Kitchen Sink Granola

We jokingly call our stews and soups 'Kitchen Sink' because everything goes into them except the kitchen sink. This is exactly how I make my granola.

Granola is a simple formula - butter or other fat, sweetener, rolled oats or other grain and dried fruits and nuts.

Today I cleaned out 8 containers from my cupboard by using up these saved bits and pieces. I added toasted coconut, hazelnut praline, dates, dried mango, honey, vanilla, organic rolled oats, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, pistachios and toasted almonds to my rolled oats.

The benefits of making your own granola are worth the once a month ritual. Fats, sugars and salt is lower resulting in lower calories and sodium per serving. You will have better quality oats and more of the good morsels. And no unknown additives.

Formula for Granola

10 c. old fashioned rolled oats, spelt flakes or any other grain flaked
1/2 c. butter, or any other fat such as coconut oil, canola oil, camelina oil
1/4 c. honey, or any other sweetener such as maple syrup or sugar, brown sugar, cane sugar or homemade jam
2-3 c. combination of chopped dried fruits and nuts
1 tsp. pure vanilla, or any other flavouring such as cinnamon or maple
1/2 tsp. sea salt

Melt the butter in a small saucepan. Add sweetener, vanilla and sea salt.

Mound rolled oats, nuts, seeds and coconut on a 12 x 18 inch baking sheet. There is no need to grease the baking sheet. Pour the butter mixture over it all. Gently mix until everything is coated. Pat the mixture into the pan.

Cook at 325F for 15-20 minutes. Remove from the oven and stir so that browned edges are now in the centre of the pan and the unbrowned bottom layer is stirred up to the top. Pat down again. Return to the oven for another 15-20 minutes or until edges are nicely browned. Remove from the oven and let cool, undisturbed.

Meanwhile put all the dried fruits in a large bowl. When the granola is completely cool add it to the dried fruits. Mix so as not to break up any chunks of oatmeal mixture. Store in a tightly sealed container or in freezer bags and in the deep freeze. Will keep for a month in the cupboard or three months in the freezer.