DIY granola | sunnysideup

You know I like to keep it real around here.

So I’m coming clean about making granola.

This took my more times to perfect than I can even count.

Many oats were sacrificed in the process of making this granola.

I’ve want to make my own granola because I am a Granola Addict. It’s a real thing. In college, I pounded back granola as fast as I consumed frozen yogurt.

After college when my plus dollars didn’t seem to work at the grocery and I had to buy my own groceries, I realized two things. One: granola is expensive. And two: it contains a quadbillion grams of sugar.

So, I’ve been on a quest to make my own granola for some time, but every recipe teemed with sugar, butter, and other stuff I didn’t want in my favorite cereal. Now, I’m not against myself some sugar and butter and the like. I’ve been known to frequent my town’s Dairy Queen. Okay, so not me, per se. As I make Dan go get us some delicious frozen treats. But I definitely eat blizzards.

And cake. I’m writing in CAKE in November on my ballot.

Okay, anyway, onto the granola.

So since I plan to eat granola at least once a day, I didn’t want it chault full of sugar and stuff. I’ve got to stay in shape to teach all those BodyStep classes.

After testing and burning a lot of raisins, I came up with something good.

Ingredients:

+2 cups rolled oats (NOT the quick cooking kind, the real deal)

+1/3 cup canola oil (No, you do NOT want to use extra virgin olive oil. That turns out yucky.)

+1/3 cup honey (Or maple syrup or agave nector, dealer’s choice!)

+1/2 teaspoon vanilla

+Pinches of the following: salt, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg

+Handful or so of the following (accuracy is one of the strong suits!): walnuts, unsweetened coconut, sunflower seeds

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray. Mix all of the ingredients in a bowl and pour onto the baking sheet. Bake for about 25-30 minutes. Stir every once in a while – don’t go far while this is baking. It will burn. And you will cry because your kitchen will stink.

Be sure to watch it. My oven runs hot, so I don’t need the full 30 minutes, so be sure to keep an eye on this.

After it’s done cooking (it will look golden brown), let it sit until it cools. It will reach a granola consistency once it sits. Then, add as much dried fruit as your heart desires. Raisins, figs, cherries, blueberries, whatever you like. Do not put the fruit in before or it will burn and stink to high heaven.

I kept my granola plain and served it with fresh fruit. But you can add your to vanilla ice cream or yogurt or whatever you like to top with granola.

Are you a granola eater? Do you make your own? Please share your recipe.

Angela

Homemade granola is the best! I love the recipe below because it only has 2 tablespoons of oil and the brown rice syrup adds almost a savory taste to the mix. Oh and I’ve actually added flax seeds to the mix and they stick to the oats pretty well.
Daily Granola
Adapted from Nigella Lawson’s Feast

The recipe that follows is the way I’ve come to use Nigella’s recipe. Of course, tweak as you will. For example, feel free to use whatever type of nut you like best – just one, or a variety. You could add some flax seeds, if you like, or some shredded coconut. If you like your granola with dried fruit, go ahead and add some – but after baking, not before. And about the applesauce: I like to buy it in those single-serving cups, the kind made to go in kids’ lunchboxes. I used to buy it in bigger glass jars, but I found that it started to go moldy before I could use it all. The smaller containers are very handy that way; there’s less waste.

Finally, I highly recommend eating this granola with plain soy milk. I like it with plain yogurt or regular milk too, but soy milk is especially good. This granola also mixes nicely with other cereals, like this one, and this one.

Dry ingredients:
5 cups rolled oats
2 to 3 cups raw almonds or pecan halves, or a mixture
1 cup hulled raw sunflower seeds
¾ cup sesame seeds
¾ cup light brown sugar
2 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. ground ginger
1 tsp. salt

Wet ingredients:
¾ cup unsweetened apple sauce
1/3 cup brown rice syrup
¼ cup honey
2 Tbsp. vegetable oil, such as canola or safflower

Set racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat the oven to 300°F.

In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Stir to mix well. In a small bowl, combine all of the wet ingredients. Stir to mix well. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ones, and stir well.

Spread the mixture evenly on two rimmed baking sheets. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until evenly golden brown. Set a timer to go off every ten minutes while the granola bakes, so you can rotate the pans and give the granola a good stir; this helps it to cook evenly. When it’s ready, remove the pans from the oven, stir well – this will keep it from cooling into a hard, solid sheet – and set aside to cool. The finished granola may still feel slightly soft when it comes out of the oven, but it will crisp as it cools.

Scoop cooled granola into to a large zipper-lock plastic bag or other airtight container. Store in the refrigerator indefinitely.

Yield: about 10 cups
- http://www.sarahrosemary.com Sarah Bagley
  
  This looks awesome! I can’t wait to try it. Thank you for sharing!
Marie

This might be too much sweetness for your taste, but I’ve been meaning to try Alton Brown’s granola recipe (average rating of 5 stars!):

Ingredients

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashews
3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar.

In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil, and salt. Combine
both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Cook for 1 hour and 15
minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.

Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. Add raisins and mix until evenly distributed.
- http://www.sarahrosemary.com Sarah Bagley
  
  Mmm! This looks good. I think I’ll alter the sugar and try it!
Funnelcloud Rachel

Totally going to try this! Thanks, Sarah!
- http://www.sarahrosemary.com Sarah Bagley
  
  Let me know how it turns out! Watch out for burning granola!