Granola
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This granola is the perfect blend of crunch, spice, and sweet. It's so tasty, I recommend giving half away so you're not tempted to sit and eat it all at one time!
4 cups old fashioned oats 1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes* a pinch of salt 1 tablespoon total of spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, cardamom, ginger, cloves)** 1 cup total of nuts, seeds (pumpkin seed, sunflower seeds, and chopped pecans) 1/2 cup total of dried fruit (cherries, blueberries, raisins) 1/4 cup melted coconut oil or melted butter 1/4 cup maple syrup 2 tablespoons honey 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla |
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Heat the oven to 300ª and line 2 shallow 11"x17" baking sheets with parchment paper.
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine the melted coconut oil (or butter), maple syrup, honey, and vanilla in a separate bowl or measuring cup. Stir the liquid to combine it and then pour 1/2 of the liquid over the dry oat mixture. Stir well and then add the remaining liquid mixture and combine super well.
Place half the mixture on each baking sheet and spread it out so it's uniform in coverage and height. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until browned. Turn the oven off and let the granola sit in the oven with the door ajar until cooled. You can take the sheets out of the oven and cool them on the counter if that's your preference.
Store in a glass container with a tight fitting lid. And a lock. Just kidding.
* Coconut flakes come in two sizes, large flakes the size of corn flakes (used in the picture above), or smaller flakes. I find the smaller flakes (made by Bob's Red Mill) to be the better choice. DO NOT use shredded coconut.
** When combining the spices, I will fill a tablespoon 3/4 full of cinnamon and then fill the rest of the tablespoon with the remaining spices. If there's a spice that you like the flavor of, definitely add more of that. When all is said and done, I probably end up with 1/4 teaspoon of each spice with cinnamon being the largest portion. Experiment.
Combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine the melted coconut oil (or butter), maple syrup, honey, and vanilla in a separate bowl or measuring cup. Stir the liquid to combine it and then pour 1/2 of the liquid over the dry oat mixture. Stir well and then add the remaining liquid mixture and combine super well.
Place half the mixture on each baking sheet and spread it out so it's uniform in coverage and height. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes or until browned. Turn the oven off and let the granola sit in the oven with the door ajar until cooled. You can take the sheets out of the oven and cool them on the counter if that's your preference.
Store in a glass container with a tight fitting lid. And a lock. Just kidding.
* Coconut flakes come in two sizes, large flakes the size of corn flakes (used in the picture above), or smaller flakes. I find the smaller flakes (made by Bob's Red Mill) to be the better choice. DO NOT use shredded coconut.
** When combining the spices, I will fill a tablespoon 3/4 full of cinnamon and then fill the rest of the tablespoon with the remaining spices. If there's a spice that you like the flavor of, definitely add more of that. When all is said and done, I probably end up with 1/4 teaspoon of each spice with cinnamon being the largest portion. Experiment.
