A good granola recipe is worth its weight in gold — nutritionally and financially.
There are many granola options available to purchase, but be careful; they often are loaded with sugar and preservatives.
By keeping the essentials on hand, you can easily whip up a batch anytime and be sure the ingredients are healthy and of high quality. I always have a big container of organic oats in my pantry along with an arsenal of nuts and dried fruit. By the way, that’s a lot more economical than buying small pouches of premade granola that do not last long in a busy household.
The beauty of granola is how unlimiting it is when it comes to ingredients. If you don’t have pecans, any nut will do. If you don’t have apricots, maybe you have dried cherries or dates to throw in instead. You could even substitute dried oats with dried quinoa flakes. You can also play with the sweetness. I go light on brown sugar, because the maple syrup is plenty sweet. And combined with the olive oil and dried fruit, I think the sweetness is just right.
We all know granola is an excellent breakfast option or energy food while on a hike, but next time you are looking for a little crunch in your salad at lunch or dinner, try sprinkling a little granola on top instead of croutons. You will benefit from the extra nutrition and will add dimension to that classic Caesar or spinach salad.
I also love to gift a mason jar of granola with a big bow when going to a friend’s house for dinner. This way, the next morning, when maybe they are a little tired from entertaining, they have breakfast waiting for them and just need to add milk or yogurt with some fresh fruit.
So, whether you create a beautiful parfait, enjoy it as cereal with milk, pack it on a hike, sprinkle it on your salad, or gift it to a friend, homemade granola is truly a delicious, healthy, cost effective treat.
Perfect Granola
Ingredients:
3 cups old-fashioned
rolled oats
1½ cups pecans,
roughly chopped
1 cup raw pumpkin
seeds
1 cup toasted coconut
chips
¾ cup pure maple syrup
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup light brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
¾ teaspoon ground
cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground
cardamom
1 cup chopped dried
apricots
(Makes 8-10 cups)
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine oats, pecans, pumpkin seeds, coconut chips, maple syrup, olive oil, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and cardamom.
Spread mixture on a rimmed baking sheet in an even layer and bake for 45 minutes, stirring after 20 minutes, until golden brown and well toasted.
Transfer granola to a large bowl and add apricots, tossing to combine. Serve with yogurt and fruit or sprinkled on salad.
