The Great Granola Recipe

It’s hard to get all amped up for healthy living in the upcoming year when you are in your third trimester. Not because I don’t want to lose all the weight I’ve gained and be a lean mean mothering machine by this time next year, but folks, there’s a baby coming. As much as I’d like to pretend that I’ll be hitting the gym, the reality is that if free time arises, I’m likely to take a nap.

But even though I’m not dusting off my running shoes anytime soon, I am getting pretty focused on what my family will be eating after this baby arrives. One of the staples at my house is this homemade, healthy granola recipe that I’ve cobbled together over the years.

This granola recipe is wonderful with yogurt, on ice cream or by the handful. Enjoy!

 

HEALTHY GRANOLA RECIPE

Directions for granola:

Mix the following in a large bowl:

• 1/4 Cup Honey
• 1/4 Cup Orange Juice
• 2 Tablespoons Brown Sugar
• 1/4 Teaspoon Vanilla
• 1/4 Teaspoon Salt

When the ingredients above are well combined, add the following:

• 1 and 1/3 Cups Rolled Oats
• 1/2 Cup Raw Sliced Almonds
• 1/4 Cup Raw Sunflower Seeds
• 1/4 Cup Raw Shelled Pumpkin Seeds
• 1/3 Cup Unsweetened Coconut
• 1 Tablespoon Wheat Bran

Stir the granola mixture well – make sure you don’t have a pool of liquid at the bottom of your bowl.  Transfer granola mixture to a greased (I use Canola Oil spray) cookie sheet and place in a 350 degree oven for 25-30 minutes.  Remove the cookie sheet every 10 minutes and stir the mixture with a fork to ensure even browning/baking. This is important if you don’t want burnt granola!

Remove from oven when done and allow mixture to cool.  You can add 1/3 Cup dried fruit when cool.

Granola Recipe Notes:

• Any dried fruit will do. I like cranberries and chopped dried apricots. Rachael likes golden raisins.
• You can substitute good maple syrup for honey.
• You can add cinnamon to the wet mixture if you like, use 1/2 Teaspoon for this size batch. (The maple syrup/cinnamon combo is good stuff.)
• You can swap out any of the nuts/seeds to your liking. Pecans are particularly great in this recipe. Just use a food processor to roughly chop the nuts before you use them.  Uncrushed they don’t bake thoroughly.
• In Utah, many grocery stores carry a local brand called Nutty Guys. They are my favorite source for raw nuts/seeds. I usually stock up at their tent at the Downtown Farmers Market in SLC and I use their coconut chips exclusively for this recipe.

Other Healthy Recipes on TodaysMama:

Healthy Whole Wheat and Oatmeal Waffles

Make Your Own Kid Friendly Yogurt

DIY Baby Food

More Granola Recipes!

Tags: Featured, granola, healthy snacks, homemade, recipe