Delicious Homemade Granola

As I mentioned in my Bulk Buying post one of the items I always want on hand is oats! We started buying oats in bulk so that my husband could take oatmeal to work in his thermos. However, as he got tired of oatmeal I needed to figure out how to use up some oats! I never did like the ingredients in the granola you buy in the store, so I decided to start making my own.
We love having homemade granola on hand as a snack and to add to yogurt and my husband even likes adding it to his oatmeal. It’s easy to take on the go and doesn’t go bad … honestly I found a jar in my car that I made last summer and my husband was still crunching on it. I like crunchy & clustery granola, which is another reason why I don’t like buying it in store. It’s all broken up and dust at the bottom of the bag. So I began perfecting our recipe for healthier, crunchier homemade granola! 

How to Make Delicious Homemade Granola

Ingredients: 

2 Cups Organic, Gluten Free Oats

1 1/2 Cups of Nuts and Seeds of your choice – we like pistachios, hemp seeds and pumpkin seeds!

1/2 Cup of Quinoa

1/3 Cup Maple Syrup

1/4 Cup Coconut Oil

1 Tbsp Vanilla Extract

1 tsp Cinnamon 

Equipment

Large Mixing Bowl

Small Mixing Bowl

Baking Sheet

Parchment Paper

Directions

1. Preheat your oven to 300°
2. Measure out your ingredients and chop up the nuts if needed
3. Combine Dry Ingredients (Oats, Nuts & Seeds, Quinoa and Cinnamon) in the large mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly. 
4. Melt together the Coconut Oil and Maple Syrup. I do this using a double boiling method, but you can absolutely use your microwave! 
5. Once the Coconut Oil has melted into the maple syrup remove from heat, or microwave, and add in the Vanilla Extract
6. Add the wet ingredients into the large mixing bowl with the dry ingredients. Mix well to ensure everything is saturated with the wet ingredients!
7. Evenly spread the granola mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper
8. Bake at 300° for 30 minutes
9. Remove the granola from the oven and let it cool completely 
10. Once cooled break the granola up into the cluster sizes you desire and add to a storage container.

I love the extra crunch that the quinoa adds to this granola, and it is such an easy snack to grab and munch on the go. I hope you enjoy this homemade granola as much as my family does!