Friday, February 18, 2011

Homemade Granola

Below is the recipe that I have tweaked from a few that I have found online:

Dry Ingredients:
6 Cups Oats
1/2 Cup Sliced Almonds
1/4 Cup Sesame Seeds
1/2 Cup Sunflower Seeds
1/2 Cup Pumpkin Seeds
2-3 Tablespoons Cinnamon
(These seeds/nuts are very forgiving. I added pumpkin because I love their taste and color, but have also made it without Almonds. Basically, you just need a good variety)

Wet Ingredients:
2/3 Cup Olive Oil
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar (I add a little more, but you can also add less if you are worried about sugar content)
1/3 Cup Honey (again, I add a little more but not quite 1/2 Cup)
2 Tablespoons Vanilla

Preheat oven to 350*F/180*C. Mix dry ingredients in one bowl. Mix Wet in another.
Push up your sleeves and pour the wet into the dry. It never seems like enough to wet the dry, but after enough mixing it does the job.
Spread over a jelly roll pan (cookie sheet with sides). Bake until golden brown. Most recipes suggests 25 minutes, but my oven (a Celsius fan oven) has a mind of its own and starts to burn it after about 15 minutes.
Really, it could be eaten without being cooked (no ingredients need to hit a certain temperature to be consumed), so it is all about preference. After it has cools, you can add a cup of raisins, which I did not do to appease a picky husband.
Enjoy by the handful, in yogurt, with milk or a fruit parfait. YUM!