Hippie Fuel ("Ultimate" granola)

Granola ranks among my very favorite foods, to the degree that (like Biscoff cookie spread) I'm better off not even keeping any in the house lest I simply devour it by the bagful. Crunchy-sweet-salty is totally my jam, and the typical inclusion of nuts & berries is also right up my alley. It shouldn't be overlooked, however, that while granola has a significant history as healthy "hippie" food, some granolas' claims to "health" may be somewhat...questionable.

Healthy ...ish

Fresh Arrivals (Apricot Almond Ginger Tart)

I've waited weeks on tenterhooks for the first fresh cherries to arrive to market, but in the meantime chose to console myself with a clutch of glowingly golden apricots. I had ulterior motives. We'd also been eagerly awaiting the birth of our third nephew, Oliver, who at the time of writing this article was slightly overdue, and I figured a little light folk medicine couldn't hurt. Elizabethan England held the belief that apricots induced labor, which is why they feature in the play The Duchess of Malfi, where her nefarious brothers expose her pregnancy with a slyly offered bowl of apricots. It has no basis in science whatsoever, but might as well be worth a try. To gussy up the presentation, I decided to toss the apricots with fresh ginger, then layer them into a tart mantled in slivered almonds.

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