Granola

Our family has an addiction... We eat it every morning and sometimes as a snack and sometimes before we go to bed.  Everyone loves it!  We have even influenced other family members to eat it.  It may be healthy, but it is costly for the amounts that we consume!  It is this particular granola that has made us obsessed. 

Our family goes through 2 of these large Costco packs a week!

My solution is to try to make my own to save money and frequent trips to Costco... We have made a several visits to Costco just to get this stuff- it is that GOOD!

I looked up recipes to make granola and modified them to use similar ingredients as listed on the box... I made a trip to the health food store to get pumpkin seeds and crispy brown rice (I am sure you can use Rice Krispies, I am just trying to mimick as much as possible to wean us off the store bought stuff). 

I used canola oil as the fat, a mix of blue agave syrup and honey as the sweetener and added coconut for added flavor and texture.

Mix the dry together and wet items together, then combine

It is already starting to look like granola...

I spread it on 2 baking pans to cook, but I forgot to take a picture... Here it is pictured cooling off- looks pretty darn similar!

So far (2 days later) I like it, Mike thought it is pretty good, Kyle eats it right up & Josh could tell it is different and at first did not want to eat it, but his bowl was empty a few minutes later (4 year olds!).  I think I could make little changes to make it more similar, but the good thing is that this batch is not going to go to waste and I don't have to rush to Costco because the other stuff is gone :). 

If you find your family falling for this addiction you can try this recipe below:

3 cups rolled oats (old fashioned)

2 cups crispy rice cereal (I used brown rice)

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds

1/2 cup flax seed meal

1/4 cup oil (I used canola)

1/4 cup Agave Syrup

1/4 cup Honey

1 tsp Vanilla

1 tsp Cinnamon

1/3 cup shaved coconut (optional)

1 cup raisins (optional... I think I may add them next time)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees (I think I may try 275 next time).  Mix first 4 ingredients together in a large bowl, and the next 5 ingredients in a smaller bowl.  Combine in the larger bowl and mix until the dry stuff is coated with the wet.  Spread the mix out in a thin layer on a baking sheet (I used 2) and bake them in the oven until golden brown (it took mine about 25-30 minutes). Stir every 5-10 minutes to prevent burning.  Let cool and store in an airtight container.  It really does turn out very similar to the Nature's Path brand.