We serve this granola every morning as part of our legendary country inn breakfast. It’s a crunchy delicious start to the day!

Yield: Makes 4 lbs or 16 servings

Ingredients

1 cup (250 mL) of honey
1 cup (250 mL) of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon (15 mL) of ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon (5 mL) of ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon (5 mL) of pure vanilla extract
8 cups (2 L) of rolled oats
1 cup (250 mL) of wheat germ
1 cup (250 mL) of wheat bran
1 cup (250 mL) of flax meal
1 cup (250 mL) of unsalted sunflower seeds
1 cup (250 mL) of almond slivers
1 cup (250 mL) of chopped walnuts
1 teaspoon (5 mL) of salt
2 cups (500 mL) of raisins or sweetened dried cranberries

Procedure

Preheat your oven to a gentle browning temperature325 °F (160 °C)hot enough to toast the granola but not hot enough to burn it.

Pour the honey, oil, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla into a saucepan and bring them to a simmer over medium heat. Gentle heating brightens the flavours of the spices and melts the normally thick honey, so it combines evenly with the dry ingredients.

Toss together the oats, wheat germ, wheat bran, flax meal, sunflower seeds, almonds, walnuts and salt until they’re evenly combined. When the oil mixture is hot enough to simmer, pour it over the dry ingredient mixture. Stir well until everything is evenly coated.

Spread the raw granola into a single even layer on a rimmed baking sheet or two. Bake for 40 minutes or so, until the oats are evenly toasted. Every 10 minutes or so, stir the works to help it cook evenly. Continue baking and stirring until the granola is baked golden brown.

Rest at room temperature until completely cool, then stir in the raisins (or cranberries).

Granola can be stored in an airtight container for up to a week.

Variation

Other than the basic oats, if you’re missing a dry ingredient or two, you can still carry on. Feel free to add any combination of your favourite nuts, seeds or dried fruits. There are many to choose from. Try varying the spice blend too: cardamom and ginger work well. You may substitute maple syrup for the honey.