Granola

After looking at dozens of recipes for granola, I discovered a very helpful "rule." In nearly every recipe I saw, I noted that there was a 7 to 1 ratio of dry ingredients to wet. In an effort to reduce fat and calories, I experimented and discovered that I could swing just 2/3 cup wet to 7 cups dry. Nevertheless, granola is highly caloric, and because the oats have not been soaked, they are very hard on the digestive system.

The following recipe is very basic Oat Granola. But if you want, you can substitute oats with a variety of other ingredients. Be creative! One thing to keep in mind - when adding dried fruit, it may be best to do so AFTER baking. But add nuts and seeds prior to baking. Depending on the flavor and texture you want, you can add coconut before or after baking.

Suggestions for additions:
* dried fruit (apples, raisins, pineapple, apricots, berries, mango, figs, dates, coconut)
* nuts (walnuts, almonds, cashews, peanuts, pistachios, pecans)
* seeds (flaxseed, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds)

Also, depending on the flavor you want, you can try substituting different oils and sweeteners... like real maple syrup for the honey or use a nut oil instead of the coconut oil, if you like. Cinnamon can be omited, reduced or increased, depending on taste. During the holiday season, I like to reduce the cinnamon to 1 1/2 tsp and add 1/8 tsp cloves, 1/2 tsp ginger and 1 tsp of nutmeg.

So without further adoo, here is the basic granola recipe:

7 cups Rolled Oats
1/3 cup Honey
1/3 cup Coconut Oil
1 Tbls Cinnamon
1 Tbls Vanilla Extract

* Preheat oven to 350
* Combine all items in mixer
* Transfer to large jelly-roll baking pan and spread evenly across pan
* Bake for 8 minutes then turn granola over
* Bake for another 6 minutes
* Remove from oven, allow to cool on pan