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I’ve been nibbling on homemade granola all week. Funnily enough, I didn’t make it for myself. I’m not much of a breakfast person, but Eric has been on a granola and yogurt kick the last few weeks. On our trips to the grocery store, I’d meander through the aisles as he intensely searched the ingredient list of every box of granola. To be honest, I have no idea what he was looking for. But it got me thinking, “Why the heck are we buying this stuff when it’s so easy to make at home?”
.jpg?e0c879 "Homemade Granola via A Thought For Food - www.athoughtforfood.net")
There are few foods that I just don’t get. Very few foods, in fact. But cold cereal, something most of my family enjoys, is one of them. As a child, I would shovel down those bland Os and some milk, just to get some food in my body before school. In my teenage years, however, I switched to yogurt or a piece of fruit or I wouldn’t have anything. Cereal just doesn’t make a meal, in my view. And I pretty much stopped eating breakfast since then (with the exception of weekend scones)
But thanks to my granola-loving husband, I am hooked. There are delicate flavors and textures. Crunches and chews. Toasted nuts and sweetened cranberries. And coconut. I can get behind anything that has shredded coconut and having it in my breakfast makes each morning all the more pleasant.
.jpg?e0c879 "Homemade Granola via A Thought For Food - www.athoughtforfood.net")
Homemade Granola
(adapted from the recipe by Ina Garten)
Note: I was surprised by how much this makes. Would be great to serve to guests at brunch.
Ingredients
4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
1 cup chopped walnuts
3/4 cups vegetable oil
1 tbsp vanilla
1/2 cup good honey
1 1/2 cups dried cranberries
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
Directions
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
Toss the oats, coconut, almonds, and chopped walnuts together in a large bowl. Whisk together the oil, vanilla, and honey in a small bowl. Pour the liquids over the oat mixture and stir with a wooden spoon until all the oats and nuts are coated. Pour onto a 13 by 18 by 1-inch sheet pan. Bake, stirring occasionally with a spatula, until the mixture turns a nice, even, golden brown, about 45 minutes.
Remove the granola from the oven and allow to cool, stirring occasionally. Add the cranberries and sunflower seeds. Store the cooled granola in an airtight container.
Looks delicious! Have you been able to get your granola to clump up in clusters the way you see in store-bought granola? I’ve tried a couple of times, and my clusters are small, few and far between. Let me know if you have any advice! Thanks for the great recipe!
I watched Ina Garten make this on her show once and said, “gosh that looks good, I’ll have to make it.” and that’s as far it went. I’m so glad you tried her recipe but now I have no excuse.
Brian:
I have been a fan of granola with yogurt for many years. It is my jump start to my day.
Tom makes granola regularly and I have the good fortune of getting the benefits of his work. However, now you have inspired me to make my own.
Mnnnn. . . I LOVES me some granola, especially when it’s crunchy.
No son la Birkenstocks que transfromen una persona en hippie.
I’m totally on board with homemade granola! There are so many delicious permutations in terms of ingredient add-ins, and – as you pointed out – there are myriad ways to enjoy the fruits of your labor.
Just like your husband, my breakfast routine has rubbed off on my hubs, whose morning meal used to consist merely of a huge cup of Dunkin’ Donuts coffee. Now he makes oatmeal most mornings. I bet he’d love this granola as well!
I’m with you on breakfast. Never been a big breakfast as a child, but now, the possibility are endless. This granola looks and reads like a winner.
I’ve never really gotten on the granola bandwagon…probably because of all the sugar it’s stuffed with and how expensive it is. Brian to the rescue, of course!
I might have to skip my morning oatmeal to have this granola instead. Looks incredible!
Love the style of the second photo. I don’t know what it is about granola shots like that, but I have a zillion in my files. Every batch looks similar and yet so different. It’s kind of mesmerizing to me. I actually just baked up a batch of my tweaked version of Molly Wizenberg’s French chocolate granola, using pecans and olive oil, then spicing it up with some cardamom, ginger and mahlab. Quite good! Your sunflower seed addition is something I like to do as well.
Cheers,
*Heather*
I can’t believe I have never made granola….this recipe is just too easy and your images make it look just too delicious, not to give it a try…I even have everything on hand!
Thanks for the inspiration Brian!
Looks fantastic! I love the coconut in this, mmmm
Looks healthy and delicious, and your pictures are so stunning!
I can eat fist fulls of granola. People have been known to call me the muesli queen….but let’s not spread that around.
x
I could eat this for breakfast, lunch & dinner.
I love homemade granola. There is nothing better than to enjoy a handful after whipping up a fresh batch. I always have a stash made in the pantry. I love your suggestion to adding it to pancake batter.
Looks picture perfect Brian (as with everything else you do).
I should really make this! I bet I could even convince my girls to try it.
I started on the homemade granola thing last year. I had never liked granola from the grocery so it just wasn’t in my mind to ever have it or make it and I’m not even sure now why I was inspired. But am so glad I was. Take the basics of oatmeal and some oil and it opens the world of choices to you. I now peruse the bins of seeds and nuts much more carefully when I’m at Sunflower market and it’s all for my granola!
A morning without honey yogurt topped with granola is almost harder to bear now than one without coffee. It’s true!
Oh we love our homemade granola here always have. I make granola on a regular basis and this reminds me I have one in my folders that needs to be posted. Homemade granola became even more important to me once Soeren starting Kindergarten and making low in sugar granola was the perfect quick breakfast for him. We have created a few pretty cool flavors in the past. This one sounds delicious!
That looks fantastic. I have been making granolas the South beach way and I even add some dried berries and as you said we can use them in anything and everything. I like mine with yogurt and strawberries
I am not a breakfast person at all but i like eating beakfast-y food for dinner . Egg, bread, pancakes and granola too! I never made it at home but may be I should and the husband loves coconut.
My new years resolution was more granola (and no lite beer). GREG
I totally hear ya about cold cereal but I do love granola as a special treat! I’ve never made it myself, which is ridiculous. This recipe had better change that.
I try to make olive oil granola once or twice a month – I agree with you on the cost effectiveness of making this at home. My version doesn’t have coconut, but I think I’m going to add some next time around.
I’ve made this granola before and I love it. I was pretty surprised at how much granola it made too; there was so much that stirring it without getting it all over the place was nearly impossible!
I’m such a granola lover, like your hubby I like to have mine with yogurt and a little fruit.
Oh, how we granola lovers can win you over! For years, granola and yogurt has been one of my favorite breakfasts (as well as mid-day and midnight snacks), but it’s only recently that I have converted the hubs. Now that he is on board the granola train, we go through bucketloads of the stuff! It’s time to make my own, too
Hey blog twin! Love the granola, and love the new look with your split images and text. Looks really good. I guess we’re both on the same granola bandwagon. Yours looks lovely!
I love your version of granola! Homemade is definitely where it’s at =)
That is some seriously great-looking granola–it inspires me to make my own, too. Homemade is always better than storebought in this case.
Granola is a favorite of mine for breakfast and as an evening snack. Yours looks delicious and the photos are wonderful:)
Granola IS very easy to make, and it does make you wonder why we all don’t do it more often especially when you see ones that look like yours, Brian!
This granola looks so delish.
oooh, you should try olive oil granola, it’s even better!!!
http://bit.ly/yHQPuF
Vanilla extract in granola…. Mmmmm.
Now doesn’t THAT sound yummy!
i’m glad you’ve got corrupted and made your own granola. I love anything involving oats for breakfast. Homemade granola is always the best!
The granola looks wonderful.
[...] nothing. In the instances where I find myself doing exactly that, I usually end up in the kitchen, baking granola (I burned the heck out of my first batch earlier this week), reading through my new cookbook, or, [...]
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I just luv your recipes! This granola is the bomb!
I have made it several times…adding diff. nuts.
I have shared it which is so fun….everyone wants the recipe!
You rock!