Category: Spices

Custom Granola Clusters

12/23/2020

I perfected this recipe so it'd have all my fave granola characteristics: the granola clusters we all crave, equal parts sweet and savory, crunchy but not tooth-cracking hard...and customizable! I've found that making this granola base, and then customizing with mix-ins later (when you serve) is the perfect solution because:

You can tailor it to each person’s individual taste
It retains its crunchy texture longer—the moisture in dried fruits can make jarred granola soggy over time, so the solution is to add when serving.

Things To Note:

You can make this vegan by omitting the egg whites, but be aware that the egg whites are the main secret to cluster formation, so you'll have smaller pieces.
The custom mix-ins are up to you. feel free to adjust quantities to taste, adding potent things like spices a little at a time so you don’t overdo.
to add spices later, use a strainer or sifter to get a fine, evenly distributed dusting. add little by little to taste.
You can certainly add the dry mix-ins to the entire batch (everything but the fruit) if the people in your crowd all have the same taste.
I prefer to roast the nuts separately (or even better, buy roasted nuts!) and mix in post-bake, instead of adding to the mixture before baking. that way, there's no danger of burning them.
Baking at a low temp (low and slow!) helps to ensure the granola will be crunchy in the middle, without burning the edges
The middle of the 'pancake' may take longer to bake. edges and thinner/smaller pieces will brown more quickly, so check oven often towards the end of baking and remove pieces as they brown to avoid burning.
this granola makes a great gift! you can package it in a small jar or gift bag, with mix-ins tailored to each individual, and tie with ribbon and gift tag!
this’d be a delicious addition to your Christmas Day breakfast. Incredible with Greek yogurt, and of course, jarfaits!

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Spicy Stamped Cookies

1/22/2019

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Cookie stamps are all the rage right now, but you don't need to spend any money! look through your kitchen drawers and you'll find creative ways to add texture to these cookies. and maybe in the process you can get a head start on spring cleaning...? um, ok maybe not. bake these cookies instead—WAAAY more fun.

Everyday kitchen tools make awesome cookie stamps. (see photo at bottom) BTW if you want any of the cookies stamps pictured at the bottom of this post, they're in my amazon shop.

I updated the recipe with a vegan option. you'll see it mentioned in the ingredients below. check the label of your plant based butter--if it has salt (almost all do), then adjust the salt amount accordingly, or skip entirely.

Spices courtesy of Burlap & Barrel.

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lemon poppy seed sugar cookies

11/24/2018

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Yield: About 3 dozen 2.5" cookies

Dough Ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 egg
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 tbsp lemon extract
zest of one lemon
2 tbsp poppy seeds
2.75-3 cups all-purpose flour

Icing Ingredients:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
6-7 tbsp lemon juice (about two lemons)
4 tsp meringue powder (optional—use if you want icing to firm up completely, which is a good idea for presentation purposes if you plan to gift them. i like Wilton)

Toppings:
2 tbsp poppy seeds
zest of one lemon, air-dried completely

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glazed candied ginger cookies

10/14/2018

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Yield: About 30 cookies

cookie ingredients
1 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 tsp baking soda
1 ½ tsp ground ginger
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp freshly ground nutmeg
1 egg
3 tbsp molasses
2 cups flour

ginger sugar mix ingredients
⅓ cup turbinado sugar
½ tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp coarse sea salt

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glazed pumpkin spice cookies

10/14/2018

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Yield: About 3 dozen 2.5" cookies

cookie ingredients:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup light brown sugar, packed
3/4 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt (vegan: reduce/skip the salt if your butter contains salt)
3 tbsp pumpkin spice mix (recipe below)
1 egg (vegan: 1 flax egg)
2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

glaze ingredients:
2 cups confectioners' sugar
6 tbsp warm water
pinch salt
3/4 tsp pumpkin spice mix (recipe below)

pumpkin spice mix ingredients:
3 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp ginger
1 ½ tsp nutmeg
1 ½ tsp cloves
3/4 tsp allspice
3/8 tsp cardamom

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Custom Granola Clusters

Spicy Stamped Cookies

lemon poppy seed sugar cookies

glazed candied ginger cookies

glazed pumpkin spice cookies

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