Jules Granola
Being a huge SEED fan, do try this extremely easy nut free granola. Predominantly strong in seeds with dried fruits and maple syrup to sweeten. If you want to change the recipe, do add other dried fruits but I find raisins and dried peaches an excellent mix.
Perfectly acceptable to use coconut oil rather than butter and honey rather than maple syrup. I have also baked this recipe using date syrup when I had run out of the maple and it worked a treat.
Granola makes a wonderful breakfast dish or a snack anytime of the day served with cold milk or your favourite milk alternative.
Delicious also when combined with fresh fruit and plain yoghurt – check out my recipe for Fruity Peach Granola
Ingredients
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Granola Dry Mix
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500g oats
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200g pumpkin seeds
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200g sunflower seeds
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100g sesame seeds
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100g flaxseeds
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1 tbsp cinnamon powder- flat
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250g raisins
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250g dried peaches- or apricots, figs or pears or mix of all 3
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Wet Syrup
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250mls maple syrup
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100g butter- melted
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150mls water
Instructions
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Prepare granola dry mix:
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01 Place all the dried ingredients into a large bowl, mixing well.
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Prepare wet syrup:
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02 In a saucepan melt butter and maple syrup, and when melted add water.
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03 Make a well in the centre of the dried granola ingredients, and pour in all the wet buttery syrup. Mix well, but do try to keep the mixture in clumps or what we recognise as granola pieces.
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To bake:
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04 Line one or two large baking trays with non stick baking paper. Tip granola mix onto the trays and flatten out evenly.
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05 Place in oven and bake until hard and the you have traditional granola pieces. As it starts to colour, remove the tray from oven and with a large spoon turn the mixture (this will keep the pieces to a manageable, eatable size).
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06 Try not to break any clumps as they form as this keeps the granola chunky.
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07 Allow to cool and store in an airtight container.
Notes
Being a purist I use butter in my granola, but of course it is possible to substitute with coconut oil or a very light vegetable oil. Fat is required as it plays a major part in binding the granola together, otherwise the mix would resemble muesli. If you wish to add nuts just half the seed quantity and supplement with nuts of your choice and do mix the dried fruits as you prefer. Always store in an airtight container or attractively in a glass kilner jar. Keeping this way will make the granola keep crunchy for at least 7-10 days. I mention it takes an hour plus to bake. This is important as the end result must be crisp or you end up with a soft granola after storing.
