Whenever I see $20 plastic packs of granola in the shops, my heart weeps a little. They are so expensive and yet the contents are probably quite dusty and stale. It is super easy to make, even my husband and daughter can do it.
We started with a recipe from Joy of Baking. There's even a video tutorial. Over the years we have made it so often it is the only recipe that is permanently posted on the fridge door in the kitchen.
This was the second version, the first had to be discarded because the ink faded.
This is the third and latest iteration, because husband didn't like the imprecise instructions of the second version.
Husband likes to use Silpat. Our helper uses a cookie sheet. She oils the pan a little before pouring out the mix.
Everything in the recipe is customisable. We prefer our nuts chopped up so every bite has a bit of everything. Over the years we have experimented with different sweetening agents and fats, our favourite is still ricebran oil with maple syrup as the glue that holds it all together. Agave syrup was sweet but lacked the toasty notes of maple. Honey burnt easily. Chopped gula melaka was nice but a bit hard to control, and it is not as sweet as maple. Dried fruit is optional, I like raisins but am the only one who does, so more often than not, it gets left out. As we always have goji berries in the fridge, sometimes those get tossed in too. Most of the time, we don't add fruits. Coconut flakes and chocolate are also good additions but my peculiar family prefers not to have them.
It is delicious eaten out of hand, or as a topping for porridge, yoghurt, ice creams, fruit salads etc. We like to carry them on our travels, it ensures we have something healthy for breakfast. They make excellent gifts, although for older relatives you can anticipate their refrain of "it's a bit sweet" so we cut the syrup down by at least 30%. Joy says they last a month, we never had to test this limit.
I buy my dried nuts and seeds from Ah Pau Chop in the Victoria Wholesale Centre, which is now located in Kallang. They also freeze well so you can buy more than you need and make small batches. Maple syrup is expensive, can't really skimp on them, but sometimes Cold Storage or NTUC Finest may have a bit of discount. You can choose to use organic oats if you like, they are not that much dearer than non-organic versions. Even if you use all-organic ingredients, you will still save money over the commercial versions. So there is no reason to ever buy commercial granola anymore, ok? xoxo
