Homemade Granola

2 cups rolled oats
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon coconut oil
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/3 cup dried cranberries


Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, toss the oats with cinnamon and salt.

In a medium bowl, stir together the oil, honey, brown sugar, and vanilla. Whisk until completely combined.

Pour the honey mixture over the oats mixture and use your hands to combine them. Gather up some of the mixture in each hand and make a fist. Repeat until all of the oats are coated with the honey mixture.

Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet. Spread it out evenly, but leave a few clumps here and there for texture. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and use a metal spatula to lift and flip the granola. Sprinkle the nuts over the granola and return the baking sheet to the oven.

Bake for 5 minutes, then remove from the oven and use a metal spatula to lift and flip the granola. Return the baking sheet to the oven. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven. Let cool completely.

Sprinkle the dried cranberries over the granola and use your hands to transfer it to an airtight container. The granola will keep for 1 week.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

1 2/3 cups flour
1 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp ground cloves
3/4 tsp. mace
(may substitute pumpkin pie spice for individual spices)
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup canned pumpkin
2 eggs
1/2 cup butter - melted
1/2 cup sliced almonds
6 ounces chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 degrees . Put almonds on a baking sheet or pie pan and bake about 5 min., just until lightly browned. Grease 12 cup muffin pan or line with muffin papers. Thoroughly mix flour, sugar, spice, baking soda, baking powder, and salt in a large bowl. Break eggs into another bowl. Add pumpkin and butter to eggs and whisk until well blended. Stir in chocolate chips and almonds. Pour over dry ingredients and fold in just until moistened. Do not over mix. Scoop into tins and bake 20-25 minutes. Do not over-bake. Test with toothpick. They should still seem a little underdone when removed from the oven.

Review: I love fall time and being able to make pumpkin everything! These were really good and fallish. They were better when they cooled off rather than hot out of the oven though.

Cinnamon Cresent Twists- (ht)

1 package (8 ounces) refrigerated crescent rolls
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
2 tablespoons butter, softened
1 teaspoons ground cinnamon
Glaze:

1/4 cup confectioners’ sugar
1 tablespoon butter, melted
1 to 1-1/2 teaspoons hot water
Separate crescent roll dough into four rectangles; press seams to seal.
In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, butter and cinnamon; spread over two rectangles. Top with remaining two rectangles.
Starting from a long side, cut each rectangle into three strips (I use my pizza cutter to do this). Twist each strip several times; seal ends together.
Place on greased baking sheets. Bake at 375° for 12-14 minutes or until golden brown.
Immediately remove to wire racks. Combine glaze ingredients; brush over warm twists.

Recipe from Real Mom Kitchen

Apple Streusel Muffins- (ht)

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup white sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 dashes of nutmeg
2 eggs
1 1/4 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups chopped apples
1 1/2 cups grated apples
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C). Grease a 12 cup muffin pan (I use the reusable muffin liners)

In a medium bowl, mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg. It will be a light tan color

In a large bowl, beat together butter, sugars and eggs until smooth. Mix in vanilla. Stir in grated apples followed by apple chunks, and gradually blend in the flour mixture. This ends up an extremely thick batter, but the extra grated apples which releases moisture into the muffins as the muffin cooks

Spoon the mixture into the prepared muffin pan. In a small bowl, mix brown sugar, flour and cinnamon. Cut in butter until mixture is like coarse crumbs. Sprinkle over tops of mixture in muffin pan

Bake 20 minutes in the preheated oven, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of a muffin comes out clean. Allow to sit 5 minutes before removing muffins from pan. Cool on a wire rack