Homemade Cereal and teenage boys.....

 I get a real kick out of making my own things. A few months ago I tried my hand at a recipe I'd had sitting in the bottom of the recipe pile for some time. You know the 'one day I'll try this' recipe pile. After trying it I found my teenage sons loved it and actually told me not to buy cereal anymore. 

Well...we made the big move from Australia to USA and I haven't made it because I don't have my grinder yet...but soon I will and I look forward to making it again for my boys.

Grape Nuts

• 3 1/2 c. whole wheat flour (I sift the flour I grind myself but I reckon you could leave the wheat germ in it)
• 1 c. brown sugar
• 1 t. salt
• 1 t. baking soda
• 1 t. cinnamon (this is optional but I added it this time and the boys really like it)
• 2 c. sour milk or buttermilk (you can make milk sour by adding a T. of vinegar to it)
• 2 t. vanilla

Mix thoroughly and pour into a greased cookie sheet with sides. Bake at 180° C (350° F) for 15 minutes. Cool completely. At this point, this looks and smells like cake. Once the cake is cooled completely, cut it into pieces and whirl it into crumbs in the food processor. Don’t process too long because you don’t want it to get gummy. Spread this crumbly mixture into two jelly roll pans. Bake at 150° C (300° F) for one hour, stirring every 15 minutes. Take out of the oven and allow to cool before putting it into a storage container.

A few notes: I grind my own wheat but using store bought whole wheat flour will still work fine. Someone who makes this recipe also tried adding some dried TVP (textured vegetable protein) through the grain mill and added a cup of that to the grape nut recipe. Then increased the milk by 1/4 c.  "This built in some extra protein which some of my young athletes-in-training need for breakfast." I haven't tried this but it is worth a try. TVP makes me shudder but because it will be dried it will have the same texture as the 'grape nuts' and should be fine.

What homemade items have you made that you get a real kick out of? (ie: laundry detergent, shampoo, etc)