Homemade granola - better than store shelve bags & boxes

Got 15 minutes? Make homemade granola. It won't take you longer than 15 minutes to prep your ingredients and get them in the oven. If you keep a decently stocked pantry, the ingredients are probably at your disposal. If they aren't, they won't be hard to find. Seek out your nearest grocery store that has a decent bulk section. Warning - this stuff is addictive and your living quarters are about to smell like a bakery.

Homemade Granola

Ingredients:
4 cups old fashion oats

1 1/2 cups nuts – any combination (I like half raw almonds, half pistachios, slightly crushed)

1 1/2 cup seeds – any combination (I like raw sunflower seeds, flax seed meal & raw pumpkin seeds)

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes/chips

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup dark brown sugar (light is fine too)

1/3 cup Grade B Maple syrup (the real stuff)

1/4 cup honey

5 tablespoons unsalted butter or 1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil to make it vegan

1 tablespoon vanilla extract

1 cup dried fruit – optional

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300˚F

2. Place the oats, nuts, seeds, coconut and salt in a large bowl. Place the sweeteners, butter* and vanilla in a small saucepan and heat on medium, stirring often, until the sugar has melted & the butter has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Let it come to a rolling boil for 1 of the 5 minutes. *If using olive oil, whisk it into the melted sugar mixture after it has boiled. Pour hot liquid over the dry goods and using a rubber spatula, stir to evenly coat.

3. Divide the granola between two rimmed baking sheets that have been lined with parchment. Reynold's brand now sells a non-stick pan lining paper that has foil on the underside & parchment on the top which is fantastic because it will stay put in the corners. Spread the granola out until it’s flat and evenly distributed. Bake for 30 minutes, rotating the trays from front to back & top to bottom halfway through the baking process. After 30 minutes, take out the trays and use a heatproof spatula to stir granola. Rotate the trays again and bake for an additional 15-20 minutes until golden brown. Take trays out of the oven and let cool completely. Mix in dried fruit if desired. Store in an air proof container. Eat by the handful, serve with milk or layer with Greek yogurt & berries to make a delicious parfait.

Makes roughly 12 cups of granola

Note: it's a forgiving recipe so feel free to play around with the ingredients some

Recipe inspired by Bi-Rite Creamery's Sweet Cream & Sugar Cones Cookbook