Monday, June 14, 2010

Yummy granola

This is a boring post but I seriously am in love with this home made granola I’ve been eating nonstop since I made it on Saturday. I already mentioned it before but Dan and I love love love it and we devour it when we have it so I wanted to share it so hopefully you guys can enjoy it too!

I think this is more of a treat than a healthy snack, but it seems pretty healthy too (hopefully because I’m eating my weight of it). I took a bunch of it when we went to Disneyland and the kids loved it too and it was a great snack to have. I’m planning on bringing some for the Wasatch Back this weekend (eek!).

So here is the recipe and I hope you all make some right away and eat it all up because it’s YUMMY!

granola-772498          GRANOLA

We usually double or triple it :)

3 ¼ cups Oats (Old Fashioned or Quick—any combination)
1 ¼ cup flour
¼ cup flax seed (optional; you can find this for cheap in bulk at WinCo or in the organic area at Walmart.)
1 cup or more coarsely chopped almonds and/or pecans
1 cup brown sugar
1 stick butter
1/3 cup water
½ tsp salt
1 tsp vanilla
½ tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 300. In a large mixing bowl combine the oats, flour, flax seed, coconut and nuts. Set aside. I

n a saucepan over medium heat, combine brown sugar, butter, and water and heat until the butter has melted and the mixture is bubbly.

Using a wooden spoon, stir the mixture together until smooth, and then stir in the salt, vanilla and spices. Pour mixture over the oats mixture and stir well to coat. Let stand for about 10 minutes. Spread mixture on a large baking sheet, separating it into irregular clumps with your fingers, and allowing space between clumps for the hot air to circulate. Slide it into the middle of the oven and bake about 15 minutes.

Remove from the oven and stir to break up the mixture into medium sized clumps. Return to the oven and bake again for 15 minutes before stirring again. Bake for another 15 minutes or until the granola is uniform golden brown and completely dry—this usually takes me about 45 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack; store in an air tight container.

**Notes from Haley: I don’t worry too much about breaking it into clumps, I just like to make sure there aren’t a lot of small pieces. If you like it crunchier, cook it longer on about 350 F. These directions make it soft and wonderful.

If you like, add other things like raisins, chocolate chips or M&M’s! This tastes delish with strawberry yogurt or with milk for cereal.**

Let me know if anyone makes it and how you like it! (Hailey I’m expecting you to make it since you’re not working and you’re growing a child; plus you haven’t posted any recipes for me to try yet! :)