RESOURCES

Monday, October 29, 2007

Homemade Granola

Monday, October 29, 2007

My awesome mom-in-law is coming for a visit this week. Whenever the sous-chef and I go to visit her and her husband, she spoils us rotten and stocks the Photo of a bag of really pricey granola, courtesy of the Bear Naked Granola web site.kitchen with our favorite foods. So I figured it would be nice to return the favor when she comes to see us.

One of her favorite breakfast foods is granola (with yogurt) so I figured I'd pick up some fancy-schmancy granola at the Andronicos. But my hand actually flew back involuntarily, as if I'd been burned, when I saw the price next to the teeny tiny bags of nutty, crunchy goodness. $7.49 for a miniscule bag of granola that would only fill two cereal bowls?!?!? You've got to be frikking kidding me...

I decided that I'd make my own since it's pretty easy to make delicious homemade granola (plus, as I think I've mentioned before, I am cheap.) Below is a basic recipe that you can adapt depending on what you like or what you have in the house.

The main trick is to cook it until it's browned and crisp but catch it before it burns - just be vigilant about checking and stirring it while it's baking and you should be fine. My oven is sort of uneven (much hotter in the back and on the bottom) so I turn the pans and rotate them from top to bottom once to keep things cooking more evenly.Jar of my homemade granola goodness

Homemade Granola
Makes about 7 cups


Ingredients

  • 4 cups old-fashioned oats (steelcut or rolled, do not use instant)
  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/4 - 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup (depending on how sweet you like your cereal)
  • 1 1/2 cup sliced almonds, walnuts, or pecans (just omit if you don't like nuts)
  • 3 teaspoons sesame seeds
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cup raisins, currants, dried cranberries, dried cherries, dried apricots, etc.
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 F.

2. In a bowl mix the oats, nuts, seeds, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon.

3. In a saucepan warm the oil and honey and then whisk in the vanilla.

4. Carefully pour the liquid over the oat mixture. Stir gently with a wooden spoon until all dry ingredients are well-coated.

5. Spread granola in a single layer over a heavy baking sheet.

6. Bake 30-35 minutes, stirring carefully every 10 minutes. Should be browned but not burnt.

7. Transfer granola-filled pan to a rack to cool completely. Break up any large clumps while the mixture is still warm.

8. Stir in the dried fruit once the mixture has cooled completely.

9. Seal granola in an airtight container or plastic bag (you can put it in the fridge or on a shelf but it'll keep longer in the fridge.) It should keep for 1-2 weeks (if it does not get eaten first.)

6 comments:

  1. Nice recipe on the homemade Granola but Yuk on the Vegetable oil. Veg oil is so gross. Have you tried rice oil or avacado oil instead?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey cc,
    I have not tried the other oils. To be totally honest, I did not even know they existed! Sound very interesting though...

    ReplyDelete
  3. i'm a huge fan of grapeseed oil, it has the highest heat resistance and little flavor, very light. maybe not for granola, but a great oil.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Eve! I'm so happy to see a homemade granola recipe. Roy and I have been making it religiously for the last 6 months since it's also ridiculously expensive in Buenos Aires and just generally hard to come by. Plus, I like to reduce the amount of sugar. A few other things we have done are to add: ground flax seed, wheat germ, and popped amaranth. I also like to toast all the seeds before hand. It brings out a nice rich roasted flavor. We've also tried flavor variations - like heavy on the sesame seeds and dried apricots for a middle eastern type granola. I often add very little honey and sugar and it's still yummy, kind of more like muesli.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi y'all. This is a late comment on the granola. I am the person who inspired the recipe, since it was because of my visit that Eve decided to have some homemade granola in the house. I was a terrible houseguest: I ate all the granola up. It was that good. It was chock full of great stuff, not too sweet, and it stayed crispy in the milk. I would have to say that it was the best granola I have ever had, and I have had some good stuff! Both of my sisters make excellent homemade graonla, but Eve's is the best!
    Signed, The mother in law

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oooooh! I can't wait to try your recipe! I have never made granola before. We are on a mission in our household to feed our kids healthier, more natural foods. Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipes!

    ReplyDelete

Monday, October 29, 2007

Homemade Granola

My awesome mom-in-law is coming for a visit this week. Whenever the sous-chef and I go to visit her and her husband, she spoils us rotten and stocks the Photo of a bag of really pricey granola, courtesy of the Bear Naked Granola web site.kitchen with our favorite foods. So I figured it would be nice to return the favor when she comes to see us.

One of her favorite breakfast foods is granola (with yogurt) so I figured I'd pick up some fancy-schmancy granola at the Andronicos. But my hand actually flew back involuntarily, as if I'd been burned, when I saw the price next to the teeny tiny bags of nutty, crunchy goodness. $7.49 for a miniscule bag of granola that would only fill two cereal bowls?!?!? You've got to be frikking kidding me...

I decided that I'd make my own since it's pretty easy to make delicious homemade granola (plus, as I think I've mentioned before, I am cheap.) Below is a basic recipe that you can adapt depending on what you like or what you have in the house.

The main trick is to cook it until it's browned and crisp but catch it before it burns - just be vigilant about checking and stirring it while it's baking and you should be fine. My oven is sort of uneven (much hotter in the back and on the bottom) so I turn the pans and rotate them from top to bottom once to keep things cooking more evenly.Jar of my homemade granola goodness

Homemade Granola
Makes about 7 cups


Ingredients

  • 4 cups old-fashioned oats (steelcut or rolled, do not use instant)
  • 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
  • 1/4 - 1/2 cup honey or maple syrup (depending on how sweet you like your cereal)
  • 1 1/2 cup sliced almonds, walnuts, or pecans (just omit if you don't like nuts)
  • 3 teaspoons sesame seeds
  • 1/4 cup vegetable oil
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/2 cup raisins, currants, dried cranberries, dried cherries, dried apricots, etc.
Directions

1. Preheat oven to 300 F.

2. In a bowl mix the oats, nuts, seeds, brown sugar, salt and cinnamon.

3. In a saucepan warm the oil and honey and then whisk in the vanilla.

4. Carefully pour the liquid over the oat mixture. Stir gently with a wooden spoon until all dry ingredients are well-coated.

5. Spread granola in a single layer over a heavy baking sheet.

6. Bake 30-35 minutes, stirring carefully every 10 minutes. Should be browned but not burnt.

7. Transfer granola-filled pan to a rack to cool completely. Break up any large clumps while the mixture is still warm.

8. Stir in the dried fruit once the mixture has cooled completely.

9. Seal granola in an airtight container or plastic bag (you can put it in the fridge or on a shelf but it'll keep longer in the fridge.) It should keep for 1-2 weeks (if it does not get eaten first.)

6 comments:

  1. Nice recipe on the homemade Granola but Yuk on the Vegetable oil. Veg oil is so gross. Have you tried rice oil or avacado oil instead?

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hey cc,
    I have not tried the other oils. To be totally honest, I did not even know they existed! Sound very interesting though...

    ReplyDelete
  3. i'm a huge fan of grapeseed oil, it has the highest heat resistance and little flavor, very light. maybe not for granola, but a great oil.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Eve! I'm so happy to see a homemade granola recipe. Roy and I have been making it religiously for the last 6 months since it's also ridiculously expensive in Buenos Aires and just generally hard to come by. Plus, I like to reduce the amount of sugar. A few other things we have done are to add: ground flax seed, wheat germ, and popped amaranth. I also like to toast all the seeds before hand. It brings out a nice rich roasted flavor. We've also tried flavor variations - like heavy on the sesame seeds and dried apricots for a middle eastern type granola. I often add very little honey and sugar and it's still yummy, kind of more like muesli.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi y'all. This is a late comment on the granola. I am the person who inspired the recipe, since it was because of my visit that Eve decided to have some homemade granola in the house. I was a terrible houseguest: I ate all the granola up. It was that good. It was chock full of great stuff, not too sweet, and it stayed crispy in the milk. I would have to say that it was the best granola I have ever had, and I have had some good stuff! Both of my sisters make excellent homemade graonla, but Eve's is the best!
    Signed, The mother in law

    ReplyDelete
  6. Oooooh! I can't wait to try your recipe! I have never made granola before. We are on a mission in our household to feed our kids healthier, more natural foods. Thanks for sharing your wonderful recipes!

    ReplyDelete