Wednesday, June 27, 2012

FFF's "Super Granola"

My friend Tara, a.k.a. "Fun Fearless Foodie", was raving Saturday about a granola recipe she made.  Never one to sit on a yummy recipe for too long, especially one coming from the only chef I know, Sunday morning I was revving up the oven and baking away bright and early.  I used a slight variation of her recipe {different nuts and dried fruit}, but  as she says, you can use whatever combination you are craving and it's sure to be delicious.  The recipe is especially great because it's all natural and contains no refined sugars.  I brought it into the office to share, and it was a hit amongst all the picky eaters.  Click here to follow Tara's NYC foodie excursions.

"Super Granola" the Fun Fearless Foodie Way

Ingredients: 
4 cups organic rolled oats (not instant)
1/2 cup raw almonds, roughly chopped
1/2 cup raw walnuts, roughly chopped
1/4 cup raw cashews, roughly chopped
1/4 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup flax seeds
2 tablespoons chia seeds
1/2 cup organic coconut oil
1/4 cup almond butter
1/4 cup organic pure honey
1 1/2 cups dried fruit (I used craisins, apricots, and goji berries)


Directions  
(Yield: 8 cups)

1) Line a sheet tray with aluminum foil and brush with a light coat of coconut oil.  Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

2) Add the dry ingredients into a large bowl and toss.

3) In a separate bowl, whisk together the oil, almond butter, and honey.

4) Pour the oil mixture into bowl of dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until coated evenly.  Keep stirring until all the oats are coated.

5) Spread the granola mixture onto the prepared sheet tray, making sure it is in an even layer.

6) Place in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.  Remove and stir the granola, this will ensure it browns evenly.  Return to oven and bake for another 10-15 minutes, until it is golden brown and toasted.  The grains will be slightly soft.  Keep an eye on it to make sure nuts don't burn.

7) Break up with your spatula and allow to cool.  Once cool, stir in dried fruit.

8) Store in an airtight container and keep refrigerated to preserve freshness.

TA-DA..

The Final Product

Additional note: We started a chia seed experiment in our office by planting some of the seeds from the granola to see if we can grow our own little chia pet.  I'm excited to see what happens, but will be a tad concerned if something I've been ingesting over the last year will also grow in grimy soil and a lil NYC sunshine.  I'll report back later on the outcome.  

Will it grow?? Cha-Cha-Cha-Chia



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