de keukenmeid: almond, hazelnut and poppy seed granola

New year. New beginnings. It's been more than several months since I've posted on this blog. And in that time, I've moved to Pittsburgh, PA with my boyfriend, Jacob and have had numerous and random food related jobs. I've worked as a lunch lady in a private school in Lower Manhattan, I've private cheffed for an eccentric old man in Soho. I've baked at a pretentious french bakery on Butler street in the cool kid part of Pittsburgh called Lawrenceville. And now I'm working part time as a baker and sous chef at a fancy Bed and Breakfast in the Shadyside neighborhood of Pittsburgh.

I've cooked plenty at our new home, but I haven't hunkered down and really put together a recipe to post about. I thought I'd ease into the new year with a simple granola recipe that's healthy, fast and super delicious. And so much cheaper than buying all- ready made granola. There are a million different ways you can do this recipe. I basically just made it according to what I had in the cupboards. I like my granola with a lot of texture and spice, therefore I added two kinds of nuts (almond and hazelnut), raisins, poppy seeds for something a little different, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. And then I sweetened it all up with a bit of maple syrup. This granola is great served atop a big dollop of greek yogurt.

recipe:
2 cups old fashioned rolled oats (not the instant kind)
1/4 cup hazelnuts
1/4 cup blanched and sliced almonds
1/4 cup raisins
1 tablespoon poppy seeds
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon salt
about a 1/4 cup maple syrup (depending on how sweet you want it)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.

Mix all ingredients into a medium sized bowl until oats are evenly coated. Spread onto a large baking sheet and cook for about 12 minutes or until nuts begin to brown and get fragrant.

Let cool for five minutes. Sprinkle on top of yogurt or mix with almond milk as an awesome heart-healthy cereal.