When I decided to make my own granola I looked at lots of recipes and found several that I liked, but they all seemed far too sweet for my taste, so I made up my own recipe that was loosely based on one by David Lebowitz via Nigella Lawson via Andy Fairfield with a large twist of me. It is full of nuts and dried fruit – so not really low in fat or sugar – but has lots of goodness, energy and fibre. A smallish serve with Greek yoghurt and some sliced banana or fresh berries is a fabulous breakfast and will sustain all morning.
4 1/2 cups rolled oats
150g whole almonds, roughly chopped
130g pecan nuts, chopped into small pieces
1/2 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup sesame seeds
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/3 cup honey
1/3 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup butter
2 cups dried fruit – your favourites. I used cranberries, apricots and sultanas in equal measure
Preheat oven to 160C. In a large mixing bowl stir together the oats, almonds, pecans, sunflower seeds, sesame seeds, spices and salt. In a small saucepan combine the butter, honey and brown sugar and cook gently over a low heat until the butter is melted. Pour the mixture over the oats and with a large spoon stir until the oats are well coated with the mixture. Turn onto a large baking tray, which has been lightly brushed with vegetable oil, and spread out until the mixture is a quite thin layer. Bake in the oven for 30 minutes, turning the mixture every 5 -6 minutes, until golden brown. Don’t be afraid to let the mixture turn quite dark – just shy of burning. It gives the granola great crunch and a caramel twist to the nuts. Cool completely, and turn into a large bowl. Stir through the dried fruit, and store in an airtight container.
Simple food 