This granola is SO good I just had to post it. Can't stop making it. Can't stop eating it. Can't stop writing incomplete sentences about it. You have to try it!
The beauty of this granola is that it can be different every time. You can change the add-ins depending on what you feel like at the time, or more likely, based on what you have in the house (at least, if you're anything like me and don't love hauling your kids to the grocery store to satisfy your every middle-of-the-afternoon-and-I'm-suddenly-feeling-foodie urges).
It also uses no refined sweeteners, which has become pretty much a pre-requisite for any recurring recipe in this house (a statement with such obvious exclusions as a good old swiss meringue buttercream icing for special occasions now and again; can't stay away from that stuff for too long).
Maple Granola
6 cups large flake oats
1.5 cups unsweetened flaked coconut*
1 cup shelled, roasted pumpkin seeds* (check your bulk food store/section)
1.5 cups chopped pecans*
1 cup slivered or sliced almonds*
1 cup halved macadamia nuts*
1 TBSP cinnamon
1/2 clove nutmeg, freshly grated
1 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup raw honey
1 cup EV olive or coconut oil
Mix all ingredients together and spread onto 2 large cookie sheets. Bake at 300F, stirring every 7-8 minutes for a total period of about 35-40 minutes (you really just gotta eyeball this one, ie. if it looks burnt before 35mins, take it out!). Stir immediately again upon removing from the oven (prevents sticking to the pan) and wait for it to cool and get crunchy. Make one ice cream pail full plus a family's worth of bowls because of course, everyone wants what they've been smelling from the oven for the past half hour.
*anything starred can be subbed with your favorite other add-ins: other types of nuts, raisins, chopped dried fruit, cacao nibs, seeds, etc. Remember if you add dried fruit, add only in the last 5 minutes of cooking time. Anything chocolate can be tossed in after the granola is out of the oven.
I LOVE my granola really nutty, hence all the nuts listed in this version of the recipe. The macadamias are pretty essential in my opinion, and I have found they are most affordable at Costco (where I tag-along with my M-I-L to use her membership).
This stuff is SO good with yogurt and berries and/or sliced banana, and especially deadly with any yogurt over 8% MF....yum!
