Grandpop’s GORP: A Trail-Worthy Treat

Waking up at my grandparents’ house. I can still smell it as if it was yesterday. While buried under the covers of the top bunk bed, the first thing to hit your nose was the coffee percolating upstairs. Then, one of two things: either bacon, which meant french toast was not far behind, or the smell of Grandpop’s freshly baked granola. Either way, you couldn’t help but feel you were getting away with a secret that Mom wouldn’t know about — you were about to have dessert for breakfast!

Because that’s how grandparents make you feel. No matter what is on the stove or in the oven, it is made with so much love that it just tastes that much sweeter.

Planting the Seeds for Loving the Outdoors

I look back on my formative years and realize how much of an influence my grandparents had on my love of nature. My grandmother was our resident birdwatcher — and really should have been an ornithologist — who could identify any bird that came to her multitude of feeders. My grandfather — who arguably was the greatest caretaker of the earth and, I swear, invented recycling — lovingly made duck houses and bird houses for their property. And up until a few months ago, I still had a bird feeder that he made for me 25 years ago from a fallen Birch tree in their yard. They planted the seeds in five children and eleven grandchildren to be curious about nature and to respect and care for our planet.

Thanks to them, the walls of my adolescent bedroom were covered with centerfolds from National Wildlife Federation’s Ranger Rick magazine (an annual gift subscription from them), with a few photos of Shaun Cassidy and Scott Baio mixed in. And T.V. night with them was spent enjoying National Geographic documentaries. 

But mostly we were outdoors. We biked along the Potomac and camped in their V.W. camper at the beach when they lived in Virginia and we went ice fishing when they moved to Minnesota. No matter the weather, we were outside.

For Their Love of Dogs!

They were dog lovers too. And Krista, their German Shepherd side-kick, was ecstatic to be part of their outdoor adventures, especially when it came to camping for several months while they built their retirement home in Minnesota.

And clearly my grandfather’s love of dogs started at a young age. My heart swelled when I found these pictures a few years ago of my young grandfather with his two Beagles. Somehow I felt yet another connection with him, having had a Beagle myself.

It’s no wonder I grew up to love and appreciate the outdoors, especially with dogs by my side. I know my grandparents would have enjoyed my excursions on the DC trails, Maryland trails and Virginia trails, particularly given that they spent a lot of their married life here in the DMV before retiring to Minnesota. 

That’s why I intend to take a little bit of their love on the trail with me — by making my grandfather’s granola, in GORP form (good old fashioned raisins and peanuts), of course. It makes the perfect trail mix for hiking.

What follows is my grandfather’s granola recipe, which I like to think I perfected along the way by adding either chocolate chips or candy-coated chocolates to it. I think my grandparents would have agreed that this addition makes it a trail-worthy treat!

A Trail-Worthy Treat

Grandpop’s GORP

Ingredients:

1 lb. regular oats

1 C wheat germ

1 C sunflower seeds, toasted

1 ½ C raisins or currants*

1 C pecan halves

½ C brown sugar

½ C honey

½ C vegetable oil

3 tsp. vanilla

1 C chocolate chips or other chocolate candy

Instructions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Chop the pecans and then mix with oats, wheat germ and sunflower seeds in a large mixing bowl.

On the stove, heat brown sugar, honey, oil and vanilla on low heat until sugar dissolves. Pour liquid sugar mixture over the dry ingredients and mix.

Spread mixture on lined baking sheets and bake for 45 minutes to an hour, stirring every 15 minutes and being careful not to burn.

Remove from oven and add raisins or currants. (*I like to use a mix of dried berries.) Allow to cool completely and then add chocolate chips or candy-coated chocolate pieces. (You can also add banana chips. And feel free to substitute your favorite nuts for pecans.) Place in airtight containers.

Whether you take my grandfather’s trail mix or another favorite snack, we hope you enjoy your hiking. Alex and Penny encourage you to take some homemade biscuits for your pooch too! We hope to run into you on the DMV trails!