Some people have routines so engrained they eat the same thing every day, poop at the same time, and generally have their lives together. I respect that but can’t do it. I need things to “sparkle” (which I can’t stop saying after listening to this episode of my favorite podcast, Hidden Brain) by having breakfast tacos one morning, granola the next, a giant apple fritter the next.

Last year, I worked with Justine Doiron (aka @justine_snacks, queen of beans) on the words for her cookbook that just came out, Justine Cooks. It was fun! I love her. She cooks how I aspire to: hyper-locally, meat-minimally, lots of bread and cheese. While we worked, I’d make recipes from her Google Docs that called to me, even though cooking from a Google Doc is as tragic as it gets. I still couldn’t resist making her preserved lemons that became a staple, tiramisu-inspired cookies that were a hit at my book club, breadcrumb-crusted beans that blew my mind… and then this granola.

As a wannabe Ann Arbor crunchy hippie, I love granola (see also: Birkenstocks, the Grateful Dead, not mowing my lawn). But it’s so expensive, I refuse to buy it at the store. Homemade, all the way. And I love how it looks in a jar on my counter, like I’m someone who’d never, ever hold a bag of Fritos to my mouth to cash in on the final crumbs. Justine’s granola recipe includes roasting pears, which is very chic, but I’m actually here for the crispy oats, which are coated in an Earl Grey-infused butter that fills your home with the scent of baking cookies. It tastes cozy and restrained, like a hug from an English grandmother. I eat it with yogurt and berries, or with milk as late-night cereal.

Earl Grey Granola with Roasted Pears
by Justine Doiron
(Note from Alex: Not to go all New York Times Cooking commenter on you, but I do mess with the recipe based on what I’ve got in the house, because in the handful of times I’ve made it, I learned it’s pretty flexible. So, here’s Justine’s original recipe with my little annotations in italics, take ’em or leave ’em.)

8 tablespoons salted butter
2 Earl Grey teabags (or 2 heaping teaspoons of loose-leaf tea, blitzed in a spice grinder)
3 medium Bosc pears, halved and cored
2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
¼ cup flaxseed meal
¼ cup pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons hemp hearts (I do 1 cup of pecans instead, I know that’s not an equal measure but it works, okay? I love nuts)
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
Diamond Crystal kosher salt
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
⅓ cup honey (or maple syrup!)
1 large egg white
Milk of choice, for serving

1. Equally stagger two racks in the oven and preheat it to 325°F.

2. Set a small pan over medium heat and add the butter. Let the butter fully melt, then tear open the tea bags, pour in the tea leaves, and swirl to combine. The mixture will begin to bubble slightly, so turn the heat to low and stir for 2 to 3 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

3. Place two pear halves on a piece on a sheet of aluminum foil, cut side up. Spoon 1 tablespoon of the Earl Grey butter mixture over the cut sides, and wrap them into a packet with the fold on top, being careful there are not cuts or punctures in the foil. Set them on the bottom rack of the oven to bake for 30 minutes.

4. In a large bowl, combine the oats, flaxseed meal, pumpkin seeds, hemp hearts, cinnamon, and ½ teaspoon salt. Pour the remaining 5 tablespoons butter mixture into the bowl, add the vanilla and honey, and mix well. (If you’re not making the pears, add all of the butter and up to ½ cup more oats if the mixture looks pretty saucy; you want it coated, not sopping wet!)

5. In a small bowl, whisk the egg white until foamy. Add that to the bowl with the granola mix and stir to coat everything evenly.

6. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper and spread the granola on the sheet. Transfer to the top rack of the oven to bake until golden brown and dry to the touch, 25 to 30 minutes.(I stir after 15 minutes and make sure to keep an eye on things at the 25-minute mark because my oven runs hot and burnt granola is an expensive mistake.)

7. To serve, add half a pear to each bowl and top with a heaping scoop of granola and a splash of milk. Drizzle on any remaining buttery pear juice left over in the foil; it will dot on top of the milk, which is supremely satisfying.

8. This recipe will leave you with some leftover granola, which you can store in a cool, dry place for up to a week.

Alex Beggs is a writer and copywriter who lives with her partner in Michigan. Her articles have appeared in Bon Appetit, Elle Decor, and The New York Times. She has also written for Cup of Jo about her dad’s meatloaf, cold cake, and (very) bad hair days.

P.S. Blueberry baked oatmeal, and overnight French toast.

Reprinted with permission from Justine Cooks: Recipes (Mostly Plants) for Finding Your Way in the Kitchen by Justine Doiron. Copyright © 2024 by Justine Doiron. Top photograph copyright © 2024 by Jim Henkens; other two photos by Alex Beggs. Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York.