Granola is delicious. It is also expensive. I'm not a huge fan of cereal in the morning, because the majority of it offers so little in nutrition and so much in calories. (three bowls of special k and I'm hungry again in an hour!) I won't even get into all the magical mysterious words in the ingredients label that more often than not spell out DOOM.
Good granola is made of whole, healthy, filling ingredients, with a little natural sweetener thrown in. But, a tiny bag will cost around $7.99. I've tried a bunch of different homemade granola recipes and perfected a few that I really love.
This Coconut Granola is the least healthy and the sweetest- if you're trying to slowly convert someone to healthy cereal, start with this! I like to double the recipe and freeze the extra, my boyfriend eats it every morning with yogurt or milk and fruit.
Double Coconut Granola
6 C. rolled oats
1 1/3 C. unsweetened shredded coconut
1/2 C. clover honey
1/3 C. virgin coconut oil*
1 Tbsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1. Heat oven to 300F.
2. In a large bowl, combine oats and shredded coconut.
3. In a small saucepan, cook honey, coconut oil, vanilla, and salt over medium heat until the mixture just begins to simmer.
4. Pour honey/oil mixture over oats and coconut flakes, and stir with a wooden spoon until well combined.
5. Spread out granola on a baking sheet. Place in oven, bake for 10
minutes, then stir granola. Repeat until granola is well-toasted — this
took me four stirs, or 40 minutes total cooking time.**
6. Cool on baking sheet, stirring occasionally. When cooled, store in
airtight containers for up to 2 weeks. Can refrigerate or freeze for
longer shelf life.
Slightly adapted from
this lady.
*Coconut oil is a liquid in hot weather, and a solid, white substance in cool weather.
** Oven temps vary, and granola burns very quickly! It only takes 30 minutes to cook this in my oven- so pay close attention the first time you bake it.
