And the granola: the apricots are unsulphured, which means they don’t have that drop-dead orange beauty that you know in your heart can’t be real anyway. The blueberries are wild, hand-picked, juice-sweetened—too pricey for our budget, yes, but hey, this time it’s for love. Order up soon, because we’re only making a bit more than we know we need. We’ll be in the kitchen next weekend, so for those of you month-clubbers, yours will arrive mid-month.
Read MoreAs I see it, the main thing we are teaching our employees in this project is confidence—confidence that they can learn new skills, that they can communicate across almost any language barrier, and that they can be a crucial part of a team. Our hope is that what Berita learned with us played some part in helping her interview for and get a job, and that it will make her upcoming transition more smooth and less frightening. We will miss her.
Read MoreThis is an interview with Nelson Colon - the Providence Granola Project's "Serve Safe" whiz. He is a graduate of the Amos House Culinary Program.
Read MoreA note from the cook: I grew up in Vietnam where the oranges weren’t orange. Kumquats, mandarins, persimmons, and papaya were orange. Dragonfruit were purple. Oranges were green.
Read MoreWe wanted to introduce you to our new digs and latest employee. Amos House, the soup kitchen and homeless shelter in South Providence, has allowed us to turn their commercial kitchen into a granola factory on Friday nights.
Read MoreIngredients: oats (org), barley (org), Sucanat (org minimally processed cane sugar), honey, canola oil (expeller pressed), sunflower seeds (org), flax seeds (org), sesame seeds (org), peanuts, cashews, almonds, oat bran (org), wheat germ, coconut (org), fried garbanzo beans, pecan meal, raisins, oat fiber, rye (org), almond extract, Celtic sea salt, cinnamon, fennel seeds, fenugreek, cumin, chili powder, turmeric, cardamom powder, curry leaves, coriander, nutmeg, black pepper, cloves.
Read MorePictured here, mixing granola, is Evon Nano, a newly arrived refugee from Iraq. She has been in this country for 4 months. Keith works with her at the International Institute, which is a non-profit in Providence that assists with refugee resettlement. The Providence Granola Project was conceived as a way to give refugees a boost toward employability (and in the spirit of full disclosure, to make a little money).
Read MoreSome of the challenges involved dicing both the bananas and the chocolate to a size which prevented their taking over or losing their distinction (or breaking the food processor). We added a little molasses and cut back on the raisins to counter the sweetness. Then, just last week, we happened on a stash of the earthiest organic chocolate imaginable—Dagoba chocolate with raw hemp, pumpkin and sunflower seeds. Wow!
Read MoreOn November 15th, The Providence Granola Project began taking orders for the "Granola of the Month Club."
Read Morewhat might help newly-arrived international refugees start rebuilding their lives in Providence? The answer: artisanal granola, of course.
Read Moreif you’re not into ginger or any other future flavor of the month, let us know and we’ll send two bags of Originola. Please do feel free to comment about our granola—what you like or don’t like and what you’d like to see in months ahead. We’re already getting all kinds of special requests. We’re listening and eager to do our best.
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