A granola and beans kind of day

Another day with simple goals: making granola bars (not for Christmas, it's just sensible to keep them on hand at all times) and trying out a slow-cooker recipe for baked beans. And can I just say, the internet is an amazing thing! I didn't have bacon, so I couldn't make traditional Boston baked beans, and when I realized I didn't have tomato paste, I checked for an alternative. The first item that came up in the search bar as I was typing in tomato paste? Tomato paste substitute. I reduced a can of tomato sauce and used that. The granola bars are cooled and cut, and the beans have another couple of hours to simmer. I'm interested to see how they turn out; I think we'll have them on baked potatoes, or with eggs and toast.

While all this kitchen business was taking place, D was mainly entertaining herself. Now, a quiet toddler generally means one of two things: either something disastrous is taking place, or something hilarious is taking place. Fortunately for me and my sanity, it happened to be the latter in this instance. D had just asked me to take off her nightdress, and she proceeded to remove her matching "night-pants"on her own. Here's what wandered into the kitchen to greet me:



Yes, she dressed her own self in fleece monkey pyjamas from the dirty laundry hamper. Here's a transcription for those of you who don't speak D's particular dialect of toddler.

Me: Daphne, what did you just do?
D: I put them on.
Me: What did you put on?
D: This on, and this on.
Me: And what are those?
D: Pyjama pants, and my night shirt and my night pants.
Me: Very good. It's too bad they were from the dirty pile, right?
D: They're not dirty.
Me: They sort of are, because you already wore them this week. But that's okay, you look really good.
D: Can you pull this-
Me: Can you say "Thanks, Auntie Morgan"?
D: Tanks, Auntie Mogan!

In case you're interested, here's my granola bar recipe, adapted from my good friend Mrs. Mac.

2 1/2 cups oats (rolled or quick)
2 cups other grains (spelt flakes, wheat germ, oat bran, ground flax)
1 tsp baking soda
2 cups mix of chocolate chips, nuts, seeds, dried fruit, coconut
2/3 cup melted margarine
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup molasses
1/3 cup peanut butter (skip this in case of allergies, and add more honey or molasses)
1 tsp vanilla

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Mix dry ingredients together. Add wet ingredients.
Grease a rimmed cookie sheet, spread out granola mixture and pat firmly with a spatula. Bake for 20 minutes, remove and pat down with spatula again. While bars are still hot, cut them with a pizza roller, then pat down the messy edges with spatula again. Cool completely, and remove from sheet.

I keep mine in a cookie tin, separating the layers of granola bars with parchment paper so they don't all get stuck. These make a great afternoon snack with a cup of tea!