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Eating Local, Eating Seasonal

When you’ve moved around a bit to different climates like I have, the idea of seasonal and local eating takes on a whole new meaning. But based on the messages you receive in advertising and online, you'd assume that all of us are ready to don our flannel shirts and head out to the apple orchard for some freshly pressed cider. Of course in the northern states, farmers are nearing the end of their growing season and crops like apples and winter squash are seasonal. But here in tropical Florida, our season for local produce is just beginning to ramp up. Having grown up in Pennsylvania, I understand how strong that sense of seasonality can be. But eating locally really means minimizing the distance between production and consumption. In other words, it’s time to get up close and personal with our local farmers. When we support our local farmers at markets and through purchase agreements (an idea known as Community Supported Agriculture), we vote with our dollars to support businesses in our community. Not to mention the benefits we reap in terms of better quality food. In other words, “eating local” tastes good! Let's embrace the change of seasons, even if for some of us it means forgoing the pleasures of apple pie at the farm market in favor of some fresh "Fall" asparagus.

In the meantime, here's a recipe from my upcoming breakfast cookbook that crosses seasonal boundaries from coast to coast.

Granola Two Ways (from the upcoming Breakfast by Donna Leahy)

Granola recipes often used to include butter and a lot of sugar. I think somewhere along the way (probably right around the time when manufacturers were required to put nutritional information on labels), we figured out this may not be the healthiest way of eating toasted oats and nuts, albeit very tasty. However, there are times when I find that chunky texture is desirable (particularly in parfaits where you want layers to have a contrasting texture). Typically it requires upping the sugar content, even it’s in the form of a “healthy” sugar like maple syrup, to achieve it. In response, I’ve developed a two-step approach that will result in a half of the granola being lower sugar and more crumbly, and the second half being more in the chunky style. Both are delicious. If you prefer all of the granola in the crumbly, lower sugar style, then simply skip the last step.

Makes about 7 cups

2 1/2 cups rolled old fashioned oats

1/2 cup steel cut oats

1 cup large unsweetened coconut flakes

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1 cup pecan halves

1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

1/4 cup pistachios

3 tbsps. chia, flax or pumpkin seed

1 egg white, whipped to soft peaks

2 tbsps. coconut oil or other neutral oil

1/2 tsp. salt

1/4-1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup honey

1/4-1/2 cup maple syrup

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp. ground allspice