birthday scarf

birthdays

 It's my husband's birthday this weekend so what's a girl make her guy?  A scarf and a hot water bottle cozy that's what!  HA.

Well, poor guy.  He will get the Warm Friend (pattern coming soon), but the scarf will be wrapped "as is" and finished as soon as, well, as soon as I finish it!

Steve chose the yarn for his scarf while we were traveling in Germany last month.  I know they sell this yummy Lang Cashmere here in the states but it was so much fun to have him pick it out and purchase it there.  It's like I am knitting the memories of our trip into the scarf.  I love having a memory of where I buy the yarn and the places I knit the project.  

I made Banana Bread last weekend and it has been a friend every morning this week with my coffee.  Coffee, yarn and banana bread, well it just seems to be the perfect combo.

I'll be baking a cake later today.  Birthday cake goes well with knitting, too!   

Happy weekend!

*****

What I'm watching:  Fool me once on Netflix.  

What I'm reading:  One Italian Summer.

homemade granola

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Hiya friends!
Well, I finally perfected my favorite kind of granola, and I want to share it with you.
You see, I like chunky, yet a little flaky, granola.  You know the kind.  The kind where you don't make a mess when you go to shove a big handful into your mouth. The kind where you can grab a chunk and shove that into your mouth instead!   I've been working on this for years.  Years I tell you!  And, the magical day I made a batch that was just the right consistency, I said OHYA!  Write this one down girl!
{the dry ingredients}
But, here's the thing.  I use all ingredients from Trader Joes.  Which is great for those of you that have one near you. It's also great, because the only thing you will need to measure will be the coconut oil and the honey.  But for those that don't have a Trader Joes near you, I will tell you the amount in each bag.  Oh!  The only other possible bummer may be that this recipe makes A LOT.  However, we have found that it freezes beautifully.  The other great thing is that you will have enough to give to your friends you knit with!  Or heck, those non knitters are worthy too.  ☺️
{tthe liquid ingredients}
Okay.  You are gonna need a big roaster for this amount.  You know the one you use for your turkey? Yep.  That's the one.  If you don't have one, I"m sure a friend does!
So, dump all of the dry ingredients into the roasting pan.  And give it a quick stir with your clean hands.  Easy peasy.
Next, mix the melted coconut oil together with the honey and pour it over the mixture.
And you guessed it.  Mix it with your hands.  This part is a little messy.  And sticky.  But don't be scared.  It washes off rather well.
Next you are going to bake in a 350˚ preheated oven.  It's gonna take about an hour.  So leave yourself enough time.  Here's the important part.  You are gonna need to stir every 15 minutes to get it evenly browned.  So get your knitting ready, pour yourself a cup of tea, and set your alarm for 15 minute intervals.  At the hour mark  (your 4th time stirring) I start stirring every 3 minutes or so.  Just to get it that right golden color.
My favorite way to eat this these days is on açaí bowls or any smoothie bowl.  (Do you know how to make those?  Super easy.  Let me know if you need help with those.  Maybe I should do a blog post on the how to's for a bowl.)  But you can eat it in a bowl with your favorite milk, over yogurt or ice cream.  And there is always the just grab a big handful.  The skies the limit!

Ingredients:
1 bag Rolled Oats (Gluten Free) 10 cups
1 bag unsalted, dry toasted Pecan Pieces / 2 cups
1 bag unsalted dry toasted Sliced Almonds / 2 cups
1 bag organic unsweetened flake coconut / 1 3/4 cups
1 bag organic unsweetened coconut chips / 1 3/4 cups
1/2 bag 50% less salt roast & salted cashews / 2 cups
1 bag dried cranberries (or your favorite dried fruit)  /  2 cups
Liquid Ingredients:
1 1/2 cups triple filtered coconut oil
1 3/4 cup honey

Directions:
Combine all bags of ingredients except for the cranberries into a roasting pan.  Add 1/2 bag of cashews.  Mix with your hands.  
Melt coconut oil in the microwave.  Add honey.  Stir to blend as well as possible.  Pour mixture over dry ingredients.  Stir well with your hands. 

Bake at 350˚ for an hour stirring every 15 minutes with a wooden spoon.  Remove from oven and add the bag of cranberries.  Stir to combine.  Bake an additional 3 minutes or so (depending on your oven) until your granola is evenly browned to that golden color.  Watch carefully as to not burn.

Remove from oven.  Press down granola firmly into pan.  Let cool.  

After cool, break apart pieces.  Store in an airtight container.  You can use freezer bags to store in smaller portions. 

Enjoy!  

glorious green

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Happy St. Patricks Day sweet friends!
Have  you seen SkeinCocaine's new line of fibre goodness?  I had to get myself a skein of the Camo colorway.  I'm going to knit a pair of socks.  Can't wait to see how this yarn knits up.
After my last post, sweet Susan asked for my green smoothie bowl recipe, so I thought I would share in case anyone else was interested.  I am not a measurer when I cook.  I just usually throw things together.  I love how you can do that when you cook.  (Baking, not so much!)  However, I know the importance of measuring and how much easier it is to share recipes!  So, I made one today and made sure to measure as I went.  ðŸ˜Š

Glorious Green Smoothie Bowl ::

 1 frozen banana
1/2 pear (or apple)
1 date
1 cup packed spinach (or 3 kale leaves discarding center stem)
1 TBLS water

Blend in Vitamix until smooth, making sure not to blend for too long, as you want it to remain cold.

I like to add granola to the bottom of the bowl before the smoothie.  Top with granola or fruit or seeds or nuts, or anything your little heart desires.  I mean your big heart!  Top with whatever your giant, beautiful heart desires.  I like to add granola, (thank you for this delicious granola sweet Suzanne!) bee pollen, and sometimes fresh sliced banana.

Enjoy!