Granola is so simple to make yourself, and since you can control the ingredients you can easily make it irresistible to your family. I’m pretty sure you could add anything to this and it would still be delicious, so play around until you get it just perfect. It’s wonderful as cereal for breakfast, even better sprinkled over Greek yogurt, or eat it my favorite way – right out of your hand for an on-the-go snack. Packed with protein, fiber, and Omega-3′s, this is the ultimate healthy, versatile food for busy families. For a gluten free version simply use gluten free oats and vanilla extract in place of the conventional versions.
Homemade Granola
makes about 5-6 cups
3 cups old fashioned oats (use gluten free if necessary)
1/2 – 1 cup nuts, such as peanuts, cashews, walnuts, and/or pecans, roughly chopped
1/2 cup seeds, such as sunflower or pumpkin
1 – 2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds
1/4 cup honey
2 Tablespoons organic palm sugar – optional (I use palm sugar in place of brown sugar)
1 Tablespoon pure vanilla extract (gluten free if necessary)
1/4 cup organic coconut oil, melted
pinch of sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon, preferably organic
1/2 – 1 cup raisins
1/2 cup naturally sweetened dried cranberries, or other dried fruit – optional
1/2 cup all natural chocolate chips – optional (I use Ghiradelli)
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl mix together oats through cinnamon. Pour into an 11×17 baking dish.
Bake for 10 minutes, then stir well. Return to oven, bake 6 more minutes. Stir again and return to oven. Bake 4-5 minutes longer, until just golden brown. Remove from oven and let cool completely. Stir in raisins, along with other dried fruit and chocolate chips if using. Store in an airtight container. I use old glass jars – mayonnaise jars, olive jars, pasta sauce jars – anything with a tight fitting lid works great. Dividing it among a few different containers helps keep it fresh longer because we don’t open a new jar until the first one is gone. I keep a small jar of this in the diaper bag so it’s always with us. Sometimes I let the kids have some.
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I made my first homemade granola last summer and I loved it! Since them I've been on the lookout for more recipes, and this one has all my favorite ingredients. I'm new to the coconut oil too, and am a big fan. Loving this!