Abiolas Granola
I was born and raised drinking pap or ogi as it is called in some cultures. I never liked ogi because somehow they always seem to have lumps and my throat is very repulsive to anything lumpy; be it koko in pap or amala. It took the persistence of a friend to get me to taste quick oats pudding since it was equally lumpy by nature. It is not as smooth sailing as custard or ice cream. Anyway, I fell in love with oats pudding but not with the making of it. I find it stressful washing the pots afterwards. There was joy when the microwave oven became a thing and I could make oats in it. my joy was short-lived however because if it is not perfectly timed, the oats can boil over in the oven and spill some of their content all over the oven. at the end of the day, I am back to scrubbing the oven and loathing it as much as I loathed washing gluey, sticky pots.
I became health-conscious as I approached forty and more so because I lost my mum to cancer, eating healthy is a way to mitigate against diseases and I joined the ‘clean eating’ and fitness gang. And then I began to research foods and recipes on Youtube, and it was then I stumbled on a woman on Instagram who made overnight oat that can be eaten without cooking. If that is not a hack then what could that be? I was over the moon. I asked her, do you mean oats can be eaten without cooking it and she said yes. I tried my overnight oat and it was heaven on earth without the mess. Needless to say, I loved all things oat, not just because it is heart-healthy and gut-healthy but also because it provides this crunchy taste when it is made into a biscuit or bar.
From my Youtube inspired watch, birth the granola bar hype as a health bar or snack. I tried making mine and it turned out good sometimes and doesn’t form at other times. It gets broken into pieces. The truth is that it crumbles more often than it stays as a bar. And then again, a YouTuber who made a granola bar shared her experience to say that when her granola bar crumbles, she turns them into granola cereal and boom, that elates me. Since I was getting a crumble more than a bar then let me make the crumbled granola cereal. I did, it was gooood, even if I say so myself. I was so proud of it, that I poured it in a jar, took a picture of it, post it on Instagram and in a few hours, someone sent me a direct message, that reads…’ can you deliver this to Abuja?’
I was in shock, ‘oh no! This was meant to be a joke, I wasn’t selling it, so how do I tell her it’s a joke and my frenzy was off the roof. My husband calms me and advises me to reply that ‘Abuja delivery is still in process and I will let her know once I start delivering to Abuja’. Phew! That was easy, the lady was understanding and I raised my legs. A few hours later, a colleague of mine who also saw the post, sent me a message to come with a pack to the office because she wants to buy a pack.
LBS AND I