Alton Brown Granola Bars

I want to try these next:

Ingredients

• 8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats, approximately 2 cups
• 1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds, approximately 1/2 cup
• 3 ounces sliced almonds, approximately 1 cup
• 1 1/2 ounces wheat germ, approximately 1/2 cup
• 6 ounces honey, approximately 1/2 cup
• 1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar, approximately 1/4 cup packed
• 1-ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 6 1/2 ounces chopped dried fruit, any combination of apricots, cherries or blueberries

Directions

Butter a 9 by 9-inch glass baking dish and set aside. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Spread the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ onto a half-sheet pan. Place in the oven and toast for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.

In the meantime, combine the honey, brown sugar, butter, extract and salt in a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. Cook until the brown sugar has completely dissolved.

Once the oat mixture is done, remove it from the oven and reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. Immediately add the oat mixture to the liquid mixture, add the dried fruit, and stir to combine. Turn mixture out into the prepared baking dish and press down, evenly distributing the mixture in the dish and place in the oven to bake for 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares and store in an airtight container for up to a week

World's Best Granola

Seriously.  My kids wanted it for dessert.  Thank you to Charlie for sending it to me! I am now an Alton Brown fan!  The only modifications I did were to use dried cranberries instead of raisins [dried cherries was also listed as an alternative by Charlie] and I added 1/8 cup of flax seed.

Ingredients

• 3 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup cashews
• 3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.
In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar.
In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.
Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. Add raisins and mix until evenly distributed.

Candy Flavored Vodka

Must try this! Thanks to Leslie for the link! When I make some, I'll post about it.

Applesauce

The kids  & I made applesauce the other day w/the locally grown apples we got from The Produce Box.  We had 3 different kinds of apples too.  It was extremely easy:

Core, peel, & cut apples. [I found several recipes that said you didn't have to peel. So I didn't, but next time, I would. Yes, the skin just falls off eventually, but what a pain to dig through it all to find them.]
Cover w/water & bring to a boil, reduce heat & stir to prevent bottom apples from burning.
Add sugar, ground cloves, cinnamon & nutmeg to taste.
When apples are soft, mash w/potato masher.

Let cool & enjoy!