Hey earth muffins! With social distancing comes lots of FaceTime sessions with family and friends, staring at my computer screen for hours on end, and getting a little creative in the kitchen. In order to protect myself and those around me, I have been avoiding going to the grocery store as much as possible, which means I have explored every forgotten nook and cranny in my pantry, fridge, and freezer! After finding a mason jar full of natural mixed nuts I had purchased from the bulk bins a couple of months ago, I did a little Pinterest research and realized that I had all of the ingredients necessary to make a totally delicious treat: granola! It seems like making granola is a pretty creative process, so I found a base recipe but modified it as I went. I thought it turned out great, so I wanted to share my recipe with you!
Ingredients:
-1 cup of nuts. This could be your favorite nut (such as almonds, pecans, etc.) or a mixed. I used natural nuts, but I am sure any type of unsalted/lightly salted nut will do. Make sure to stay sustainable and shop in the bulk bins.
-2 cups of old-fashioned oats
-1 tsp cinnamon
-1/4 tsp salt
-3 tbsp canola oil. If you are trying to make this healthier, I suggest using coconut oil or your other favorite oils in a (sustainable) glass jar!
-2 tbsp maple syrup or honey. I personally used one of each and thought it tasted great, so use whatever you think tastes the best.
-3 tbsp of brown sugar
What to Do:
1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line a baking tray (preferably one with edges) with a silicone baking mat (if you have one; if not, don’t worry about it your granola will still turn out!).
2. Chop up your nuts using a sharp chef knife. If you aren’t into various sized pieces you could do this in a food processor, but I personally like the mixed sizes in my granola (plus you get to practice some of your knife skills!).
3. Add chopped nuts and oats into a large bowl. Sprinkle in the cinnamon and salt; mix to get the nuts/oats evenly coated.
4. In a small saucepan, stir together the oil, maple syrup and/or honey, and brown sugar until the sugar has dissolved. This only took about threeish minutes over medium-low heat, so make sure you keep stirring so none of the sugar burns!
5. Add the liquid to the nuts/oats and mix until everything is nice and coated.
6. Evenly spread the granola onto the prepared tray. The key word is “evenly”, as you don’t want some bits to be less cooked than others.
7. Pop into the oven for 12 minutes. Take the tray out and toss the granola to ensure both sides get cooked!
8. Bake for another 12-15 minutes, until the mixture is golden brown. Don’t worry – the mixture will still be soft when you take it out, as the granola will harden as it cools!
9. Let cool to room temperature before eating, enjoying, and/or storing in an airtight container in the pantry.
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And there you have it, a simple recipe for tasty granola that can be served on top of plain Greek yogurt, in a bowl with some almond milk, or even by itself! I love eating it in place of cereal for breakfast, as I can’t find any bulk cereal around where I live and don’t enjoy having to throw away the plastic bag and recycle the cardboard box… Especially now that I will not have to go to campus in a rush every morning to get to class (the one perk of online courses!) there is no reason for me to eat a lot of cereal; I will definitely be playing around with some other granola/breakfast-y recipes in the near future!
What do you think about granola for breakfast?
Love,
Jenna ♥
Like you, I have also been exploring my pantry in ways I wasn't doing before. It is certainly time to get creative! This looks really wonderful.
the creation of beauty is art.