How many times have you forgotten something at the grocery store?  Or you have not realized you even needed an item until after you have gone, returned and unloaded? 

When my husband worked in an office, he did not mind stopping to grab something for me on the way home, but for the last fifteen years, he has worked from home.  Making a grocery run, for one thing, is something we both try to avoid. 

The week I forgot cereal and I REALLY did not want to go to the store, I decided that we could try homemade cereal.  So I poked around the pantry and came up with Almond Cherry Granola. It was so well received that I make it all the time.  We will snack on it out of a bowl without anything else.  It is also wonderful with milk or almond milk, yogurt, fresh fruit or ice cream.  The how is really up to you.

Today I am sharing my recipe for homemade granola.  It is delicious and super easy to throw together.  Even better, there are so many options.  You can try different combinations of fruit, nuts, and spices to make each batch a little different and customize it for your taste.  My personal favorite is Almond and Sour Cherry.  Enjoy!!

Below are the ingredients and instructions. I have also made a download if you want to print it out and add it to your recipe files. Or you can pin it to your pinterest board.

Supplies/Tools

Sheet pan (Jelly roll style with an outer edge

Silpat or Parchment Paper

Large Mixing Bowl

Spatula or Wide Wooden Spoon (for mixing and stirring on sheet pan)

Glass Measuring Cups for liquids (coconut oil, Agave or Honey)

Dry Measuring Cups (Oats, Nuts, Seeds, Coconut)

Teaspoon (Cinnamon, Nutmeg, Sea Salt)

Cutting board and Knife (if you are chopping any nuts or dried fruit)

Air Tight Container or Zipper Bags

Ingredients

Rolled Oats (Old fashioned, not instant or “Quick” )

Nuts (almonds, walnuts, pecans, pistachios all work great.  Almonds can be whole, chopped or sliced.)

Seeds (Chia, Pepita, Sunflower)

Dried coconut (preferably unsweetened)

Coconut Oil (or Olive oil)

Agave or Honey

Dried Fruit (Sour cherries, apricots, raisins, dates, blueberries, cranberries)

Sea Salt

Cinnamon or nutmeg

Proportions

3 Cups of Oats

1 ½ Cups of Nuts (Just one or mixed)

3/4 Cups of seeds (If chia you can use less)

1/3 Cup of Coconut or Olive Oil

1/3 Cup of Agave or Honey

1 tsp of cinnamon, vanilla or nutmeg (or you can mix them if you like)

1 tsp of Sea Salt

1 Cup of dried fruit

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F

2. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper or us a silpat

3. Mix together Rolled Oats, Nuts, Seeds and shredded coconut in a large bowl and set aside

4.  Melt coconut oil in 30 second increments in the microwave.  Just enough to make runny but not hot.

5.  Add honey or agave to warm coconut oil

6.  Add salt, cinnamon and/or nutmeg (if you are using) to oil/sweetener mixture and stir well to get all the seasoning distributed through the liquid.

7.  Pour oil mixture over oat/nut mixture and fold through.  Stir well until all the oats are wet. 

8. Pour wet oat/nut mixture onto the sheet pan and place in the oven for 20-25 minutes. Stir the sheet pan turning everything over every 10-12 minutes.

9. While it is warm, add in the dried fruit.  Return to the oven for no more than 5 minutes.  Just enough to warm the fruit but not dry it out.

10. Allow the granola to cool completely and store in an airtight container up to two weeks.

NOTE:
The batch doubles easily.  If you are trying to reduce, as a rule of thumb, My combined mixture of nuts, seeds and dried fruit will equal the number of cups of oats.  I like my granola to have lots of texture and flavors.  This is a great way to get that balance.