Maple Nut Granola

The other night, my dad was talking about how he didn't have much to eat in the morning besides packaged cereal. He said he wanted something healthy and asked me if I would make granola. So I came up with this granola. There is no processed sugar or even honey in it, just pure maple. I got kudos for it from Leah and dad, so that's a sign that it must be pretty darn delicious :)

Maple Nut Granola 

6 1/2 cups rolled oats

1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup chopped pecans (you can use any type of nut)

1/2 cup hulled sunflower seeds

1 teaspoon fine ground sea salt (use a tad less if using iodized salt)
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg

1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/4 cup vegetable oil+3/4 cup applesauce

1 cup pure maple syrup

1 cup raisins (or dried cranberries, blueberries, cherries, etc.)

Directions

Preheat oven to 350°F.  In a large bowl, stir together oats, nuts, sunflower seeds, salt, vanilla, oil, applesauce, spices, and maple syrup. Spread mixture evenly in 2 large shallow baking pans (1 inch deep) and bake in upper and lower thirds of oven, stirring and switching position of pans halfway through baking, until golden brown, about 30-40 minutes total. Cool granola completely in pans on racks, then stir in dried fruit.

Black Bean Salsa

This salsa is wonderful. It is full of black beans, corn, tomatoes, onions, and cilantro. It is also really versatile, you can adjust the spices according to your taste. I made some homemade baked tortilla chips to go with it. Delish!

Black Bean Salsa

3 (15 ounce) cans black beans

16 ounce package frozen corn, thawed

2-3 large tomatoes, diced

1 small onion, diced

1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 tablespoons lime juice

2 tablespoon red wine vinegar

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon cumin

salt and pepper to taste

Directions

Combine all the ingredients together in a medium-sized bowl. Refrigerate overnight, or at least 4 hours or so (this allows all the flavors to mingle together). Serve with tortilla chips and guacamole.