I don’t know about you, but in my house, everyone loves granola. Granola bars, granola on yogurt (try our homemade version by clicking here), granola with milk, and granola just by itself. The latter inevitably ends up all over the floor—not my favorite. And, I’ve been making A LOT of granola lately.
So, I’m sharing our favorite granola recipes with you! Granola is a great alternative to cereal and is packed with fiber and protein to help keep those crazy kiddos from raiding the pantry or fridge every 20 minutes.
When it comes to oats, I usually go for organic oats as wheat and oats are often sprayed with herbicide just prior to harvest and then that herbicide goes straight into your bag of oats, flour, cereal, etc. I could write for hours about this topic, but I’ll spare you the details. The short is that glyphosate, the herbicide we know as Roundup, is used on wheat and oats just before harvest as a drying agent to increase yields and allow for a quicker, more even harvest. Unfortunately for consumers, this herbicide is significantly linked to many types of cancers. Over the last several years, the maker of glyphosate has dealt with thousands of lawsuits because of this.1 I honestly have no idea why this herbicide is still being manufactured and is so widely available to not only farmers, but consumers, as well. But, I digress… Below are a couple of resources for this topic. It’s always good to be informed!
Click here for the full EWG article and test results of many popular oat and cereal products.
Click here for a great video/podcast (whichever you prefer) about glyphosate and it’s affect on the health of humans and our planet. There’s a lot of geeky science stuff in this talk, but it is pretty easy to follow and totally worth a listen.
Fortunately, Bob’s Red Mill, a producer of many oat, wheat, and cereal products, pledged as of May 2016 to no longer permit their oat suppliers to use glyphosate as a pre-harvest dessicant.2
With that out of the way, now back to this yummy granola. I usually make multiple batches at a time. With 3 boys and a husband with a big appetite (and super-human metabolism—so unfair), it doesn’t last long. Often, I will start out making the traditional cinnamon granola, place half of the mixture onto a sheet pan, then add the cocoa powder and mini chocolate chips to make the chocolate version to the remaining oat mixture. Granola 2 ways, all in 1 swoop!
Finally, let’s talk about granola chunks. I find that the best way to get the chunks is to really pack the mixture down on the sheet pan in an even layer and not to disturb it until it has baked and completely cooled. I bake each pan for about 30 minutes, remove from the oven, and let cool completely—keeping out curious little hands will be the hardest part. Once cooled, break into chunks and transfer to an airtight container for storage.
Now, on to the recipe!
- https://www.ewg.org/childrenshealth/glyphosateincereal/
- https://www.bobsredmill.com/blog/healthy-living/bobs-red-mill-oats-glyphosate
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Granola: Two Ways!
Ingredients
- 4 cups rolled oats
- 2 cups seeds and/or chopped nuts we like a mix of raw pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, and chopped pecans
- 1 cup shredded coconut if you’re not into coconut, add more nuts/seeds
- 1 cup chopped dried fruit optional
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1/3 cup melted coconut oil
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon
For Chocolate Chip Granola add:
- 3 Tbsp cacao/cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup mini dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Grease a large sheet pan or line with parchment paper.
- Place all ingredients in a large bowl and mix well. Spread onto prepared pan in a thin layer and press down flat with clean hands or spatula. Bake for 30 minutes then remove from oven and allow to cool completely. Once cooled, break into chunks and store in an airtight container. Serve over yogurt (try this homemade version), in milk, or even on ice cream!