Homemade Granola (stvsan)

urban_ninja

It's delicious and great as a snack, topping, or cereal. One batch lasts 2 weeks in my family. I usually just eat a handful as a snack but my wife loves it on yogurt. It also gives plain cereal extra flavor.

I'm an early exerciser so this is a good morning boost and gives me the energy I need for workouts without feeling full.

- 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (do not use "quick cooking")
- 2 to 2.5 cups raw, unsalted nuts or seeds (I usually use 2 cups of nuts and .5 cups of pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Costco and Trader Joes are good sources for raw nuts.)
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt

Stir dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Then stir in:

- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup maple syrup (I use grade B maple syrup. You can use honey or agave too)
- 1 tsp vanilla

Spread on parchment or Silpat lined cookie sheet. Bake in 325 degree oven for 40 minutes. Check at 35 minutes to make sure nuts are not burned. Remove from oven and stir if you don't like clumpy granola. The granola may look a little wet but will dry as it cools.

Cool completely on cookie sheet, then store in Airtight container.

Feel free to use any mix of nuts. I usually use 1 cup of one type, 1 cup of another type, and half cup of seeds.

Be daring with other spices as well. I've used cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, ground ginger, nutmeg.

Enjoy!

lhincalif

Perfect, thank you, I was looking for a good homemade granola and my Grade B maple sugar from Canada just arrived today.

urban_ninja

You're welcome. The last batch I made was with Pistachios, Almonds, and Sunflower seeds. You can also add a little flax seed in too. I tried forming them as bars once, but having it loose is more versatile.

snowflake954

bump

sargessexyone

Sounds awesome, can't wait to try it.

lhincalif

If you have a good protein bar recipe, I'd also be interested in that. The ones in the markets are loaded with sugars and or carbs

MeepleMuppet

Bump. This sounds awesome, thank you!

urban_ninja

If you have a good protein bar recipe, I'd also be interested in that. The ones in the markets are loaded with sugars and or carbs

Almonds and pistachios already offer a good amount of protein. I know some people added dark chocolate chunks but that's too sweet for me and adds to the sugar content.

As I mentioned earlier, add some ground flaxseed which contributes to the nuttiness and won't compromise the taste.

I can't see why you can't add a couple scoops of chocolate whey protein for an extra boost. I can't make any promises on the taste

Anyone, please post any variants you did with this recipe so I can try too. My kids liked it with peanuts (they're allergic to tree nuts) and sunflower seeds. I then added mini m&ms and dried pineapple chunks after it cooled.

kelfran1

- 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (do not use "quick cooking")
- 2 to 2.5 cups raw, unsalted nuts or seeds (I usually use 2 cups of nuts and .5 cups of pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Costco and Trader Joes are good sources for raw nuts.)
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt

Stir dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Then stir in:

- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup maple syrup (I use grade B maple syrup. You can use honey or agave too)
- 1 tsp vanilla

Spread on parchment or Silpat lined cookie sheet. Bake in 325 degree oven for 40 minutes. Check at 35 minutes to make sure nuts are not burned. Remove from oven and stir if you don't like clumpy granola. The granola may look a little wet but will dry as it cools.

This is almost exactly the recipe I use, except that I don't use salt, vanilla or syrup and instead I use nutmeg, allspice (not too much) and honey. I also find that I cannot have the oven up nearly that high or it gets too browned. For me, it's 285*F for ~35 minutes, stirring at 15 minutes and 25 minutes.

For anyone making this for the first time and who wants crunchy granola - it doesn't get crunchy until it cools, so don't overcook it if it still seems moist. This might go without saying to some but the first time I made it, we ate some *very* dark granola for a week. :happy:

urban_ninja

- 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats (do not use "quick cooking")
- 2 to 2.5 cups raw, unsalted nuts or seeds (I usually use 2 cups of nuts and .5 cups of pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Costco and Trader Joes are good sources for raw nuts.)
- 1/4 tsp ground cardamom
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt

Stir dry ingredients together in a large bowl. Then stir in:

- 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1/2 cup maple syrup (I use grade B maple syrup. You can use honey or agave too)
- 1 tsp vanilla

Spread on parchment or Silpat lined cookie sheet. Bake in 325 degree oven for 40 minutes. Check at 35 minutes to make sure nuts are not burned. Remove from oven and stir if you don't like clumpy granola. The granola may look a little wet but will dry as it cools.

This is almost exactly the recipe I use, except that I don't use salt, vanilla or syrup and instead I use nutmeg, allspice (not too much) and honey. I also find that I cannot have the oven up nearly that high or it gets too browned. For me, it's 285*F for ~35 minutes, stirring at 15 minutes and 25 minutes.

For anyone making this for the first time and who wants crunchy granola - it doesn't get crunchy until it cools, so don't overcook it if it still seems moist. This might go without saying to some but the first time I made it, we ate some *very* dark granola for a week. :happy:

Yes, thanks for the extra insight @kelfran1. Ovens can vary; Mine is electric and I use the center rack so check frequently if it's your first time. Next time I make it, I'll post a pic when I take it out of the oven for a better visual.