Warm spiced granola

Granola is the easiest way to make your house smell amazing. It is absolutely delicious and tastes infinitely better when it is home made. Fresh, chewy, crispy, with big bold flavor. This is my favorite granola recipe, which I’ve been making since I adapted it from the OhSheGlows recipe that she adapted from the A Dash of Compassion cookbook back in 2012. I just realized I’ve been making this for nearly a decade and now I feel old. Give it a try and drop a comment below to let me know what you think!

Ingredients:

Dry ingredients:

2 cups rolled oat

1/2 cup raw buckwheat

1/2 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 cup pumpkin seeds

1/2 cup oat bran

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut

1/4 cup date pieces

1 tbsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

a pinch of cloves

Wet Ingredients:

1/2 cup maple syrup (the real stuff)

1/4 cup date syrup (can swap for any thick sticky syrup)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 300 degrees, and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. Mix up the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl; in a separate container mix the wet ingredients. I like to put the olive oil in the wet bowl first so that the syrups don’t stick.

Mix the wet ingredients into the dry! This recipe is super difficult.

Once the dry ingredients are thoroughly coated, you should get a damp, sticky, really delicious smelling mess. Dump this onto your parchment lined baking sheet. Once it is on the sheet, spread it out so it is even across the entire sheet. Press it down with the flat side of a spatula or damp hands until it is compressed and even. If it is more than 1/2 inch thick you need a bigger baking sheet.

Bake it for about 40 minutes, stirring every 13 minutes. To stir it pull it out of the oven, give it a good stir so that the browning happens evenly, and then I like to press it back down with the flat of the spatula. Pressing the granola down helps it stick together and form clumps, if you like a more broken up granola, no need to compress. Don’t use your hands this time or you will burn them. After the final 13 minute baking period, don’t stir, just pull it out and let it cool until it is firm, and you can break it up into whatever size clumps you like.

Store in an air tight container and go to town! It makes a great gift. It’s a delicious breakfast with fresh fruit and yogurt or almond milk. It makes the most glorious toping for air fried peaches or nectarines. Try it on ice cream and thank me later.