Are you a cereal or a toast person? Or perhaps you have both for breakfast.
I’ve always been a cereal person and like to eat a combination of fresh fruit and plain, Greek yoghurt. topped with some crunchy granola, Lately I’ve also been adding a dollop of chia seeds, soaked overnight in milk.
Unfortunately, the granola you buy in the supermarket is mostly made up of oats and far too sweet. The ones that contain more interesting ingredients and less sugar tend to be quite expensive.
For the past few years I’ve been making my own granola and it’s so easy. You basically mix all the dry ingredients with some olive oil and a sweetener, such as honey or maple syrup, spread it out on a couple of baking trays lined with paper and bake for 30-45 minutes. Once you’ve made a batch you’ll wonder why it took you so long to do so.
The two big pluses with making your own is that you can use only ingredients you like and add as much sweetener as you want. Or leave the sweetener out altogether. And definitely no salt.
The quantities in this recipe are flexible and there’s no need for accurate measuring. Start with the oats, then add whatever you have on hand. Feel free to leave out anything you haven’t got – maybe put it on your shopping list so you have it for next time – or to add something different. Matthew doesn’t like coconut, but as he’s a toast or hot porridge person I usually put it in anyway!
After a week or so, the slight moisture from the dried fruit can make the granola lose its crunch. To avoid this, keep your dried fruit mixture separately and add it to your bowl each morning. Or leave the dried fruit out altogether. The photo shows the muesli before adding the dried fruit.
If there’s only one person in your house who eats granola for breakfast, you might prefer to make half the recipe.
4 cups rolled oats
½ cup almond meal or ground flaxseeds (also called linseeds)
½ cup pumpkin seeds
½ cup sunflower seeds
1-2 cups roughly chopped nuts (I used almonds, pecans & walnuts)
½ cup shredded coconut
3 Tbs chia seeds
3 Tbs sesame seeds
3-4 Tbs olive oil (or vegetable oil if preferred)
3-4 Tbs runny honey or maple syrup (adjust to suit your taste)
Dried fruit:
2-3 cups sultanas, cranberries, dried cherries, goji berries (optional)
Preheat oven to 160°C. Line two baking sheets with baking paper. For half the recipe you will only need one.
Place all ingredients, except the dried fruit, in a large bowl. Heat the olive oil and honey or maple syrup in a small saucepan until dissolved then mix in.
Spread the granola evenly onto the baking trays and bake for 20-30 minutes. During the baking time remove the trays from the oven every 10 minutes or so and stir the granola, moving the outer edges into the middle, so it cooks evenly. When the granola is golden brown and evenly cooked remove it from the oven and cool thoroughly.
Don’t overcook or the nuts will be bitter. Mix in the dried fruit (if using) and store in a large container in the pantry. Or mix the dried fruit and store in a separate contaienr.
Makes about 8 cups
Optional additions: vanilla essence, ground cinnamon, ground cardamom
