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Food is emotional. Most of us can identify with a food or meal that elicits a memory or emotional connection. I have many… granola is one of them. This past year my emotional connection to granola grew, entwined deeper into my life, and became a small-batch food company.
Flashback 10 years ago. When I was in culinary school, I took a trip to New York. My husband and I treated ourselves to an unforgettable and more-than-we-could-afford dinner in the city. At the end of the evening our server presented us with a small bag of granola and said, “Please enjoy this granola at breakfast tomorrow as you revisit the meal and memories of this evening.” Such a thoughtful and personal connection made with something as simple as granola.
I dabbled in making my own granola in culinary school and the recipe has evolved and matured over the years. I 86ed the oats and picked up ingredients that added a more well-rounded taste and texture. My favorite time spent in the kitchen is experimenting. Changing the smallest element in the simplest recipe or adding an unexpected ingredient can change the complete takeaway of a dish… or a granola.
In March 2020 the pandemic placed a shadow on many of our lives, and I found myself needing to refocus. The time and energy I dedicated to my chef work and teaching at Marcel’s needed to shift to my family. I have a husband, a son (who is 17), and two daughters, Langley (now 15) and Boelyn (now 12). Langley and Boelyn were born with a rare genetic disorder and both have special needs. Being a parent shifts your perspective on many things, being a parent to kids with special needs challenges those perspectives every day. Our daughters have guided us to make thoughtful and fulfilling decisions in our lives and along the way we have found organizations and programs that allow them to grow and thrive into the young ladies they are today. In our eyes, Langley and Boelyn have “super abilities.” But even with their “super abilities,” their needs are significant, and their medical fragility is real. COVID came and we locked down.
We spent the first few months in lock down as most others did – enjoying lots of family togetherness, cooking, game nights, and new hobbies. The speed of life slowed. Time went on, COVID continued rearing its ugly head…and the novelty of me not working wore off. My professional purpose was on the back burner and I needed to reignite it.
It started as a mixed bag of ideas – a memory of that dinner in New York ten years ago, the need to find self-directed professional fulfillment, a way to give back to programs that make a difference in my daughters’ lives. Granola, enter stage left. That mixed bag of ideas evolved and became a well-orchestrated bag of granola on a mission to DO GOOD.
For Good Foods was founded with the mission to craft great tasting food for the purpose of doing good. We give to organizations and support programs that encourage, empower, and engage kids and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities and the caregivers who support them. Our first product, For Good Granola, Original Blend, dropped in February, 2021.
The response to our granola and support of our mission has been exciting. Thank you to Marcel’s for being one of our biggest cheerleaders. Pop over to Marcel’s, buy a bag of granola, and help us DO GOOD.
For Good Granola Oatmeal Cookies
- 2 cups (8oz) For Good Granola, Original Blend
- 1 1/2 cups (6.5oz) all-purpose or all-purpose gluten-free flour
- 1 t baking powder
- 1/2 t kosher salt
- 3 cups (10oz) old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup (8oz) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 1 1/2 cups (7.5oz) brown sugar, light or dark
- 2 eggs
- 1 t vanilla bean paste (can substitute vanilla extract)
- 1/4 cup (1oz) For Good Granola, Original Blend, for topping (smaller crumble from the bottom of the bag works best for topping cookies)
- Prepare two rimmed sheet pans with parchment paper or silicone baking mats (i.e., silpats).
- In a medium bowl, whisk to combine flour, baking powder, salt, and oats. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment beat to combine butter and brown sugar, approximately 1 minute. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat to combine. Add vanilla bean paste and continue beating until incorporated.
- Remove bowl from stand mixer. Using firm spatula or wooden spoon, stir in flour mixture until just combined. Fold in 2 cups of granola. Dough will be stiff but continue to fold until granola is evenly incorporated. Using a 1 tablespoon spring-loaded scoop, portion cookie dough on prepared baking sheets leaving about 1.5 inches between cookies. Transfer sheet pans to refrigerator and let scooped dough chill for one hour.
- Arrange oven racks to the upper-middle and lower-middle positions. Preheat oven to 375 degrees (350 degrees if using convection). Place remaining 1/4 cup of granola in a small shallow dish. When cookies have finished chilling, remove from refrigerator. Using the heel of your hand, push down on dough to flatten slightly. You just want to press down the “dome” of the scooped dough. Lightly press the granola into the top of the cookies. Inverting the cookie and pressing it into the granola seems to work best here.
- Bake for 9-12 minutes until toasty brown, rotating pans halfway through baking. Let cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
- Additional thoughts: Too many cookies for one sitting? You can easily half this recipe, or portion scoop dough and freeze unbaked. Place frozen dough on baking sheet in refrigerator to defrost and then proceed with flattening and topping with granola before baking.
- Note: This recipe was successfully tested with both a standard all-purpose flour and a gluten-free all-purpose flour as noted in the ingredients list below. If making the gluten-free version, don’t forget to use oats and baking powder that are labeled as gluten-free.