Thursday, February 7, 2013

The Best Granola Ever!


Another treat that I sold was granola - it's a mix of pumpkin seeds, almonds, sunflower seeds, craisins, oats, and cinnamon.

I based my recipe on Nigella Lawson's granola recipe from her cookbook "Feast," which I adapted to my liking. I'm very picky about my granola and this one is simply perfect! Lots of crunch and flavor, without being too sweet. Next batch I make, I would like to try adding some more heart-healthy ingredients in it, such as hemp and chia seeds. 


Granola always takes a long time to make - particularly the baking process, as you really have flip it consistently to get that crunchy and delicious texture - but it's well-worth it in the end and much cheaper than store-bought granola! 

Granola
(adapted from Nigella Lawson)

5 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
3 cups whole raw almonds
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt

3/4 cup unsweeted applesauce
1/3 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
2 T. vegetable oil

Preheat the oven to 300F.

1. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, almonds, sunflower and pumpkin seeds, brown sugar, cinnamon, ginger and salt.

2. In a saucepan, heat the applesauce with the maple syrup, honey and oil. 


3. Blend the applesauce mixture into the dry ingredients until thoroughly mixed, then divide and spread the mixture evenly on two baking sheets. 

4. Bake the granola for 45 minutes, stirring and flipping every ten minutes (very important!), until the granola is a deep golden brown and crunchy. 

5. Remove from the oven, then cool completely. 

Store the granola in airtight containers (I like to use mason jars); they will keep for a month. 

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