ground cinnamon Archives

Homemade Granola With Quinoa & Coconut Chips

May 4, 2016 by Kristin

Can you believe it’s been over two years since I’ve made my favorite granola recipe?? The same recipe that I’ve raved about a lot lately. As if I made it all the time. As if I made it just the other day..

I parked myself in the kitchen over the weekend and whipped up a batch. I munched here, I munched there. I made granola desserts with milk, strawberries, and bananas. I made açaí smoothie bowls topped with granola, mango, strawberries and bananas. And before I knew it, I was left with crumbs. I had eaten my way through a seemingly impossible-to-finish jar of granola. And two years later, I’m just as pleased with this granola recipe as I was from the very start.

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Strawberry, Raspberry & Fig Skillet Crumble

August 9, 2015 by Kristin

One of the major downsides of traditional cast iron pans {other than, but related to, how difficult they are to clean} is how you have to commit to savory cooking. I’m never able to get them clean enough after searing steaks, cooking bacon, or grilling veggies to use them for sweets. For this reason alone, I’ve never experimented with skillet desserts.

When I received the enameled cast iron pan pictured below, I immediately thought of how perfectly over-medium eggs would cook in this non-stick, high-heat resistant pan. And after I scooped out my eggs {and a few turkey sausage links}, the pan cleaned up so easily that a skillet dessert seemed like the next logical use.

A skillet dessert with strawberries, raspberries, and figs topped with a brown sugar and almond crumble came to mind. And even though I couldn’t wait the 30 or so minutes to let it cool before digging in and taking pictures, it turned out better than I could have ever imaged. Topped with vanilla bean ice cream, I’d take this crumble over pie any day!

If you’re interested in winning an enameled cast iron pan of your own, the giveaway for this pan is open for another two days!

Recipe below adapted from this recipe and this recipe.

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Peach & Pecan Chia Seed Pudding

June 11, 2014 by Kristin

If I had to choose between ice cream and pudding, it would be pudding all day, every day. And any kind of {homemade} pudding – chocolate, vanilla, pistachio, tapioca, rice. I like it all, but rarely have it in the house.

Naturally, the discovery of chia seed pudding blew my mind. How a fiber and protein packed seed could taste so similarly to tapioca was beyond me. This treat quickly became my new favorite thing to pick up from Snap Kitchen as a mid-afternoon snack.

The ingredient label was simple enough that I knew I could recreate at home. Sweetened with dates, seasoned with vanilla and cinnamon, and garnished with peaches and pecans – this chia seed pudding is wonderful for both breakfast and dessert alike.

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Homemade Granola

April 4, 2014 by Kristin

I’ve been a recipe brainstorming machine lately, trying to come up with the perfect mango recipe for the National Mango Board‘s newest mango cookbook. I thought of the perfect cocktail. I consulted with my favorite bartender. And then…

I found out they were eliminating the cocktail section of the book. I was with a brand new bottle of gin and I was bummed. Things could have been worse. But I quickly morphed my mango green tea cocktail into a dessert.

I whipped up some mango mousse, added green tea simple syrup {which tasted divine}, and took a bite of the most disappointing dessert ever. I put my creation in the fridge and went about my day.

When I returned home I went straight to the fridge {as I often do} and was hungry enough to take a bite of the mousse. I had a lightbulb moment. This wasn’t a good dessert because it wasn’t sweet enough, strong enough. But it had the potential to be an awesome breakfast.

I whipped up some mousse sans green tea syrup. I whipped up some homemade granola. I came to the realization homemade granola knocks the socks off of store bought granola. And I successfully combined the granola with the mousse to make a super yum mango mousse breakfast parfait!

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