Right Now: the first Fashion+Food post!

Over the July 4th weekend, my sis and I visited some friends in Boston! I miss it so much. In comparison to NYC, it might as well be the countryside with its lush greenery and quaint streets. Here was my look on Saturday- (Granola Recipe follows!!)

"Arrowed!" Headband - ChainChainChang Designs
Liquid Leggings - Members Only
"Limited Addiction" Nail Polish - Essie

Please hype if you like it! Yes, I'm pretty much 1/2 naked all summer.

And now for the granola!! The key to making granola is to bake it at a low temperature for quite a long while, but I'll explain it in greater detail. Here's what your delectable bite size crunchy morsels will consist of:

whole oats, assorted nuts, honey, chocolate chips, brown sugar, dried cranberries, butter, salt, vanilla extract, cinnamon are the important bits. Feel free to toss in whatever you see in your pantry that looks granola appropriate.



Preheat your oven to 250 degrees. You'll need two bowls. Combine the oats, nuts (in this case, I used sunflower seeds and pecans), cinnamon, and salt in the larger one.



Melt 1 WHOLE stick of butter! Trust me on this one, it makes life more fun.



Zap it in the microwave until it's all melty goodness. In another smaller bowl, stir together the honey, brown sugar, vanilla. Let the melted butter cool for a bit, then combine with the honey mixture.



Pour the butter mixture into the bowl with the oats and nuts. Stir to combine and take in the pre-baked goodness. Almost there!



Spread in a semi-thin layer on two baking sheets. Bake for about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours at 250 degrees Fahrenheit, stirring every 20 minutes or so. Taste a few times until you're sure the oats are crunchy. What about the cranberries and chocolate chips? Don't worry, they're joining the party later. And they'll be bringing the good beer.



Let the goods cool and toss in the dried cranberries and chocolate chips. Look what you did! Amazing! Store it in an airtight container. Consider keeping it in the fridge if you live in a hotter climate or if you're just feeling the New York city July heat like me. It will keep for two whole weeks.



Serving suggestion: Spread some homemade granola on top of a bowl of organic vanilla yogurt. Drizzle some extra honey on top. Yum. You deserve it! I know I do. I deserve a bowl every single morning. Sometimes for a midnight snack, too.



If you end up giving the recipe a try, please let me know how it turned out!

Here's the exact ingredients with a cheat sheet of directions:

Ingredients:
3 cups Whole Oats
2 cups Nuts (Almonds, walnuts, peanuts, or sunflower seeds)
1/4 cup Honey
1/2 cup Chocolate chips (optional)
2 tablespoons Brown Sugar
1/2 cup Dried Cranberries
1 stick Butter
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1 and 1/2 tablespoon Vanilla extract
1 teaspoon Cinnamon

Preheat your oven to 250 degrees. You'll need two bowls. Combine the oats, nuts, cinnamon, and salt in the larger one.

Melt 1 whole stick of butter. In another smaller bowl, stir together the honey, brown sugar, vanilla. Let the melted butter cool for a bit, then combine with the honey mixture.

Pour the butter mixture into the bowl with the oats and nuts. Stir to combine.

Spread in a semi-thin layer on two baking sheets. Bake for about 1 hour to 1 1/2 hours, stirring every 20 minutes or so. Taste a few times until you're sure the oats are crunchy. Let the goods cool and toss in the dried cranberries and chocolate chips.

Store it in an airtight container. Consider keeping it in the fridge if you live in a hotter climate and it will keep for two whole weeks.

Serving suggestion: Spread some homemade granola on top of a bowl of organic vanilla yogurt. Drizzle some extra honey on top.


<3 Catherine