GRANOLA - MAKE IT YOURSELF!

Granola - Make It Yourself! image

This is an adaptation of granola that I saw Bobby Flay make on Brunch @ Bobby's. His Apricot Yogurt Parfait with California Granola just looked so good. You can check out that recipe at cookingchanneltv.com. I have made a few minor changes in the recipe. Bobby Flay specified maple syrup, I have used that or plain old...

Provided by Marcia Mayfield

Time 45m

Number Of Ingredients 11

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Ingredients

3 c oatmeal, uncooked (i buy only the old-fashioned)
2 c nuts, coarsely chopped
1/4 c honey
1/4 c oil
1/4 c olive oil
1/4 c brown sugar
3 Tbsp syrup
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp cinnamon (at least)
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 c dried fruit of your choice

Steps:

1. For the nuts, I use a mixture of what I keep on hand -- almonds, walnuts & pecans. Today I happened to have a good sized jar of mixed nuts (cashews, almonds, brazil nuts, filberts & pecans) that worked very well.
2. Put the oatmeal and nuts into a bowl. Combine the remaining ingredients, except for the dried fruit. Stir until the brown sugar has pretty well dissolved.
3. Pour this mixture over the oatmeal and nuts, stir to combine thoroughly.
4. Spray a rimmed baking sheet (half sheet, 18x13, works well). Spread the mixture evenly on the baking sheet.
5. Bake in 300 degree oven for about 30-35 minutes, stirring & turning about every 10 minutes. Remove from the oven as soon as it is a light golden brown.
6. After removing from the oven, give the mixture another good stir. Be sure to turn it over enough that what was on the bottom has been loosened before it begins to stick. (I let mine cool on this same pan, Bobby Flay recommended transferring to another pan to stop the cooking process.)
7. Stir in your half-cup of dried fruits. I use what is always on hand -- raisins, craisins & dried cherries. Apricots, dried pineapples, etc. when I have them. (In this picture, granola looks a little darker than I would consider ideal.)
8. Let your granola cool completely to room temp before storing it in an airtight container. This completely fills up a large jar that originally contained 2-1/2 lbs of nuts (a Costco-size jar).
9. You can get Bobby Flay's recipe for Apricot Yogurt Parfait from cookingchanneltv. Or you can just eat your granola any way you like to eat granola. Just be aware, the groan of pleasure when I tasted mine this morning would have been embarrassing if anyone had heard me.