recipe: highly addictive homemade granola

Miss Mollywood wanted to make something for her daddy for Christmas, so I suggested this recipe. Secretly I’d been wanting to try it, and Scott loves granola.

It was a huge hit! Well, the second batch was, at least. The first batch was burnt to a crisp under the given cooking temperature and time…. which led me to some tweaks and our very own version of this breakfast deliciousness. We’ve made a batch every week since Christmas. Perfect served with almond milk and fresh fruit.

Homemade Granola
makes about 5 1/2 cups 

4 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted
1/3 cup chopped walnuts
1/3 cup chopped pecans
1/3 cup sliced almonds
1/3 cup pepitas (pumpkin seeds)
1/3 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup honey
scant 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. sea salt

Preheat oven to 300. Spray a large rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray. In a large bowl, combine oats, nuts, cinnamon, brown sugar and salt. Melt coconut oil in a small microwavable measuring cup on half power. Pour over oat mixture. In the same measuring cup, measure the honey and pour over the oats. Stir well with a spatula until all the oats and nuts seem covered. Spread onto baking sheet and bake for about 20 minutes, stirring every 5 minutes or so, until golden brown. *watch carefully* because it will go from toasty to burnt very quickly. It may still seem a little soft when it comes out of the oven but will get crispy as it cools. Keep stirring often while it cools to keep it from clumping and sticking to the pan.

If you want, you can stir in dried fruit after it’s cooked and cooled. Store in an airtight container in the freezer to keep it crispy.

and ps: don’t let the coconut oil  scare you. I found mine at Publix in the natural foods. It’s in solid form (like shortening) but can be melted in the microwave. The ‘virgin’ coconut oil has the faint taste of coconut (and is delicious in this granola) and the regular coconut oil has a very neutral taste and doesn’t make it taste coconutty (is that a word?) at all. Either way, coconut oil is allegedly healthier for you than vegetable oil.

 

fresh start

Hi. Happy New Year to you.

I’ve been taking a little break (have you noticed?) and thinking about time. It’s a precious commodity these days and I want to invest each minute wisely.

Read the Bible today,  or blog? read the Bible.

Sit down and read with a child, or blog? read, always.

Go to the gym, or blog? gym, probably.

Clear out the sink full of dishes or blog? definitely blog.

So… this year? What will it look like here? It will still be broken and bohemian, that’s for sure. Beyond that, I don’t know. What shall we talk about, look into, learn? leave me a little comment with your thoughts.

 

recipe: ten minute tortellini soup

Can you even bear to think about eating after this weekend? I truly could not eat lunch today… but wanted to have something light for supper tonight. My mom just got Birmingham’s newest Junior League cookbook, Table of Contents and I browsed through it today while I was over visiting. If there’s one thing I know about those Junior League ladies, it’s that their cookbooks are always awesome.

This recipe caught my eye because it promised to have dinner on the table in 15 minutes. Sign me up for that! It called for cannelleni beans which I don’t love but I subbed navy beans and it worked just fine. Not only was this super fast and yummy, but my kids even gobbled it up- score!

Warm Tortellini Soup
makes 6 cups (served the 5 of us with leftovers)

4 cups low sodium chicken broth (=1 -32 oz. box of broth)
9 oz. fresh tortellini (cheese or chicken)
1- 15 oz. can cannellini  beans, drained and rinsed (I used Navy Beans)
1- 15 oz. diced Italian style tomatoes (with basil, garlic and oregano)
1/4 cup fresh chopped basil
1 tbsp + 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
salt and pepper to taste
freshly grated parmesan, for garnish

Bring chicken broth to a boil in a stockpot over medium high heat. Add pasta and cook 4 minutes. Stir in beans and tomatoes. Reduce heat to low and simmer 5 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in basil, balsamic vinegar and season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into bowls to serve and garnish with parmesan cheese.

And in case you ever wondered what my children do while I’m standing on the chair in my dining room trying to balance a bowl of soup on my hand and my camera in the other while taking  a picture of the soup up near the good light of the chandelier…, they each requested a photo be taken of them while I was up there. Jack would like you to know that he got a semi-automatic Nerf gun for Christmas. Thank you very much.

 

merry bohemian christmas

Liz and Brandon came for dinner last night. We had a delicious supper and pulled out all of the neighbor-teacher-office treats and spread them on the table for dessert.

Liz, who is always asking thoughtful questions (and never talking about herself) said, “So, have you had time to really stop and ponder Christmas yet?”

It struck me. Moved me. Because the answer this year is really no. I’ve been shopping and wrapping, packing and preparing, cooking and cleaning, but I haven’t taken the time to sit and ponder Christmas.

So, today? I will ponder Christmas. That’s what Mary did. She saw the goodness of God, delivering her despite her fears.  The good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Jesus Christ, the perfect Son of God, who in His great humility came as a helpless babe, so he could redeem us in our helplessness.

Good News. Great Joy.

Merry Christmas, friends. May you be touched by the peace of Christ and blessed beyond measure this Christmas.

More beautiful, thoughtful Christmas words here and here.

for your christmas listening pleasure

As I write this, Ginny is sitting on the floor nearby ‘scrapbooking’ and singing “It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas” to herself. It is so cute in her little four year old voice. We’ve been hitting the Christmas music hard this season, with the radio station playing non-stop Christmas in the car, and Spotify at home. (ps, if you don’t have Spotify, check it out… it’s awesome! and free!)

Here are my top five Christmas Albums this year:

1. Justin Bieber, Under the Mistletoe. Don’t judge. I don’t have Bieber Fever but I do love this cd.

fave songs: Under the Mistletoe, FaLaLa, Christmas Eve

2. Chris Tomlin, Glory in the Highest. Worshipful, uplifting.

fave songs: Winter Snow, Born That We May Have Life

3. Diana Krall, Christmas Songs. This is one smooth lady.

fave songs: Jingle Bells, Let it Snow, What are you doing New Year’s Eve?

4. Harry Connick, jr., Harry for the Holidays. A classic.

fave songs: Mary’s Little Boy Child, The Happy Elf

5. Elliott Yamin, My Kind of Holiday. Remember this guy from American Idol? This one cannot be found on Spotify or iTunes as far as I can tell…not sure what happened to it!? I just had to order a used copy on Amazon!

fave songs: This Christmas, Let’s Be Naughty (and save Santa the trip)

What are your favorite Christmas Albums? What do I need to add to my Christmas playlist this year?

just call me oprah

I loved Hayley’s guest post on the Nester… A Favorite Things Party? Yes, Please!

And, seriously? Oprah gave everyone a car. If I could give you a car, it would either be this:

or maybe this:

Are those anyone else’s dream cars? I remember thinking in high school, all I wanted was a Ford Probe or a Toyota Celica. Super classy.

I was very happy to have five wonderful friends enter my little giveaway- so guess what? YOU ALL WIN!! That’s right, I’m slipping a wee little package in the mail to Mary Craig and Janet and hand delivering to Sheri, Jane and Ellen! And y’all are getting a chocolate version too!

Thanks for entering… and Merry Christmas!

recipe: white chocolate nut candy

I know I say that everything I make is quick and easy, but it really is true. In addition to the angel ornaments, we’ll be giving a little bag of these goodies to our Sunday School teachers for Christmas- packaged in a cellophane gift bag with a fun Christmas ribbon, with the ornament attached. Make some today!

White Chocolate Nut Candy
makes about 7 dozen

1 – 24 oz. package vanilla flavored coating (I got this at Walmart in the baking section)
1- 18 oz. can salted mixed nuts (I take the Brazil Nuts out, eww.)
wax or parchment paper

Coarsely chop the ‘white chocolate’. Place in a large microwavable mixing bowl and melt on full power for 90 seconds. Stir. Continue melting in short intervals until smooth. Dump in the nuts and stir well. Drop by heaping teaspoonfuls onto wax paper and let set for about 45 minutes. Store in an airtight container. As a variation, you can also make it with milk or dark chocolate.

And now, for the first time in Broken Bohemian history: A GIVEAWAY! One lucky reader will receive a tasty package of these goodies on their doorstep in time for Christmas!

The Rules:
Open to US Residents only.  Giveaway ends at midnight on Sunday, December 18. If you live in town, I will hand deliver them. All you have to do is leave a comment below to be entered. You can get an EXTRA entry if you become a subscriber by email or on google reader- just leave an additional comment telling me you subscribed. If you’re already a subscriber, go ahead and let me know anyway. If you have a nut allergy, this is probably not the giveaway for you. This fabulous giveaway is sponsored by yours truly.  Have fun!

get crafty: pasta angel ornaments

I’m the daughter of a veteran. A veteran preschool teacher, that is. She is one. crafty. lady.  She also happens to be fearless when it comes to just going for it on crafty things. I, however, avoid being crafty because I am afraid of failure, too cheap to spend money and just generally lazy. But! My daughters, without knowing it, laid the craft smack down on me a few weeks ago. It went like this:

Girls: Mom, you’re Lali’s daughter, right? (Lali is my mom)
Me: Yes, I sure am.
Girls: Mama, how come Lali is so crafty, and you’re her daughter, but you’re not crafty at all? Why don’t you ever do crafts with us like she does?
Me: *crickets*

So, I’m rolling up my sleeves and channeling my inner Martha and we’re having us an old fashioned, handmade Christmas holiday over here at Grace Cottage. So far, I’ve made a wreath (thanks for the branches, e!) and these Snowman Cookies for Bug’s preschool class.

Yesterday, we made these adorable angel ornaments (inspired by Lali) for all of our Sunday School teachers. We are about to leave our precious, huge church and launch out with a ‘daughter’ church plant next month (and we are so excited!) We wanted to make them something special for our last Christmas there.

Here’s what you need:

Pasta: Rigatoni, Elbows and Bowties
Couscous (or tiny bird seed)
Glue gun AND craft glue
little wooden balls, 3/4 inch
thick metallic thread
metallic spray paint (I used Krylon ‘Champagne’)
small bowl
newspaper

Spread newspaper over your workspace. Use a hot glue gun to glue the ball to the top of the rigatoni. Then, hot glue two elbow noodles on the sides for arms. Pour 1/3 cup couscous in the small bowl. Cover the head with craft glue (in a hair pattern) and dip in the couscous to cover the glue. Let set on newspaper until the craft glue has mostly dried.

Next, cut a small length of thread (about 2 inches). Squirt a generous dot of hot glue on the angel’s back and press the ends of the thread in it, then press a bowtie on top.

The thread makes a ‘halo’ for the angel (sort of) but also gives you a spot to put a hook to hang the ornament.

Pull off any loose strings of hot glue. All that’s left to do is hit it with some spray paint! Be sure to spray from all angles, so you can get all the nooks and crannies.

Gloria in Excelsis Deo!

If you have little hands that want to ‘help’, you can have them sort through the pasta and remove cracked or broken pasta. They can also lay out little ‘sets’ of pasta for each angel in groups (one body, two arms, one bowtie) or hand you the wooden balls to glue on. They also really enjoy dipping the heads in the couscous!

Special thanks to our beloved babysitter and friend Lucy who came to spend the afternoon with us and helped us put these ornaments together. Thanks, Miss Woosie!

christmas at grace cottage

just a peek into our home this christmas season…

a Christmas Card Clothesline: little clothespins and twine over the door frame

preschool crafts: colorful and tasty!

looking back on visits with Santa. (a few years there were certain little girls who were having none of it. ahem.)

we’ve made goodies…

and gotten crafty. (tutorial post here)

we’re lighted, beaded, bowed and embellished…

and counting the days!

recipe: jalepeno cheese spread

If you’re looking for a quick and tasty appetizer to take to a Christmas or New Year’s party this year, look no further. I’m too late for Edie’s party but wanted to share this one with y’all.

This recipe comes from our hometown Junior League cookbook, Down By The Water. (PS: did I loan it to you? I cannot find my copy anywhere!) It is a funny combination of flavors but people always go crazy over it. It takes just a few minutes to throw together and travels well for a party.

It’s a short ingredient list: Cheese, Pecans, Scallions, Mayo, Hot Pepper Jelly and crackers (I used a few kinds of crackers because we needed to serve a lot of people). I am all about grating your own cheese but in this case, the pre-shredded holds up better. And, I didn’t love this pepper jelly (weird color and not very spicy) but it was all Walmart had. Most grocery stores carry Braswells, get that if you can. Be sure it has jalepenos and isn’t just red jelly.

Jalepeno Cheese Spread
serves 15-20 as an appetizer 

2 cups pre-shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups chopped pecans, lightly toasted
1 bunch scallions, sliced thin (white and green parts)
1 to 2 tbsp. mayonnaise
1 jar hot jalepeno pepper jelly
Assorted Crackers for serving (e.g. Triscuit Thin Crisps, Water Crackers, Ritz)

Combine cheese, pecans, scallions in a large bowl. Add 1 tbsp. mayo and mix to combine. Add more to your taste (I like just a little- you can omit altogether if you want). Spread on a platter and top with pepper jelly. Serve with crackers.