t love granola??

I went to the local craft store and purchased 12 glass mason jars for $11.99 and filled each one with homemade granola which is so very easy to make and tastes much better than anything you can buy.

Here’s my recipe.  Please excuse the lack of measurements.  I just taste as I go which is the reason why I can’t bake!

I use gluten-free rolled oats, but regular rolled oats are good too.  Just make sure you get the kind you have to cook and not the quick cooking oats.

Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees.  While you wait for it to heat up, mix together some oats and some shredded coconut – I use the unsweetened, unsulfured coconut, but again, use what you like.  You can use a ratio of 50/50 or whatever you think looks good.

On the stove top, melt about a cup of raw, organic, unrefined coconut oil and pour it over the oats and coconut mixture – just enough to wet the ingredients.  Then spread the mixture out onto a baking sheet and bake at 350 for about 5 to 7 minutes.  I keep checking on it because it can burn quickly and you just want a nice golden color to it. After about 5 minutes, I stir it up and put it back in for a few minutes – this gets it nice and evenly browned.

Let it cool and then add what you want.  I usually put in pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, more coconut (the toasted and untoasted coconut together tastes great!), dried cranberries, raisins, sliced almonds and whatever else I have lying around. Then sprinkle the mixture with cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, and a little brown sugar.

You can get really creative with the packaging too.  I usually write the ingredients on brown paper – lately I’ve been using my kid’s brown lunch bags.  I cut out a square using my daughters craft scissors that make a wavy edge, write the ingredients and sign it Happy Holidays.   I also use my daughter’s glue sticks to stick the ingredient list on the jar.  It really helps to have a crafty 4 year-old in the house. Tie a ribbon around the top and you’ve got a great looking gift!

Enjoy making your own granola and please share your recipes.

Thanks for reading!

Maybe Just a Small Bite

Photo compliments of USDA Agricultural Research Service, where researchers have selectively bred carrots with pigments that reflect almost all colours of the rainbow.  Photo by Stephen Ausmus.

I was food shopping with my kids today when they asked for something new.  It was a new colorful gummy candy that they wanted for their snack in school.  I said, "Sure, just see what's in it."  My 8 year-old read the ingredients and said, "Nevermind, it had food coloring in it."  My 4 year-old daughter then asked, "Then why is OK that we eat the gummy bunnies at home."  I explained to her that some candy makers use chemicals to color their candy and others use colorful fruits and vegetables to color their candy.  She was fascinated by this concept and right away started naming every color of every fruit and vegetable she could think of. 

When we got home, she rushed over to the gummy bunnies and asked me to read to her what they used to color the candy. "This candy maker uses black carrot juice."  She was amazed.  They both wanted to find a picture of black carrots on the Internet right away.  We found the one above which I thought was worth sharing.

So often I hear parents complain that they can't get their kids to eat healthy and they ask how I get my kids to eat such out-of-the-ordinary foods.  I tell them that I always made sure not to offer them anything I was eating.  And at the very worst, never force kids to eat anything.  (I was 5 years old when I was forced to eat a tomato.  The memory is vivid and not a positive one!)  Instead, I'd ask them if they wanted what I was having and if they said no, I'd prepare it for myself (something interesting like coconut milk brown rice) and I'd prepare for them something bland like a ham sandwich.  I wouldn't offer them any of mine, but I'd be sure to make a big deal about how good it was.  Then, they'd ask,  "Can I try?"  And I'd say, "Well, maybe just a small bite.  I don't have much and this is REALLY good."  Nine times out of ten, they loved it and ended up eating my food instead of theirs. 

I didn't have to do this (manipulate them) for too long.  After a little while, they began to trust that my food tasted good.  I think it's all about trust.  They need to know that if they don't like it, they won't be forced to eat it.  There are so many fruits and vegetables out there that if they don't like one or two, you can always find some that they do like.

If you want to get your kids to try new foods, let them have some control.  Go to the grocery store together and each week have them pick out something new - something they have never had before.  It could be anything from a new brand of chocolate or the horned fruit in the produce isle.  Let them begin to associate food with fun. 

Who knows if these tips will work on your kids.  All I know is that they worked for mine.  Good luck and keep trying.  I'd love to hear some of your ideas too. 

Thanks for reading!

Comfort in a Mug

~picture downloaded from www.teavana.com

Even if you are not a tea drinker, just the sight of this tea pot must evoke some level of cozy comfort. Whether it's tea, hot cocoa or warm milk, a hot beverage makes everything seem better. 

For the holidays, my favorite gift to give is a big mug filled with expensive tea one normally wouldn't purchase for themselves.  The tea might be expensive, but combine it with a great big mug from the dollar store and a piece of chocolate wrapped in shiny gold foil, and you've got a great gift for under ten dollars. 

A great place to buy fancy loose tea is at www.teavana.com.  I just purchased 4 oz each of Tiramisu Treviso Rooibos, Cocoa Praline Tart Rooibos, and Cacao Mint Black Tea for $50.  This will give me 6 2-ounce portions at $8.33 each.   Add the mug from the dollar store and a piece of chocolate and you're at $10 bucks for an awesome gift!

To portion out the loose tea, cut some squares of cheese cloth, pile the loose tea in the middle of the square, and tie it all up with ribbon that matches the colors on the mug.  You could even tie a cinnamon stick in the middle of the knot. 

These tea filled mugs make great gifts for teachers, bus drivers, neighbors, and co-workers.  Make a few extra to keep around for those last minute gifts.

I hope you found this gift idea useful.  Please feel free to share some of your holiday ideas.

Thanks for reading!