Recipe of the Week: Granola from Scratch

Whenever nordic skiers are being stereotyped, you are almost sure to hear the word granola, often accompanied by words like crunchy, and nature.  So what better to bake than a food that will fulfill all the world’s stereotypes about us?

Because granola can be made with just about anything, the recipe is wide open to your interpretation.  Substitute craisins for raisins, throw in your leftover almonds, replace the fiber with chocolate – go nuts!

Ingredients
1.5 lb rolled oats
1/2 box Corn Flakes or Special K
2 cups All Bran Fiber cereal
12 oz shredded, sweetened coconut
2 cups honey
3 to 4 cups raisins

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. In a very large mixing bowl, stir together the oats, cereals, and coconut.
3. Mix in the honey gradually, stirring the entire bowl to make sure that the liquid is distributed throughout the batch.  Don’t worry about getting rid of the clumps that form – they’re the best part!
4. Scoop out about a cup of the oats mixture and spread evenly on a baking sheet, preferably one with raised edges so that you don’t get crumbs all over your oven and kitchen floor.
5. Place the baking sheet in the over for about eight minutes, or until it begins to turn dark brown.  You may need to re-spread the granola with a spatula once to avoid burning the edges.
6. Dump the baked granola into a new bowl and mix in a handful of raisins while still hot.
7. Repeat steps four through six until all of the granola is baked.
8. Allow the granola to cool completely before putting it into containers.  (Empty one-gallon ice cream buckets work great).

This recipe makes enough granola to supply my family for the summer (about two gallons), but the baking process is a somewhat time-consuming ordeal, so I like to bake it in bulk.  If you’re just trying it out or have limited food storage, I’d recommend going for a half- or quarter-recipe.

Granola is heavy in carbohydrates, so it’s great as a snack either before or after a training session, or for an easy breakfast leading up to a morning workout.  Most granola found in a grocery store is relatively high in fat, but this recipe contains very little.  You can add a little more protein to the mix by throwing in nuts.