Maple Olive Oil Granola

This parenting thing, man, it's for real. I was so cavalier about it all through my pregnancy. I've been babysitting since I was, like, eleven years old, I thought, I've got this. Let me just say, I don't think there is anything that could have prepared me for the crazy balancing act of motherhood.



Most recently, I've learned that anything some doctor can think up to write in a book, they can find a study to back it up. Seriously. A great example: Kids should be left to cry vs. Kids shouldn't be left to cry. So you read those two articles (or two books corresponding to the respective parenting strategies), and then for weeks your brain whirrs nonstop, trying to figure out what is best for your baby and your family. You find yourself unable to think or talk about anything but the problem you're currently trying to solve. And then as soon as you think you've got it figured out... they grow out of it. WHAT. I've never been great at improvising or relinquishing control, but this takes "rolling with the punches" to a whole new level.



Things that have helped: Prayer. Google*. Tea and wine and chocolate. Getting outside every day. Hilarious mom friends, in real life and online. And a simple morning routine that involves, in no particular order, coffee, a shower, getting dressed in real clothes, minimal makeup, and a good breakfast. Good breakfasts are not to be missed, and that's what I'd like to share with you today. Homemade granola so delicious it (almost) makes you forget you were up every two hours last night. I like to sprinkle a few tablespoons of granola over a bowl of unsweetened cereal (like this one), top with sliced fruit and douse with whole milk. It's also fantastic with plain whole milk yogurt.

*Google is not always helpful. 

Maple Olive Oil Granola
adapted from Orangette

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup raw hulled pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
1 cup raw pecan halves
1 cup raw sunflower seeds
1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes/chips (the big ones that look like shavings)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
3/4 cup Grade B real maple syrup
1/2 cup olive oil

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees, and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Combine the oats, pumpkin seeds, pecans, sunflower seeds, coconut, salt, and brown sugar in a large bowl and stir to mix. Mix together the maple syrup and olive oil (I measured mine directly into a Pyrex measuring cup and mixed in there) and pour over the oat mixture, stirring to coat. Spread the mixture evenly on the prepared baking sheet and bake for about 45 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes, until evenly golden. Allow to cool completely before storing.