Get Yer Granola

The granola column is set to run on Wednesday, July 5th. Hopefully, you all will have the day off--after all, it is el Cinco de Julio.

I've taken lots of photos of this great granola and thought I'd share them. Also, I'm hoping to whet your appetites for the actual column.

This installment of Fork & Spoon took a while to write, mostly because I couldn't come up with a title I liked. I often start with a title--like "Ramania!"--and go from there. This time it took some brainstorming before the Spoonstress finally came up with a decent one: Granola with Gusto.

Check it out Wednesday. Happy Cuatro y Cinco de Julio!

Granola-La-Land

I made the batch of granola and have been enjoying the results. It's a sizable process with an accompanying mess, but it's also fun.

To get the 20-serving batch in the oven, I had to squeeze two cookie sheets on each tier. It was a bit tight, but it worked. While I can't say the house was filled with a pleasant odor, four hours later there was granola.

And granola we've been eating. The Spoonstress and I are going through the stuff like winter squirrels. I'd tell you how superb it tastes, but my cheeks are too full of granola.

Friends and family be forewarned—I can see this making a great holiday present. But fear not, I’ll probably have made a new batch by then.

Grains of Truth

I'm back from my honeymoon and have decided the next column should focus on something edible from that time. No, it won't be champagne--The Spoonstress doesn't even like the stuff.

The most consistant source of culinary pleasure from that time came from host Suky's homemade granola at the Berkshires B & B where we stayed, Stonover Farm. Each morning, we were able to spoon our own ratios of granola, yogurt and fruit salad. Yum.

But, I should say, that delight was only the precursor to the hot breakfast of the farm's eggs made to order. While Suky is the Queen of Granola, her husband Tom specializes in goat cheese and mushroom omelettes with thick slabs of bacon on the side. They're amazing, but not exactly something that fits into our morning routine.

So it would be granola. Faster than the speed of e-mail, I now have the recipe from Suky and am busy buying bulk ingredients. While the honeymoon may be over, its breakfasts are not. Now, if I could only get someone to make me an omelette and bacon every day.