Homemade granola

You can see that I don't keep the tidiest kitchen all the time. This was around 11pm,
and I just didn't want to clean before I started baking.

While in Toronto in December I saw that my friend had made granola. Over the past year I've thought about it, said we should do it, and then nothing. The other day I decided to get off my ass and make some granola, like we used to when I was a kid. I grabbed the Rebar cookbook off the shelf (thanks, Bex, still got it) and got to work.

Well, got to buying ingredients, anyway. The making didn't happen until midnight-ish, because neither my lovely girlfriend nor I could sleep, and I decided to make the most of my time. It was oddly satisfying to stay up making granola. Here's the recipe from Rebar, a lovely little vegetarian restaurant in Victoria that people love.

3 c large flake oats
1 1/2 c barley flakes
1/2 c oat bran
1 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup hazelnuts, coarsely chopped
1/2 c pumpkin seeds
1/2 c sunflower seeds

1/2 c veg oil
1/4 c water
2/3 c maple syrup or honey
1 tsp vanilla

1 c dried cranberries
1/2 c dried blueberries

Dry and liquids. Warm water means the honey mixes more easily.

Mix the first eight ingredients. Whisk together four wet ingredients. Combine the two thoroughly. Bake on two cookie sheets for about 30 min, stirring occasionally to ensure even baking. Add fruit and store.

This is actually with only half the granola, but it looked so pretty.

I made a few changes: Almonds instead of hazelnuts, some cashews, only a few pumpkin seeds, raisins instead of blueberries, and no coconut. I used honey, and warm water makes it easier to mix the liquid ingredients. And just like that, a big can of homemade granola. So simple, and so rewarding.