After eating cooked oatmeal for about a year, with the warmer weather I decided to switch to granola. I find the commercial granolas too sweet, although by looking at labels carefully I can find some good ones. But granola is so easy to make, I really preferred doing it myself. So I did an online search for some granola recipes, and came up with a good basic recipe from the Orangette Blogspot. The link is posted below.
Here is the granola recipe with my modifications. Mine has 1/3 the amount of sugar, and uses agave nectar. Agave has the same calories as sugar but it’s lower glycemic index means that it does not raise blood sugar as much. It has a honey-like texture but doesn’t get hardened like honey does. And it has a mild flavor.
Healthy Homemade Granola
Dry Ingredients:
5 cups rolled oats (you can also use a combination of rolled grains)
2-3 cups of raw almonds or pecan halves (or other nuts)
1 cup raw pumpkin seeds (or sunflower seeds)
¾ cup sesame seeds
½ cup wheat germ or ground flax seed.
2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp salt
Options: ½ - 1 cup unsweetened coconut,
½ cup dried fruit (add after cooked) –date pieces, cranberries, cherries, apricots, mango
Wet Ingredients:
¾ cup unsweetened applesauce
1/3 cup agave nectar (or brown rice syrup, honey or maple syrup)
Note: see new posting questioning agave.
2 Tbsp canola oil
Preheat the oven to 300°F.
Mix the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Mix the wet ingredients together, and then stir into dry ingredients. Stir well to mix thoroughly.
Spread the mixture into two baking dishes. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, or until evenly golden brown. Stir every 10 minutes to ensure even browning. Stir again when removed from oven to keep it from cooling into a solid mass. The granola will crisp as it cools. If you use fruit, stir once it is cooled.
Store in the refrigerator in a large zip lock bag or other airtight container. Makes about 10 cups.
Here is the link for the blog with the recipe I worked from. It is a great recipe too and a good post: Orangette Blog
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