I can remember the first time as a kid eating Granola Cereal for breakfast. It seemed very "hippy" but I guess I was sort of a hippy kid with my long hair and living in the early 70's. It's still a breakfast Cereal but it is also versatile enough to use as a topping for Vanilla Ice Cream or Yogurt. When added to Pancake Batter or Muffin Batter before baking makes them more Amazing and gives a sweet crunch. I wanted my Granola to be sweet and have lots of warm flavors like Cinnamon and Maple Syrup to round it out. I added three kinds of Nuts and Coconut to give it crunch and real depth of flavor. Other great ways to use Granola is to sprinkle it over fresh Fruit like Apples, Plums, or Bananas or you can easily pack it in your work lunch to get you through the day when mid afternoon hunger strikes. Granola has come a long way since the 70's and when you are Cooking The Amazing it can be easy and delicious.
Here is the recipe.
5 c Rolled Oats
1 c Chopped Walnuts
1 c Chopped Pecans
1 c Chopped Almonds
2 c Sweetened Coconut Flakes
1 c Roasted Sunflower Seeds
1 c Raisins or Dried Blueberries
1 c Dried Cranberries or Cherries
1 c Dark Brown Sugar
1 t Ground Cinnamon
1/2 t Sea Salt, fine grain
1 c Maple Syrup
1/2 c Honey
1/2 c Canola Oil
1 t Vanilla Extract
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Cover a cookie sheet pan with aluminium foil to make clean up easy.
2. Place 5 c of Rolled Oats in a large bowl. Rolled Oats are also called Old Fashioned Oats. Do not use Instant Oats but Steel Oats will work, too.
3. Chop all the nuts into small pieces. Small enough to eat easily. Place in the bowl with the Oats. Add the Cinnamon, Salt, Coconut, Roasted Sunflower Seeds, Raisins and Cranberries and mix well with a large spoons or your hands.
4. In a medium bowl mix together with a spoon the Maple Syrup, Honey, Canola Oil, and Vanilla Extract well.
5. Pour the liquid mixture over the Oat mixture and mix well with a large spoon or your hands. I use my hands which works best. Be sure to get all of the dry ingredients covered with the wet ingredients.
6. Spread the 1/2 of the mixture in an even
Layer on the covered cookie sheet and place on the middle rack of a 325 degree preheated oven and bake for 22-25 minutes or until the Granola is browned. This will make enough for two batches.
7. Remove from the oven and let sit on the pan until cool before breaking up into chunks as big or as small as you like. When you first remove the Granola from the oven the Granola will still be wet and will feel crumbly. It's the browned color you are looking for to ensure doneness. When it gets toasty brown it is done. Once it sits for about 1 hour it will dry out and cool. Once cooled completely store in an air tight container.
Granola makes a great Cereal with Milk or Soy Milk.
Or cover your favorite Yogurt with a handful of Granola.
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