Granola Time!

Every couple of months or so I make a batch of homemade granola both for me and to give to friends and family. This recipe makes quite alot of granola so it is perfect for sharing. The great thing is that it is a recipe that you can make all your own by simply adding or deleting ingredients according to your taste preferences.

I have always been a fan of "thingys" as my daughter used to call them when they showed up in her sandwich bread. To us, "thingys" are any nuts or seeds that (in my opinion) add to the overall taste and texture of a food item. Given her choice, she would have preferred Wonder Bread growing up which I could just not ever bring myself to buy. I have to say, she has expanded her horizions and is now alot more open to whole grain foods with TEXTURE! This may be due, in part, to her current living situation in the Pacific Northwest where locally grown, whole grain food is a given.

Anyway, give this recipe a try and let me know if you find any new "must-have" ingredients that you add to your version. I am always looking for new ideas. I must say I love a bowl of this with some Greek yogurt and fruit for breakfast, but it is equally good with just cow's milk or soy milk either for breakfast or a snack. This also freezes really well, as long as you put it in an airtight container or Ziploc bag.

Vanilla-Maple Granola

~6-7 cups of Organic old fashioned oats
1 1/2 cups of raw organic pumpkin seeds
1 1/2 cups of organic oat bran
1 12 ounce package of sweetened flaked coconut
2 1/2 cups of either sliced OR slivered almonds

Other options here:
(ground or whole flax seed, wheat germ, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds or other nuts)

The liquid ingredients:
~ 3/4 cup vegetable oil
~ 3/4 cup pure maple syrup, or honey or a mixture of both
~ 2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
Optional:
(ground ginger or cinnamon)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
   Mix all of the dry ingredients in a LARGE bowl. In a large glass measuring cup, mix together all liquid ingredients and pour over oat mixture, carefully tossing to be sure everything is coated evenly. Spread evenly between two EDGED cookie sheets. I bake it for a total of ~40 minutes until it is as toasted as you like it. Really, as any baker knows....you should always be in the lookout for "G, B and D"...golden, brown and delicious. The one thing I really try to avoid is that horrible burnt taste when a sugar goes to the "dark side", so be careful.

This is my usual baking process.
    1) One sheet on the middle rack and one just below.... bake for 15 minutes.
    2) Switch racks and thoroughly stir and redistribute granola evenly on pans....bake another 15 minutes.
    3) Switch and mix and put back in the over for ~10 minutes keeping a close eye on the granola at this point.

I put a couple of big sheets of parchment paper out on the counter and spread it on there for the granola to cool before I put it in bags. Enjoy-

yours in baking-
p