Chocked-Fulla-Granola

There is a deliciously sweet smell wafting through my house right now as a HUGE batch of granola is cooling in my kitchen. Growing up, my mom used to make big batches of granola and we'd snack on it for weeks. Her favorite way is to eat it like cereal but as I've developed my own recipe to how I like it, my favorite way to eat it is with a dollop of greek yogurt and some cold poached pears. The lovely thing about this granola is that you can add and subtract the ingredients based on what you like in yours. Any combination of nuts, seeds, and fruits can be combined to make every batch a little different. You can even add some peanut butter to the "glue" if you're in a peanutbuttery mood.

Not only is this really easy to make, but it can be really healthy too! Unfortunately, this is about the least amount of sugar you can have per batch, you need the honey and brown sugar to make the glue and combine it all together. If you don't care for it clumpy, you can add less or even leave out the brown sugar entirely.

You will need:

For the "glue":

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3/4 cup honey

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 TB. cinnamon

1 TB. water

For the "goodies":

One 18oz. container old fashioned rolled oats (about 5 1/2 cups)

2 - 3 cups mixed nuts (I like a combo of almonds and walnuts)

2 cups shredded coconut

1/3 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 flax seeds

1/2 cup wheat germ

1 generous cup seeds (I like sesame and pumpkin, heavier on the pumpkin seeds)

2-3 cups dried fruit (I really like dried tart cherries, currents, cranberries and maybe a little golden raisins)

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Combine all the ingredients for the "glue" in a small saucepan over med-low heat and stir until combined and the honey is melted.

On a large baking sheet, combine all the ingredients for the "goodies" except for the fruit. Toss to combine (I find that your hands are the best mixers at this point).

Drizzle the sauce over oat mixture and toss to combine, being careful not to burn your fingers if using them to mix with!

Bake 15-20 minutes, or until the top is just starting to get browned and you can start to smell the nuts, tossing once or twice during that time. Be careful to not over-brown and DO NOT toss once it comes out of the oven! Let it cool completely in the pan before breaking it up. This will help it to clump better. Once cool, break it up in handfuls and toss with the dried fruit. Store in a large glass jar on the counter for a few weeks, or you can freeze it in batches.

Yummy! Enjoy!

Devonly,

Yours