Aside from family and the experiences associated with, the ladies and experiences living in the Martha Cook Building while in school at the University of Michigan, had a huge part in shaping my life and the adult I would become. That all has been written about in my bio and in previous blog posts over the last three years plus and will be, as long as I live, etched on my mind. A few weeks back the ORIGINAL FAB 5 of us got together, as we all turn 60 sometime this year. Martha Cook had, and may still have, their own dietician who created healthy and wholesome meals. In the years I lived there Jan McGrath, our dietician had a Xeroxed copy for us to purchase at the end of the year. Dinner times were a nice time to come together, with a prayer that was sung before dinner and we ate our sit down dinners family style, on Monday-Thursdays with the rest of the meals during the week, cafeteria style. Sit down dinners were not mandatory and if you had to eat early or late, there were ample accommodations made. My friends and I worked occasionally as waitresses for extra spending money and we also looked forward to our meals around the beautifully set tables with silver flatware with the Martha Cook Building front door inscribed on it. I could go on and on of the history of this unique all women’s dorm on the campus built in 1912 with funds from U of M Law School Alum William Cook, to honor his mother, Martha Cook, but I’ll leave that up to you to look up. The most valuable part of my experience there was the friendships we enjoyed and have maintained all these years later.
When we were gathered together, one of the gals brought in a large Ziplock bag, Martha Cook Granola. I’ll have to admit, when she mentioned bringing it, asking me if I minded, I thought, that’s nice, but I didn’t think much else as I was preparing for our gathering, designing t-shirts as party favors and seeing to our plans for the celebratory weekend.
When I sampled the granola she brought on that Saturday morning, it brought back memories of sitting in the dining room with the large windows facing the Law Quad with my MCB buddies as we began our days. The granola was delicious and I forgot about what makes this granola unique to me. Usually, I think of Granola as hard and crunchy. Well, this granola is soft and chewy. Now, if you prefer a crunchier version, bake it longer for a crispier texture. I have over cooked it and that’s what you get. Normally, I’m not a fan of granola, however, this texture I just enjoy so much. The Granola was perfect and the days after my friends departed, every morning, I had a little serving and was reminded of our time together and the time spent together all those years ago before our adult lives started.
Enough of all of that. Let’s get to the star of the show, GRANOLA. I like to get all ingredients out and measured and pot and cookie sheet out, pre heat oven too. For the nuts, fee free to omit. Choose the nuts you prefer or have on hand, I used walnuts, but consider pecans, peanuts or hazelnuts. For dried fruit, again, feel free to omit or use anything from cranberries, apricots, cherries, dates or raisins. I had everything on hand to make this. I only had a little over 5 cups of Old Fashioned Oats, so I made up the remaining 3/4 cup with Quick Oats, but I would not use that unless it was only for a small amount, as I am not sure how they would hold up while baking, maybe ok, but I’m not for sure, so I didn’t want to waste all those ingredients if I wasn’t for sure. Store in an airtight container. My MCB Buddy’s recipe was made on Wednesday and I ate the last portion on Friday so it lasted a little over a week. I think this just maybecome a staple in YOUR kitchen if you are a Granola fan. It will now be a staple in our kitchen and may just be the start of many…
Great Days 🌼
Ingredients
-6 cups Old Fashioned Rolled Oats
-1/3 cup shredded coconut unsweetened
-1/2 cup wheat germ
-3/4 cup nuts of choice, I used walnuts (peanuts, pecans, or hazelnuts)
-1/4 cup sesame seeds
-1/4 cup sunflower seeds
-1/2 cup Canola Oil
-1/2 cup honey
-2/3 cup natural peanut butter
-1 teaspoon pure vanilla
-OPTIONAL: 1/3 cup total, dried fruit (I use a combo or one of cherries, dates or apricots)
-Cooking spray (like PAM) for baking sheet
Method
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and measure out all ingredients.
2. Place all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and blend with a wooden spoon or the like, until well blended, set aside.
3. Place canola oil, honey, peanut butter in a small sauce pan and heat only until blended well, as in peanut butter is not lumpy and mixture is smooth. DO not over heat or boil. Now add the vanilla and stir. Remove from heat.
4. Fold heated mixture into the dry granola ingredients in the mixing bowl and then spread mixture out onto a baking sheet sprayed lightly with a cooking spray like PAM.
5. Roast granola for 15-20 minutes depending on your oven. If you prefer granola crunchier, bake on the longer time, but do not let it get too brown. Remember, it will get harder as it cools so don’t over bake.
6. If using dried fruit, add it now and fold into mixture. For chewier fruit add after baking. For less chewy fruit, bake fruit along with granola. Let mixture cool before storing in an airtight container.
7. Makes about 11 cups of delicious granola… Enjoy 🥣
