Spiced Honey Orange Choc Chip Granola

Processing: Oven (60-70 minutes)
Storage: Cupboard (3 weeks)
Refrigerator (4+ weeks)
Freezer (3 months)
Yield: 7 cups per batch
    
Your family will love having a jar of granola on the bench all year long! Packed with wholegrain rolled oats, citrus peel, ground spices (cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger), raw sugar, orange juice and dark chocolate chips. Enjoy as a quick snack straight from the jar, add some milk for breakfast – or sprinkle on some homemade yoghurt. Granola is also great made into granola bars or used in baked goods!

    
Ingredients:
1/2 cup raw sugar
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon salt
5 cups wholegrain rolled oats
1 cup dried citrus peel, finely diced
1 cup small dark choc chips
   
Pre-heat oven, line tray.
The secret to making homemade granola is baking it LOW AND SLOW - pre-heat your oven to 275'F (135'C) and line two baking trays so the granola will not stick to the tray.
      
Combine wet ingredients.
Whisk the sugar, honey, spices, salt and orange juice together in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisking every few minutes while the sugar dissolves. Allow to cool enough to touch (usually cool enough by the time you've chopped up the dried peel and chocolate chips.
     
Stir warm liquid into rolled oats. Add other ingredients.
Combine the rolled oats and the syrup in a large mixing bowl, using fingertips to evenly distribute throughout. Stir through the apricots and coconut until mixed through.
       
Pour mixture onto prepared trays.
Spread mixture evenly onto the lined baking trays, don't press down as we want to break the granola up as it cooks. Bake for 60-70 minutes at 275'F (135'C) or until golden, checking every 15 minutes and stirring the mixture to break up any large clumps. The granola will be soft from the oven but harden whilst cooling, so watch the colour change to golden to check when it is ready to come out of the oven.
    
Cool granola.
Leave to rest in the tray after baking for about 10 minutes, then put onto a big platter or dish to cool overnight whilst covered with a tea towel or plastic wrap (or a big food net if you like). You can stir through the chocolate chips after the granola is only a little warm (so they don't melt all the way through). I also heated my jars after baking and rested those (covered) overnight so they were dry and clean for use the next day to store the granola in.
     
Place granola into jars.
Scoop your dry toasted granola into your clean, dry jars and cover with a clean lid. You can store this in the pantry for a few weeks, or refrigerate for a month or more, or freeze if you’ve made a few months’ worth of granola!
  
More photographs of this recipe HERE
   

Apricot Coconut Choc Chip Granola

Processing: Oven (60-70 minutes)
Storage: Cupboard (3 weeks)
Refrigerator (4+ weeks)
Freezer (3 months)
Yield: 7 cups per batch
   
Your family will love having a jar of granola on the bench all year long! Enjoy as a quick snack straight from the jar, add some milk for breakfast – or sprinkle on some homemade yoghurt. Granola is also great made into granola bars or used in baked goods! This granola flavour version was created by my 5 year old daughter Katie-Anne and her two school friends.

  

Ingredients:
1/2 cup raw sugar
1/4 cup golden syrup (or light corn syrup and a little molasses)
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon salt
5 cups wholegrain rolled oats
1 cup diced dried apricots
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1 cup small dark choc chips
  
Pre-heat oven, line tray.
The secret to making homemade toasted muesli is baking it LOW AND SLOW - pre-heat your oven to 275'F (135'C) and line two baking trays so the granola will not stick to the tray.
     
Combine wet ingredients.
Whisk the sugar, syrup and water together in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisking every few minutes while the sugar dissolves. Add the salt, whisking until combined. Allow to cool enough to touch (usually cool enough by the time you've chopped up the dried fruit.
    
Stir warm liquid into rolled oats. Add other ingredients.
Combine the rolled oats and the syrup in a large mixing bowl, using fingertips to evenly distribute throughout. Stir through the apricots and coconut until mixed through.
    
Pour mixture onto prepared trays.
Spread mixture evenly onto the lined baking trays, don't press down as we want to break the granola up as it cooks. Bake for 60-70 minutes at 275'F (135'C) or until golden, checking every 15 minutes and stirring the mixture to break up any large clumps. The granola will be soft from the oven but harden whilst cooling, so watch the colour change to golden to check when it is ready to come out of the oven.
    
Cool granola.
Leave to rest in the tray after baking for about 10 minutes, then put onto a big platter or dish to cool overnight whilst covered with a tea towel or plastic wrap (or a big food net if you like). You can stir through the chocolate chips after the granola is only a little warm (so they don't melt all the way through). I also heated my jars after baking and rested those (covered) overnight so they were dry and clean for use the next day to store the granola in.
      
Place granola into jars.
Scoop your dry toasted muesli into your clean, dry jars and cover with a clean lid. You can store this in the pantry for a few weeks, or refrigerate for a month or more, or freeze if you’ve made a few months’ worth of granola!
  

The girls' decorated their bags of granola to take home :)

More photographs of this recipe HERE

GRANOLA (BASIC RECIPE)

Crunchy, golden clusters of rolled oats, fruit, nuts, seeds, spices and sweetened with honey or sugar, granola is a simple breakfast/snack food you can make at home. Enjoy as a quick snack straight from the jar, add some milk for breakfast – or sprinkle on top of homemade yoghurt. Granola can also be made into granola bars or used in baked goods. Your family will love having a jar of granola on the bench - jars of granola make great gifts, too!

 

Ingredients for   GRANOLA (BASIC RECIPE)
	Yield: 7 cups
Sugar (Brown, White, Raw or Other)	1/2 cup
Syrup (Honey, Maple Syrup, Corn Syrup or Golden Syrup)	1/4 cup
Liquid (Water, Orange Juice, Apple Juice or Cider)	1/4 cup
Salt, Finely Ground	1 teaspoon
Flavouring (Vanilla or Lemon/Lime/Orange Zest)	1 teaspoon
Ground Spices (Cinnamon, Nutmeg or Ginger)	2 teaspoons
Rolled Oats	5 cups
Dried Fruit, Finely Diced (Sultanas, Cranberries, Pineapple, Cherries, Dates, Figs or Raisins)	1 cup
Nuts, Chopped/Sliced (Peanuts, Almonds, Cashews, Pecans, Pistachios or Walnuts)	1 cup
Shredded Coconut, Chocolate Chips or Seeds (Pepitas, Chia or Sesame Seeds)	1/4 cup

METHOD:

1.  Clean jars and equipment by washing in hot soapy water and rinsing well before use. Ensure jars (or storage containers) are completely dry before storing granola in them.

2.   The secret to making homemade granola is baking it LOW AND SLOW - pre-heat your oven to 135°C (275°F) and line two baking trays with baking paper, so the granola will not stick to the tray.
3.  Whisk the sugar, syrup and liquid together in a small saucepan over medium heat, whisking every few minutes while the sugar dissolves.

4.  Add the salt, flavouring and spices, whisking until combined. Allow the liquid to cool enough to touch (it should be cool enough by the time you've chopped up the dried fruit and nuts).

5.  Dice dried fruit and nuts.
6.  Combine the rolled oats and the syrup in a large mixing bowl, using fingertips to evenly distribute throughout. Add extra liquid if the mixture is too dry.

7.  Add the dried fruit, nuts and coconut/seeds. Mix well.

8.  Spread mixture evenly onto the lined baking trays, don't press down as we want to break the granola up as it cooks.

9.  Bake for 60-70 minutes at 135°C (275°F) or until golden, checking every 15 minutes and stirring the mixture to break up any large clumps. The granola will be soft from the oven but harden whilst cooling, so watch the colour change to golden which is when it is ready to come out of the oven.

10.  Leave granola on the trays for 10 minutes, then pour onto a big plate (or dish). Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap (or a big food net) and leave to dry overnight.

11.  Add choc chips to granola (if using) and stir gently.

12.  Pour granola into clean, dry jar/s.

We use a 2 litre (2 quart) wide mouth jar and include a small scoop or spoon inside.

13.  Consume granola within 3 weeks (if stored in the pantry at room temperature), or refrigerate for a month or more, or freeze for up to 3 months.

 

FLAVOUR IDEAS:

o    5 grains with apple and blueberry;

o    Almond cashew;

o    Almond coconut;

o    Almond hazelnut;

o    Apple caramel;

o    Berries;

o    Blueberry coconut;

o    Cherry almond;

o    Choc granola – add a few tablespoons of cocoa powder in step 4.

o    Choc almond;

o    Choc hazelnut;

o    Cranberry apple;

o    Nuts (no fruit, extra nuts);

o    Peanut butter;

o    Raspberry coconut;

o    Strawberry vanilla;

o    Vanilla blueberry;

o    Vanilla cinnamon.

 

 

 

Author: Megan Radaich          

Image credit: Megan Radaich          

Learn More: Food Preserving Guides available HERE

Day 187: Cranberry Almond Toasted Muesli

Cranberry Almond Toasted Muesli
     

Day One Hundred and Eighty Seven (23.11.2012)
Processing: Oven (60-70 minutes)

Yield: 7 x half-pints (7 cups)

Recipe Source: followed method shown HERE
                             
So over the past two days I have made choc raspberry sauce and homemade yoghurt, so today I wanted to make my own granola. I also wanted something that could be made in bulk and stored either in the pantry (2-3 weeks?) or longer in the refrigerater (4+ weeks), which meant cutting back on the added oil, but also still having all of the yummy ingredients that granola is famous for! Now here in Australia the word granola is copyrighted, so I have called mine toasted muesli instead. If you think of a catchier name, let me know! Today I made my toasted muesli with dried cranberries and slivered almonds, but you could substitute for your favourite dried fruit and nuts - even adding a 1/4 cup or so of seeds or coconut to the mix if you wish. I'm thinking for christmas a few jars of cranberry (red) and pistachio (green) toasted muesli won't go afar!
     

Ingredients:

1/2 cup sugar - you can use brown, white, raw, etc (I used brown sugar)
1/4 cup honey (you could substitute for maple syrup)
1/4 cup water
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
5 cups wholegrain rolled oats
1 cup dried fruit (I used dried cranberries, but use whatever chopped dried fruit you wish)
1 cup chopped/sliced nuts (I used slivered almonds)
1/4 cup coconut/seeds (OPTIONAL)
    
Pre-heat oven, line tray.The secret to making homemade toasted muesli is baking it LOW AND SLOW - pre-heat your oven to 275'F (135'C) and line a baking tray with baking paper so the mixture doesn't stick to the tray.
     

Combine wet ingredients.

Whisk the sugar, honey and water together in a small saucepan over medium heat until the sugar dissolves. Add the salt, vanilla extract and ground cinnamon, whisking until combined. Allow to cool enough to touch (usually cool enough by the time you've chopped up the dried fruit and nuts).

        

      

    

Stir into rolled oats.

Combine the rolled oats and the syrup in a large mixing bowl, using fingertips to evenly distribute throughout. Stir through the remaining ingredients until mixed through.

   

  

   

Pour mixture onto prepared tray.

Spread mixture evenly onto the lined baking tray, don't press down as we want to break the muesli up as it cooks. Pop into the pre-heated oven and bake for 60-70 minutes at 275'F (135'C) or until golden, checking every 15 minutes and stirring the mixture to break up any forming clumps. It will be soft from the heat but once cooled will harden, so watch the colour change to golden to check when it is ready to come out of the oven.

   

Cool muesli.

Leave to rest in the tray after baking for about 10 minutes, then put onto a big platter or dish (I used a big Tupperware bowl), to cool overnight whilst covered with a tea towel or plastic wrap (or a big food net if you like). I also heated my jars after baking and rested those (covered) overnight so they were nice and dry in the morning.

   

Heat jars and cool.

Heat your jars (I use half pint/125ml or pint/450ml or quart/950ml) by covering in water and simmering for about 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before use - you don't want moisture in the jars ruining your muesli! You will also need clean, dry lids - plastic ones are perfect, especially if you are going to refrigerate your mix.
         
Spoon toasted muesli into jars.
Scoop your dry toasted muesli into your clean, dry jars and cover with a clean lid. You can store this in the pantry for a few weeks, or refrigerate (some say freezing also works well but I haven't tried that out yet) for a month or more!and rest jars in canner for 5 more minutes before removing to a tea towel covered surface to cool overnight.
        

Enjoy! Sprinkle a spoonful atop yoghurt and fruit slices,

use as a cereal with milk, or make granola bars!

I'd love to see your creations!