I made granola today. From start to finish, it took three days! Don't get me wrong; it's an easy recipe that would normally take no time at all, but this has been The Week of Incessant Interruptions!
I like the simplicity of this recipe. Since we can't do nuts, and the kiddos tend to pick out the sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, and organic dried fruit that I've added in the past, I decided to just omit those ingredients. If I chose to add the seeds, I would do so in the beginning, along with the rolled oats and oat bran. I'd add the fruit as soon as the granola came out of the oven.
I use two different types of coconut oil because not everyone in our house likes a strong coconut flavor. The virgin coconut oil smells and tastes like delicious fresh coconut. The expeller pressed oil does not have any coconut taste or smell at all. By combining the two, I get a light coconut flavor, but the recipe would work just as well with all virgin oil or all expeller pressed.
Simple Coconut Granola
8 cups gluten-free rolled oats (or 6 c rolled oats and 2 c steel cut oats)
1 cup gluten-free oat bran
1 cup organic unsweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup organic coconut milk (classic, NOT light)
1/4 cup virgin coconut oil
1/4 cup expeller pressed coconut oil
1/2 cup brown rice syrup
1 cup raw honey
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
In a large bowl, combine rolled oats, oat bran, and flaked coconut.
In a saucepan, combine coconut oils, brown rice syrup, and honey. Bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Boil and stir for two minutes.
Remove from heat. Stir in vanilla and cinnamon.
Pour the syrup over the oats and coconut, and stir until the dry ingredients are fully coated.
Divide evenly between two large stoneware jellyroll pans, spreading out to cover the entire surface of the pans.
Bake for 8-10 minutes, until toasted. Remove from oven and cool on jellyroll pans.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature. Enjoy!
