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Easter has come and gone again, leaving behind a detritus of egg-shaped items and extra homemade hot cross buns, sliced and stored in the freezer to enjoy another day. It was a lovely holiday; my Auntie Trudy throws a wonderful party each year, to which every family brings their best brunch dishes. The spread actually ends up being very healthy overall—I realized this year there were lots of protein-based offerings, multiple salads, and only one truly sweet dessert (minus the candy hidden inside the eggs, of course). Auntie Trudy always sets up a sweet little egg hunt for the kids as well as a fast and furious hunt for the adults, the latter of which seems to often end with someone sporting a hefty scrape on an arm or leg. We were having such a great time, and all the kids got along so well, that we didn’t leave until bed time. Phoebe saved her meltdown for the car ride home; Jonji, Wren, and I were serenaded with a tearful lament for her forgotten sparkly water the entire drive home.

Tip: I realized last year that if your kids are ever driving you a little crazy, throw some dried fruit and a few crackers into your Easter plastic eggs, scatter them around the yard, and see the kids perk up. You get a break from entertaining for a few minutes (or hours, depending on how well you hide those eggs—no judgment), and they get some relatively healthy snacks that will hopefully serve to put them in a better mood as well. It’s a win-win.

Speaking of healthy snacks, I hadn’t strayed from my original granola recipe for several years until my sister Bailey forcefully recommended that I try the pumpkin pie granola recipe that she was in love with. I ignored her for a few weeks (sorry, Bailey) but finally tried it and, even though I made a few errors in following the recipe and therefore changed a couple of things, absolutely loved it. It coincided perfectly with the choice to make myself açaí bowls every morning; this recipe results in super crunchy, light, nutty granola that pairs perfectly with fruit and a dollop of peanut butter. Bailey swears by the soaked raisins which, when baked, become perfectly chewy; I usually leave them out since I’m often going the açaí route with fresh fruit on top, but you can choose your own adventure there.

A couple of notes: to make the process faster, I often make a large batch of the spice mix and then use 1 tbsp of that per batch. The original recipe author calls her version “Pumpkin Pie Granola”—I changed mine to Pecan Crunch Granola (thanks for the help on naming, Bailey) because it more accurately reflects the ingredients and the general flavor.

Pecan Crunch Granola

makes 4 quarts / adapted from a recipe by Teri-Ann Carty

3 cups (315g) traditional rolled oats
1 cup (110g) raw pecans, roughly chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 cup (100g) raw flaked almonds
½ cup (80g) raw pumpkin seeds
½ cup (65g) hemp hearts or (75g) raw sunflower seeds
1 generous cup (60g) unsweetened coconut flakes
2 tbsp (10g) ground flax seed (flax meal)
¾ tsp fine sea salt

spices:*
2 tsp ground cinnamon
¾ tsp ground ginger
¾ tsp freshly ground nutmeg
⅛ tsp ground allspice
⅛ tsp ground cloves

½ cup raisins, cranberries, or chopped dried apricots, soaked in warm water for 20 minutes, then drained (optional)

¼ cup (50g) pumpkin purée**
½ cup (100g) olive oil
½ cup (160g) maple syrup
½ cup (125g) smooth almond butter
1 tsp vanilla extract

*To streamline your future granola endeavors, feel free to make a quadrupled batch of this spice mix and store in a jar in a cool cupboard. You will use 1 tbsp of spice mix for this recipe.

**This barely makes a dent in a can of pumpkin puree; I sometimes use the rest to make pumpkin muffins, which turn out totally fine with ¼ cup missing, but my favorite hack is to freeze the rest of the can in ¼ cup portions (like in a baby food silicone freezer tray) and keep the frozen portions in a plastic bag in the freezer until needed. When ready to make the granola, mix all the wet ingredients plus the frozen pumpkin in a small saucepan and heat on medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, until the pumpkin purée has melted.

Preheat your oven to 315°F. Line two large rimmed baking sheets with silicone mats or parchment paper.

In a large bowl, combine all the dry ingredients, including the spices, and stir to mix well. In a medium bowl (or saucepan if your purée is frozen—see note) whisk all wet ingredients together until smooth. Fold the wet into the dry (and the soaked dried fruit, if using), making sure to stir all the way from the bottom to ensure everything is well combined. Divide the mixed granola between the two lined baking sheets, creating an even layer on each—no need to pack it down, let it clump up as it wants to.

Bake for 15 minutes, rotate the baking sheets (if you have the trays on different levels, swap the shelf they’re on as well), and bake for another 10-15 minutes, until quite crisp and browned (if it’s not as dry as you’d like at this point, feel free to bake for another 5 minutes or so). Turn off the oven, prop the door open with the handle of a wooden spoon, and keep the granola in there for another 10-15 minutes to really dry out. Remove the trays from the oven and let cool completely before transferring to airtight containers. This granola will keep for a couple of weeks stored in a cool, dry place. Enjoy!