Granola

I've been wanting to make granola for a long time, and I finally did! (For more "firsts," visit Make it from Scratch.) It's very easy to make, and about a hundred times cheaper than buying it in a box. This recipe goes great with fruity yogurt, as the granola is not overly sweet.

First combine the dry ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. Then, combine the honey, orange juice and oil. Remember to spray your measuring cup with non stick spray before you pour the honey in!



Pour the liquid into a small saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla.

Pour this over the dry ingredients and mix well to combine.



Spray a 15x10 baking pan with non stick spray, and then pour the granola onto the pan, spreading it out evenly over the whole pan.



Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown, stirring after every 10 minutes.

While it bakes, you can decide what kind of dried fruit you want to put in the granola! I used dried cherries and cranberries. I cut the cherries in half so they could be distributed more throughout the granola. In order to plump up the dried cranberries a bit, I put them in a measuring cup and filled it with hot water. Just drain off the water after letting them sit for at least 10 minutes, and they'll be nice and plump!



Let the granola cool completely by putting the pan on a wire rack. Once it is cool, stir in the dried fruits. Store in an airtight container.

This recipe is open for lots of variation: you can alter the kinds of nuts you use, and the kind of dried fruits. I'm also thinking that it might be good to add almond extract instead of vanilla. So many things to try!

Between this and the breakfast couscous, I'm having a hard time deciding what to eat for breakfast!

Granola

4 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup sliced almonds
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/8 tsp. salt
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 cup honey
2 tsp. canola oil
1 tsp. vanilla
1- 1 1/2 cups dried fruit

Combine the first five ingredients in a large bowl and set aside. Combine the orange juice, honey and oil in a small saucepan, and bring to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and add the vanilla.

Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and mix well to combine. Spray a 15x10 baking pan with non stick spray, and pour the granola onto the pan, spreading it out evenly over the whole pan.

Bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown, stirring after every 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool completely on a wire rack. Stir in the dried fruits. Store in an airtight container.