Favorite Granola

This is our favorite granola recipe, adapted from Alton Brown's recipe here: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/granola-recipe/index.html.

Ingredients:
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup pecans
1 cup shredded sweet coconut
1/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup (I usually put in a little extra)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins

1. Preheat oven to 250.
2. Combine oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar.
3. Mix maple syrup, oil and salt in separate bowl until well combined, then add to the other bowl and mix evenly.
4. Pour onto sheet pans and cook for an hour, stirring every 15 minutes until evenly browned.
5. Add raisins after baking and store in airtight container.

I love eating this with fresh fruit for breakfast with a little bit of milk.

Lamb, Apricot, and Olive Tagine

Truly one of the most unique and delicious things I've ever made. I'm hesitant to share this because people think I'm some sort of gourmet chef when I serve this... and now you all know how easy it is!

Serves 4| Hands-On Time: 30m| Total Time: 8hr 30m

Ingredients

• 1 1/2  pounds  lamb shoulder, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces *bet you could use beef stew meat to cut costs
• 4  carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
• 1  medium onion, chopped
• 1/2  cup  dried apricots, halved *Sometime I have used apricot puree instead of/in addition to halves. This thickens and intensifies the broth
• 1/2  cup  pitted green olives
• 2  cloves garlic, chopped
• 2  tablespoons  all-purpose flour *I use 1 T cornstarch to make it gluten-free
• 1  teaspoon  paprika
• 1  teaspoon  ground cumin
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground cinnamon
• 1/2  teaspoon  ground ginger
• kosher salt and black pepper
• 1  cup  couscous *I serve over quinoa. You could also use potatoes or rice.
• chopped pistachios, fresh cilantro leaves, and lemon wedges, for serving

Directions

1. In a 4- to 6-quart slow cooker, mix together the lamb, carrots, onion, apricots, olives, garlic, flour, paprika, cumin, cinnamon, ginger, 1 teaspoon salt, ¼ teaspoon pepper, and ½ cup water.
2. Cover and cook until the lamb and vegetables are tender, on low for 7 to 8 hours or on high for 4 to 5 hours (this will shorten total recipe time).
3. Ten minutes before serving, cook the couscous according to the package directions. Serve the lamb on the couscous with the pistachios, cilantro, and lemon wedges.

Original post: http://www.realsimple.com/food-recipes/browse-all-recipes/lamb-tagine-recipe-00100000074132/index.html