Heartistic Desires

Posted By Cori on July 11, 2009

I feel like I can safely claim “The Best Granola – Ever” because this is a basic recipe you can adjust to your liking. Maybe that’s cheating a bit, but I really don’t have a problem with that as long as it makes people happy. This Granola never turns out the same because I am constantly tweaking and adjusting according to our mood or what ingredients I have on hand. However, the basics are there.

Start with the “dry” ingredients:
5 C. rolled oats,
1 C. sunflower seeds
1 C. coconut (I used shaved this time and we loved it!)
1/2 C. wheat germ
1/4 C. sesame seeds

You’ll notice there’s no sesame seeds in the photo. That’s because I was out of them today. Which is a serious problem in my book, but I’m learning to be flexible now that I live “out-of-town”.

Also add:
1 C. pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds – love them!)
3/4 C. sliced almonds
3/4 C. coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans (or both!)
2 Tbs. ground flax

Yes… My granola has tons of “stuff” in it. I’m all about variety! I get it from my Mom. (She’ll cook four chicken breasts and four sides, plus a salad and dessert, for two people. She wants people to have ‘choices’. Love, love, love that lady!) Feel free to adjust and substitute the dry ingredients as desired. We all have our favorites and far be it from me to hold you back. I know a lot of people like dried fruit in their Granola; we don’t. If you do, don’t add it yet – wait until the very end. I’ll tell you when…

Stir all the dry ingredients together well in a very large bowl and set aside. It looks so good already, doesn’t it? But wait! It gets even better! (Be still my heart…)

Now we bring in the syrup ingredients:

3/4 C. water
1/4 C. vegetable oil
1/4 C. honey
1/4 C. molasses
3/4 tsp. salt
2 tsp. cinnamon
1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Put in a small saucepan on medium-low heat. If you measure the oil and then the honey and molasses in the same measuring cup, the honey and molasses will slide right out of the cup. Sometimes, I add more molasses and less honey just because we like it like that.

Whisk the syrup ingredients together until well mixed.

I love this little Mini-Whipper from Pampered Chef! I would have two or three or five of these things if I still had kids at home. Chocolate milk, gravies, white sauces… the possibilities for smoothness are endless! And it’s small so it fits great in small spaces but can handle larger jobs, too. Awesome tool.

Side-tracked again.

Heat the syrup until hot, stirring occasionally, but do not allow it to boil. Once hot, pour over dry ingredients in the large bowl and stir well. A large wooden spoon works great for this. Make sure you coat all the Granola by lifting from the bottom and scraping the sides.

Spread the Granola onto a jelly roll pan (or other large cookie sheet-type pan with sides – even a 9 x 13 will work fine), and place in a preheated 300º F oven. Bake for 40 – 45 minutes, stirring the Granola every 15 minutes. Allow to cool and then add dried fruit, if desired. Store in an airtight container for up to 6 months (ours never lasts that long – more like 6 days).

Play with it and let me know what you come up with. Today I also added 1/2 tsp. nutmeg and 3/4 tsp. ground ginger. This is great hiking food too; just add some dried fruit and M & M’s. Have fun!

Category: Food
Tags: Cooking