Dried Cranberry and Pecan Granola
There is something wonderfully heartwarming about homemade granola. It fills the house with heavenly aromas as it bakes, and you can't help but feel you are doing something good for your body when you eat it.
Use this recipe as a guideline and have your way with it - substitute raisins or any dried fruit for the cranberries, use almonds instead of pecans, throw in some sunflower seeds or orange zest. Eat it moistened with milk, soy milk, or my favorite, yogurt.
Yield 8 cups
Ingredients
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup honey
4 cups oats (old-fashioned, not quick cooking)
1 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup ground flax seed or wheat germ
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
2/3 cup dried cranberries
| 1 | Preheat oven to 300°F. Lightly oil baking sheet. |
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| 2 | Pour oil and honey into a glass bowl or measuring cup and microwave for 1-2 minutes. Blend with a fork. |
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| 3 | Meanwhile, in a large bowl, mix oats, nuts, coconut, brown sugar, flax seed, salt and cinnamon. |
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| 4 | Pour oil/honey mixture over oat mixture and blend thoroughly. |
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| 5 | Spread on baking sheet and bake, stirring every ten minutes until golden, approximately 30 minutes. Granola will still be a bit soft; it will get crunchier as it cools. |
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| 6 | Remove from oven. Spread dried cranberries over granola and blend. Allow to cool thoroughly and store in an airtight container. |
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notes
If your baking sheet is a dark-colored one, it will tend to brown food very fast. Therefore, stir the granola more often to make sure it doesn't burn.
