I make this almost once a week, aside from oats, any grain, nut, seed and dried fruit I have on hand can end up in granola. Synonymous with hippies, the 60’s, their health and a few nuts – granola was what early health nuts were consuming, like it was growing on trees, and it kinda tasted like it was – you know – mostly bark, which left your bite still chewing way longer than it should have! Fast forward to the 21st century – granola’s image has had a Carson Kressley-style makeover – which certainly explains how all those fruits, nuts, glitz & glamor wiggled their way into a batch of granola. So if you think granola comes in a bag you find at the grocery store, with 10 grams of fat and at least that in sugar, not to mention the price – think again.
Granola is one of the easiest things to make yourself and it’s really a method rather than a specific recipe. Start with 2-3 cups of oats and the rest is up to you – oat bran, wheat germ, bran flakes, flax meal, nuts, seeds, spices, a sweetener, a little oil, salt – liven it up with coconut, extracts like vanilla, maple or almond, orange zest, applesauce, fruit juice or use apple juice from frozen concentrate, it’ll make your granola crisper – about a 1/2 cup or so. Mix it all up, bake until golden delicious – stirring often – let cool, invite dried fruit to the party and you’ve got yerself some serious rockin’ granola! So here we go – this is just one of many variations – add what you like, leave what you don’t – you’re makin’ granola!
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1. You got yer oats.
2. You got yer oat bran.
3. You got yer toasted sunflower seeds.
4. The same of sesame.
5. Whatever chopped nuts you like.
6. Brown sugar will start the sweetening.
7. Cinnamon is spicin’ it up.
8. Coconut got an invitation.
9. And they join the oat mixture.
10. A little honey, blue agave and oil complete the wet ingredients – honey is on the bottom, then blue agave and then the vegetable oil. And next time, I will put the oil in first, swirl it up the sides, then add the sweet stuff so it’ll all slide out like butta!
11. Stir it into the oat mixture.
12. Get it all thoroughly mixed.
13. Stir in the nuts.
14. Add salt – it’s the secret ingredient.
15. Mix it around some more.
16. Spread it evenly on a baking sheet and start bakin’.
17. Until nice and golden.
18. Until really nice and golden. Let cool. I know it’s tempting but you must let it cool.
19. Get yourself some dried apricots.
20. Cut them up with scissors.
21. Gather the raisins.
22. Ask the pumpkin seeds to join them.
23. And only after you let it cool down (you did let it cool down didn’t you?) – stir in your accessories – pumpkin seeds, raisons & apricots. The pumpkin seeds didn’t go through the baking ’cause they were already roasted.
24. Give it a final mix.
25. And there you have it – a big gorgeous batch of healthy, wholesome, hearty, heavenly granola.
26. Put it in a container, add a scoop for handy dispensing – and you thought you weren’t a clever cat! Oh yes you are!
granola with dried fruit, nuts & seeds
Preheat the oven to 325°F.
1. This is the secret to this entire method – take out the container you will use to store the granola in and that will be what you will use to measure the chunky ingredients, so at the end of the day it will all fit back in the container. There are no exact quantities of the big stuff but for the sake of clarity here goes:
2. In your container put:
- 2-3 cups oats
- 1-2 cups combo of oat bran, wheat germ, flax seed meal, all bran, bran buds, grape nuts – anything along these lines
- 1 cup seed combo, sesame, sunflower, flax, pumpkin all work well
- 1-2 cups chopped nuts, your choice
(At this point your container should be 3/4 full – if not, add a little of this and a little of that to compensate. You want to leave enough room in your container to add a cup or two of chopped up dried fruit after it has cooled from baking. Once you add the fruit, your container will be full – you’ll be the proud owner of a big beautiful container of granola.)
3. Empty the contents of the container into a large bowl and add:
- 1-2 tablespoons each brown sugar & cinnamon
- 1/2-1 cup shredded/flaked coconut
4. In a measuring cup mix:
- 1/3 cup honey or maple syrup
- 1/8 cup blue agave
- 1/4 cup vegetable or olive oil
- 1 tsp. salt
5. Pour over the oats/seeds/coconut mixture in the bowl and mix well. Have a taste and adjust if necessary.
6. Spread evenly on 1-2 parchment-lined baking sheets (it makes for easy transferring at the end) and bake until golden, stirring every 15 minutes or so. This will take about an hour. Let cool completely. Put it back in the bowl and mix in the dried fruit.
Pour the finished granola back into the container you started with and Bob’s your Uncle, Susie’s your sister and who’s your Daddy now!
get creative
What to do with all that granola?
- eat it like cereal; try almond milk
- stir into yogurt
- add a few pretzels, banana or chocolate chips, nuts or raisins for an instant trail mix
- slice up an apple or 2, sprinkle with granola, dot with butter and bake
- sprinkle over muffin or quick bread batter before baking
- scatter a couple of tablespoons over green salad
- sprinkle over ice cream and a drizzle of maple syrup
- or over pancakes or waffles
- or over peanut butter on toast
- make bread machine granola bread – work a cup or so into bread dough
- or make a traditional loaf of granola bread
- work a couple of tablespoons into pie or cookie dough
- sprinkle over hot oatmeal and finish with a drizzle of maple syrup
- fold into cottage cheese
- sprinkle over baked squash for added crunch
other ideas
And to get you going here are a few granola variations and for the more adventuresome – never buy another granola bar again! And if you like them thick & chewy or crispy & crunchy, you will never be held hostage by store-bought again! What a relief, I know it was worrying you! Happy trails!
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