An Inspired Breakfast

     We recently spent several days in Healdsburg, California and fell in love with that little town and the surrounding area.  Hey, what's not to love about wine country?  I found our hotel online and after viewing photos of the Hotel Healdsburg it was a no brainer -- that was the only place to stay! 

     One of the things I enjoyed most about the  Hotel Healdsburg was the breakfast served in the lobby each morning.  I could not get enough of the yogurt served with a nutty granola made in the hotel's kitchen, and all of it topped with big scoops of fresh grapes and pineapple.  It's the kind of breakfast I like to make at home for myself, but at the hotel I was sitting by this gorgeous fire while I ate.  (And don't think I haven't already thought about converting our wood-burning fireplace at home into the beautiful gas burner above.)  I'm sure the staff was thinking... How long can one person sit and drink coffee and read the paper?  This is my way of relaxing.

     So, on my return home I had to make my own version of the granola I ate every morning in Healdsburg.  I think I did a pretty good job at recreating it, too.  The only thing I did not include was peanuts which their granola had.  Serve with a cream-on-top, full fat, plain yogurt, and lots of fruit.  Yum!

                               

                                          + My GRaNOLa + +

• 1/2 cup dark molasses
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup water
• 1/2 cup creamy natural peanut butter
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
• 5 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup coconut
• 2/3 cup wheat germ
• 1 cup slivered almonds
• 1 cup chopped pecans
1.  Preheat the oven to 325˚F.
2.  Combine the molasses, canola oil, water, peanut butter, vanilla, and cinnamon in a saucepan.  Bring just to the boil, whisking to make a smooth mixture.  Remove from the heat.
3.  In a large mixing bowl, combine the rolled oats, coconut, wheat germ, almonds and pecans.  Pour the molasses mixture over the dry ingredients and stir well, making sure the liquid is evenly distributed.  The dry ingredients should be completely coated with sauce.
4.  Spread the oatmeal-molasses mixture evenly onto a jelly-roll pan and place on the middle rack of the preheated oven.  Bake for approximately 30 minutes, stirring often.  The mixture around the edges will brown more quickly than the middle.

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