Granola girl

We're back from vacation, ready to immerse ourselves in the very warm weather of home.  I tell my friends, now that the temperature is going up, we're REALLY saving money by not having air conditioning!  It's a weird sense of humor, I know.  The passive solar cooling is still doing well -- we haven't gotten to August yet.

My sister -- who is not as extreme about money as I am -- says her girlfriends call her "crunchy granola girl".  So I thought I'd share this picture of a yogurt and granola face; my sons designed this breakfast for themselves (there is both raspberry and plain yogurt).

We make our own granola, using a recipe from the Tightwad Gazette, but there are lots of variations on-line.  It's very easy to make, and WAY cheaper than buying cereal in a store.  We use a whole container of oats; the granola expands, so we use a pair of former oat containers to store it when done.  The kids love it during the summer, when it's too hot for waffles or muffins.

Here's the recipe we use:

• 10 cups oats (one round container; NOT quick oats)
• 1 cup dry milk
• 3/4 tsp cinnamon
• 1-to-2 cups brown sugar
• 2/3 cup vegetable oil
• 1/2 cup honey

Mix this together and spread out on pans.  Bake at 375 degrees.  Cooking time is about 1/2 hour for me, but it depends on how thin you spread the mixture; it should get light brown, but not burnt.  After it's cooked, add raisins, or coconut, or other dried fruits as you like.