Granola!

Mmmmmm, Granola. It has always been one of my favorite breakfast foods (and nicknames for my sister). Sometime over Thanksgiving I was randomly inspired to try to make it myself, and Kit and I made our first batch with some pretty good success. Since its not a very common thing to make from scratch, people always seem especially surprised when you say 'I made this!', which is a bonus, because, if they knew how easy it was, they'd be much less impressed.

Since Thanksgiving I've made a about a half dozen batches, experimenting with varying recipes and baking times. Drawing from the best, and my personal taste, here's my go-to recipe.

Natty's Granola

Ingredients:

5 cups of Quaker Oats

2 cups raw slivered almonds

1 1/4 cup raw coconut shavings

1 1/2 cup raw pecans

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 cups of dried cranberries or raisins

1/2 tsp salt (unless you are making it for Jess)

2/3 cup canola oil

2/3 cup pure maple syrup (don't even ATTEMPT with fake)

2 tsp almond extract

1 tsp vanilla extract

Here's what to do:

Preheat oven to 300. Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper. Make sure your baking sheets are rimmed-- if yours are flat, you are going to make a mess. It's worth buying disposable rimmed ones if you don't have them.

Mix all dry ingredients, except the cranberries or raisins, in large mixing bowl. In a separate small mixing bowl whisk together oil, syrup and extracts. Then pour the wet mixture over the try and toss with wooden spoon to coat. Spread the mixture evenly over the two cookie sheets and put in the oven. Bake for 45 minutes, or until the mixture is browned but not burned, rotating baking sheets and moving the mix around with a spatula every 15 mins or so. Sprinkle the cranberries or raisins (or both!) over the mixture and let cool and dry completely. Then sprinkle on top of yogurt and berries, enjoy straight up with milk, or package it up in some mason jars for a sweet and healthy treat for friends!

Granola will last at least 2 weeks in sealed containers, and is a lot less fragile than trying to send cookies!