Whiteley Creek Homestead

After I shared a Facebook link to my Alton Brown shepherd's pie blog post yesterday, my niece Sheree expressed her love of this Food Network star's recipes, as well. She had most recently made his granola for Christmas gifts. That's all it took. I was off to the kitchen. That quick. It happens. The smell of the buttery, nutty, sweet mixture wafting from the oven into the far corners of each room in our house. Oh, the love. Keep your recipes coming, Alton.

Granola Alton Brown

Makes 6 servings. (You're going to want to double this recipe to make 12 servings.)

3 cups rolled oats (I often use 1 cup rolled oats + 2 cups *Bob’s Red Mill Old Country Style Muesli with the raisins and dates removed and set aside to be added after baking granola.)

1 cup slivered almonds (or sliced or whole chopped)

1 cup cashews (I used chopped walnuts.)

¼ c + 2 tbsp dark brown sugar (I used ¼ c or, for chocolate granola, sub ¼ c Earth Circle Organic Balinese Drinking Chocolate for the brown sugar.)

¼ cup + 2 tbsp maple syrup (or honey)

¼ cup oil (I use butter or 2 tbsp coconut oil + 2 tbsp butter.)

¾ tsp sea salt

1 c raisins (I use ½ cup  or measure the muesli’s raisins and dates in a ½ cup measuring cup then fill it level with additional raisins.)

¾ cup shredded sweetened coconut (I sometimes use ¼ cup shredded unsweetened coconut + ½ cup large unsweetened coconut flakes.)

Option: If not using Bob’s Red Mill Old Country Style Muesli, consider adding ¼ cup cacao nibs, raw sunflower seeds, raw pumpkin seeds, and goji berries.

Preheat oven to 250°. In a large bowl, combine oats or muesli, nuts, brown sugar, and shredded unsweetened coconut. In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil (or butter), and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto a sheet pan. (I lined it with natural parchment paper.) Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes. Remove from oven. Add raisins and unsweetened coconut flakes and mix until evenly distributed.

*I chose to use Bob’s red Mills Old Country Style Muesli instead of rolled oats because…well, the ingredients speak for themselves: rolled oats, wheat, rye, triticale, and barley along with raisins, sunflower seeds, almonds, and walnuts.