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Christmas Granola

Christmas+granola
I think I’ve found my new favourite Christmas food gift. Granola, how do I love thee? Let me count the ways:

1) By the time we actually get to Christmas, some of us are feeling Christmas cookie burnout. (No offense, shortbread. I’ll still eat you.)
2) I have friends who are gluten free, dairy free, egg free – this makes everyone happy without seeming like a compromise.
3) I make a big batch every year for my dad, anyway.
4) It’s easy to stir together and bake, and fun to package in glass jars or Christmassy little bags.
5) It has a long shelf life, so will still be fine if the recipient doesn’t get around to eating it immediately.
6) No one will regift it or get rid of leftovers before their new healthy resolutions.

Have I sold it strongly enough? Today it’s about all I’ve been eating – with plain Vital Green Farms yogurt – on account of picking up Mike’s stomach flu sometime mid-Christmas afternoon.

Christmas Granola

AuthorJulie

Yields1 Serving

4-5 cups old-fashioned (large flake) oats
1 cup sliced or slivered almonds, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts or a combination
1/2 cup shredded coconut
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 cup honey, Roger's Golden Syrup or maple syrup
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1 tsp. vanilla or coconut extract
1/2 cup green pumpkin seeds
1/2-1 cup dried cranberries, raisins, slivered apricots or other dried fruit

1

Preheat the oven to 325F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat.

2

In a large bowl, mix the oats, nuts, coconut, cinnamon and salt. In a small bowl, stir together the oil, brown sugar, honey/Roger's Golden Syrup/maple syrup and vanilla. Pour over the oat mixture and stir until well coated.

3

Spread out onto one or two baking sheets, making clumps by squeezing some of it together if you like. Bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring two or three times, until golden. Remove from the oven and stir in the pumpkin seeds and cranberries.

4

Cool completely, then package in jars or sealed bags.

Category,

Ingredients

 4-5 cups old-fashioned (large flake) oats
 1 cup sliced or slivered almonds, pecans, walnuts, hazelnuts or a combination
 1/2 cup shredded coconut
 2 tsp. cinnamon
 1/4 tsp. salt
 1/4 cup canola oil
 1/2 cup honey, Roger's Golden Syrup or maple syrup
 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
 1 tsp. vanilla or coconut extract
 1/2 cup green pumpkin seeds
 1/2-1 cup dried cranberries, raisins, slivered apricots or other dried fruit

Directions

1

Preheat the oven to 325F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat baking mat.

2

In a large bowl, mix the oats, nuts, coconut, cinnamon and salt. In a small bowl, stir together the oil, brown sugar, honey/Roger's Golden Syrup/maple syrup and vanilla. Pour over the oat mixture and stir until well coated.

3

Spread out onto one or two baking sheets, making clumps by squeezing some of it together if you like. Bake for 20-30 minutes, stirring two or three times, until golden. Remove from the oven and stir in the pumpkin seeds and cranberries.

4

Cool completely, then package in jars or sealed bags.

Christmas Granola
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13 comments on “Christmas Granola

  1. Jennifer Jo
    December 26, 2010 at 1:26 pm

    You guys have been through the wringer! Hope you’re all feeling better soon…

  2. Laurie from Burnaby
    December 26, 2010 at 1:42 pm

    I hope the new year has all of your wishes.
    Laurie

  3. Barb
    December 26, 2010 at 3:32 pm

    You’re right, this is a good choice.

  4. Aimee @ Simple Bites
    December 26, 2010 at 5:46 pm

    Merry Christmas, Julie!

    Noah and I made a massive (35 cups of oats) batch of granola together and gave it out to his teachers and family members.

    I love it. All your points are valid, and you forgot a few: it transports well and doesn’t go stale for a while.

  5. Erica B.
    December 26, 2010 at 10:01 pm

    May 2011 ring in better than 2010 seems to be ringing out for you & the family! *hugs* Hope you feel better soon!

  6. Carol SB
    December 26, 2010 at 10:22 pm

    Such a flexible recipe. We add a mashed banana or some applesauce, along with the oil/ syrup (reduces the amount of each). Our ‘recipe’ or guideline, I guess, has “1 1/2 cups chopped nuts and dried fruit (various)”.
    Have you gone all o/c about vacuuming EVERYTHING? I sure did. The beds my kids slept in during the Great Lice Attack of ’93 had drawers. Everything in the drawers was frozen… the beds taken apart and vacuumed… I vaccumed everything at least twice.
    (Ahyep, you young folks don’t know what lice are. Do you remember the Great Lice Attack of ’93, when the lice were as big as pennies, and they learned to jump? Wall, I’ll tell ya…
    Hah! Yew young fool, you don’t know what lice are! Why, I remember the Great Lice Attack of ’85, when the lice were big as quarters, and they learned to roller skate. Well, they were through our school quicker than cod liver oil through a…
    Hah! Why, NONE of yew young fools know what lice are! Why, I recollect the Great Lice Attack of ’78, when the lice were as big as loonies, and they’d team up and use our hair as a trapeze to travel from kid to kid. I tell ya, Cirque du soleil had NOTHIN’ on these babies, they’d…
    Hey, waaiiit a minute. They didn’t HAVE loonies in 1978!)
    (um, maybe SOME loonies…)

  7. Melodie
    December 27, 2010 at 8:07 am

    I’ve already made your granola and homemade pancake mix, as well as a porrige blend (apricot and ginger) and a brownie mix for a gift basket for my brother and his wife for Christams. Non-perishable food gifts are always appreciated. Thanks for the great recipes!

  8. Jan @ Family Bites
    December 27, 2010 at 9:32 am

    We love Christmas granola too. And gave to many people this year, on account of just how easy it is to make.

    Merry Christmas, and I hope you’re all feeling better soon.

  9. Lesli C-K
    December 27, 2010 at 6:50 pm

    Maybe I’ll try this next year…! Any good ideas of crunchy non-nut items I can put into granola for my peanut and nut allergic daughter, Julie?

  10. JulieVR
    December 27, 2010 at 8:50 pm

    Try loading it with seeds! Pumpkin, sesame, sunflower, flax…

  11. Sharon
    January 5, 2011 at 11:09 am

    I did use melted butter and only maple syrup for one-half the recipe. Very good.

    Christos Restiacia to everyone. I’m not religious but it seems the least I can do, eat pyroghy and wish someone “Merry Christmas” in Ukrainian once a year, to honour my grandmother who so long ago lit my cooking fire

  12. Sabrina
    January 5, 2011 at 10:50 pm

    Made a batch yesterday and I can’t get enough of it with liberty plain yogurt
    I used butter and golden syrup…delish.

  13. Lisa
    January 23, 2011 at 7:58 pm

    Our family loves this! Thanks Julie

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