Granola

Dear Stephanie,
I'm glad you loved the granola! There's not much of a recipe. You can play around with these basics. Here's a good online recipe,

and here's my recipe:

Granola

I use a rimmed cookie sheet, but I think a disposable aluminum roasting pan would also work. It just needs to be roomy and have sides, so nothing spills out.

Right in the baking pan, mix together:
4 C. old-fashioned oatmeal (not instant)
about a cup of sweetened coconut
about a cup of skinned, slivered almonds (I get them from Fresh Market.)
Add some sesame seeds -- I just sprinkle them over -- maybe about 1/4 C.
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. salt

Mix together in a measuring cup:
1/4 C. canola oil
1/4 C. honey
1/4 C. maple syrup
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Pour this over the cereal and mix well.

Bake at 350° until brown, checking and stirring every 15 minutes. Take it out when it looks good to you. I usually take a little over a half-hour. As soon as I take it out of the oven I mix in 1/2 to 1 cup dried cranberries, cherries or golden raisins. You can add any dried fruit. (If you cook the fruit it hardens.)

You can let  the granola cool in the pan, but it might stick, so I take it out of the pan right away and either spread it out on a piece of wax paper or put it into a glass jar. Let it cool completely before putting on the lid.