Melissa Hoteks Granola Food

SIMPLE HOMEMADE GRANOLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the cinnamon, ginger, 1/4 teaspoon salt, honey, oil, maple syrup, water, and vanilla together. Add in the oats, pecans, rice cereal, and wheat germ. Toss to coat completely.
• Spread the granola out on a baking sheet lined with parchment and bake until dry and crisp, but not yet browned, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring once or twice. Allow to cool completely before storing in an airtight container.

BEST EVER GRANOLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300°F (150°C). In a food processor, coffee grinder or blender, grind half the oats to a fine powder. In a large bowl, combine the whole oats, ground oats, nuts, seeds and spices. In a microwave-safe bowl (or in a saucepan over medium heat), combine the brown sugar, butter and water and heat just until the butter has melted and the mixture is bubbly. Stir the mixture together until smooth, then stir in the salt and vanilla. Pour this mixture over the oats and nuts, stirring well to coat (it's easier to do this with your hands). It should be uniformly moist - stir in another tablespoon or two of water if it isn't. Let stand for about ten minutes.
• Spread the mixture out on a large baking sheet, separating it into irregular clumps with your fingers, and allowing space between the clumps for the hot air to circulate. Slide into the middle of the oven and bake for 25-30 minutes, or until the top is golden brown. Remove from the oven and stir, gently breaking up the mixture into small-to-medium sized clumps. Return to the oven and bake another 15 minutes or so before stirring again. Repeat the bake-and-stir until the mixture is a uniform golden brown and completely dry; this usually takes 1-1 1/2 hours. Cool completely, then stir in any dried fruit you want to use.
• Store in a covered container at room temperature. Serve with milk or plain yogurt and fresh fruit as desired.

GRANOLA

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 300 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment. Toss together all of the dry ingredients in a very large bowl.
• Combine the oil, honey, and vanilla in a saucepan and warm over low heat, stirring, just until the mixture is fluid. Do not let it come to a simmer. Remove from the heat and stir into the dry ingredients. Mix until evenly coated.
• Spread the granola mixture on the sheet pans in an even layer, leaving a donut hole in the center (for even baking) and bake on the middle and lower racks, without stirring, for 30 to 40 minutes or until golden, rotating the baking pans front to back and top to bottom halfway through. Remove from the heat and allow to cool before breaking up into clumps. Store in well sealed jars, bags or containers.

COCONUT ALMOND CLUSTER GRANOLA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
• In a saucepan over medium heat, combine coconut oil, olive oil, maple syrup, sugar, coconut milk and salt and bring to a simmer. When sugar has dissolved, stir in vanilla extract and let cool slightly.
• In a food processor, grind 1 1/4 cups/105 grams of the oats and 1/4 cup/12 grams of the coconut into a flour. Transfer to a large bowl and stir in remaining oats and coconut, the spices, the nuts and the seeds. Pour maple syrup mixture over and stir to combine. Let sit 10 minutes.
• Using your hands, drop oat mixture onto prepared baking sheets in one layer, and pinch together into clumps with your fingers.
• Bake 40 to 50 minutes, flipping the mixture (taking care not to break up the clumps) every 15 minutes. The mixture is done when it's golden brown all over and starting to crisp. It will continue to crisp up after as it cools. Transfer pans to wire racks and let cool. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month.