Nutty Granola

I took some time away from posting recipes over the holidays in order to focus my attention on friends and family, which left me without anything new to post this month -- until now! I like to have some variation of oats for breakfast each day, and this is one that has made repeat appearances for some time. I like to make my own granola so I can control what goes into it and even more specifically the ratio of ingredients, and this granola is all about the nuts. Yes, all about nuts.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup rolled oats
• 1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• 1/2 tablespoon brown sugar
• 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 cup mixed nuts, roughly chopped (almonds, cashews, hazelnuts - any nuts you want!)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Mix all ingredients except the nuts in a bowl, then spread evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until oats are lightly golden, stirring halfway through. 
3. Let the granola mix cool for 10 minutes on the sheet, then transfer to a bowl and mix in the nuts. Once granola is completely cool package it up into jars or portioned tupperware. 

You can eat the granola as is, or with a splash of milk (I'm partial to almond milk). You can add in berries or dried fruit, sprinkle in chia seeds with the milk, make it your own. 

Homemade Granola

Granola is a very humble treat, but that's part of the beauty of this unassuming snack. It's like oatmeal cookies, not very glamorous but oh so tasty.  Plus, when you make your own granola you know what you put in it. I am not a big fan of super sweet granola and I also prefer a less-sticky granola, so by making my own I can make it exactly how I want. Also, it's a great on-the-go breakfast or snack that I can carry around. When I first make a batch I portion it out into a few small and medium containers so that I have it ready to go later on. AND just be to even more wild I add dark chocolate chips to my granola so it's just as lovely on its own as it is on top of yogurt, mixed with berries, stirred with milk... you get the picture!

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons honey
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 2 tablespoons hot water
• 1 tablespoon canola oil
• 1/2 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 cups rolled oats
• 1/2 cup slivered almonds
• 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
• 1/2 cup cranberries*
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips (optional)

Directions

1.  Preheat the oven to 325 F. 
2. Mix the honey, brown sugar, water, vanilla, and oil in a large bowl. Mix in the oats and almonds until coated. 
3. Spread the oat mixture over a large rimmed baking sheet and bake for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 7-10 minutes. Bake until granola is golden.
4. Let granola cool on baking sheet, approximately 20 minutes. Pour granola into large bowl, mix in the cranberries and chocolate chips. Store in an airtight container. This granola will keep in the fridge indefinitely.

You can swap the cranberries for any other dried fruit such as blueberries, raisins, pineapple, mango, or goji berries. Remember, this is your granola, make it how you want!