Years ago I would not have thought of making home made granola, let alone eating it. But I made it once and my family fell in love with it and renamed it CRACKola. It has traveled all over America with friends and family taking some home with them and then feeling let down once it's gone. I never make little batches. It's a full on production because it stores beautifully and never lets us down. Andy has it every morning with milk. Other people eat it by the handful like popcorn. I don't care how it is eaten, they always come back for more. Today is the second way I have made it. The first time it was all oven roasted to a beautiful brown. The English Kitchen (blog) had a different take on it and I think I like it more though either way it must be watched or it will get too dark. Not enough heat and the raw oats will taste like raw oats. Here is Marie's version, and now mine because I tweaked it a bit since I have made pounds and pounds of it. She also used Goji berries which we discussed and looked up on Google Sunday at dinner. But I don't know where to buy them and it is good without these berries.
I got out my VERY old and very large iron skillet to make this version and I am pleased with the results.
4 cups of old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup butter (I had none so I used coconut oil/ some olive oil) I know, how could anyone be out of butter? Beats me.
1 tsp. vanilla plus I used 1 tsp. coconut extract
4 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup coconut
1 cup of a variety of nuts--what you like, what you have on hand
Save the variety of dried fruit that you like until everything has gone from the heat of the skillet or oven or both--any dried fruit or trail mix that you like. You can't kill this recipe.
Place a large skillet over medium heat. Add the butter, brown sugar, honey, vanilla and other extract of choice. Cook and stir, cook and stir and watch it! When incorporated fully add the oats and nuts and coconut to the skillet. Stir and coat and stir and coat and watch it until the oats become a golden brown (or put this mass on a lined cookie sheet and finish it in the oven to a golden brown.) Add the dried fruit and mix. Do not put the dried fruit in the skillet or on the cookie sheet and then apply heat. The fruit will become hard as stone! But mixed in after the cooking vessel is off the heat plumps them up to their full glory. Cool and store in air tight container.
The other recipe that I used was from Barefoot Contessa. Ina Garten's recipe can be found some where in my 200 posts, in her cookbooks or on line. It is basically the same thing, however, without the brown sugar. It's better with. Also, she does not make it on top of the stove. I make it on top of the stove now, then spread it out and brown it more in the oven on high heat, watching it carefully. You don't want to waste that goodness.
