Great for simple healthy breakfasts, homemade granola bars, and lovely food gifts, this nutty granola is a nutritive but satisfying treat. Feel free to adjust the proportions of nuts or the kinds of nuts to suit your palate or occasion. I like to use a combination of maple syrup and ginger syrup in this recipe, but if ginger syrup is not available in your area, maple syrup works well on its own. (You can also add a dash of ground ginger if you wish.)
Serve nutty granola with Homemade Almond Milk or another dairy-free milk alternative (see this list of the Best Dairy-Free Milk Alternatives for ideas), place in decorative food bags or jars for gift-giving, or use to make Homemade Granola Bars.
Yield: about 15-16 cups
Ingredients:
- 8 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 1/2 cups millet
- 2 cups slivered almonds
- 1 cup chopped unsalted walnuts
- 1 cup chopped unsalted pecans
- 1/2 cup chopped hazelnuts
- 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1 t. ground cinnamon
- 1 1/2 t. salt
- 1/3 cup dark brown sugar
- 1 cup maple syrup (or a mixture of 1/2 cup maple syrup and 1/2 cup ginger syrup)
- 1 cup canola oil
- 2 t. pure vanilla extract
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup golden raisins
Preparation:
1. Preheat the oven to 325 F. Set aside two large rimmed baking sheets and make sure that your oven racks are in the center of the oven and have enough clearance for both sheets.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the rolled oats, millet, slivered almonds, chopped walnuts, chopped pecans, chopped hazelnuts, raw sunflower seeds, ground cinnamon, salt, and brown sugar, mixing until well combined. In another small mixing bowl, whisk together the maple syrup (and ginger syrup, if using), canola oil and vanilla extract. Add the wet ingredients to the oat-nut mixture, stirring well to evenly coat the oats and nuts.
3. Spread the granola onto the two prepared baking sheets and place on the center racks in the oven. Bake for 35-40 minutes, stirring and rotating the pans half-way through, or until lightly golden brown but not browned (granola will dry out more as it cools, read Cook's Note below). Allow the granola to cool completely on the pans, then toss with the dried cranberries and golden raisins. Store in an airtight container. Granola will keep for several weeks stored in an airtight container at room temperature.
Cook's Note:
- While the granola will be lightly golden brown when you remove it from the oven, don't expect it to be darker than that. I've met many home cooks over the years that have burned their granola, expecting it to look browner than it actually should before it comes out of the oven. The granola will dry out a bit more as it cools on the pans, so take this into consideration when baking your batch. (This is also why it's important to rotate your pans and run a spatula beneath the granola while it bakes like the recipe suggests; it will keep your granola from unevenly baking and browning and ensure that the entire batch dries out evenly.)
