Making your own staples: Honey nut granola
Plus Mel's Staples: Must-haves, essentials & more in your pantry & fridge Part 7
The title of this week’s blog post already tells it, there’s something different. Not only am I introducing sweet treats to my series Mel’s Staples. I’m also showing you the next step of all that is possible, when cooking & baking with staples: Making your own staples!
To start with that I went for something easy and fun. Something that I loved to make over the years and that I’ve tried in different flavor combinations and using different ingredients. I’m speaking of Granola.
I really love the crunchiness there is to Granola, that it’s packed with good stuff, nuts and seeds. I’m not so much a fan of dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, etc.). And I’m also not a big fan of coconut flakes. Both often can be found in homemade granola recipes as well as in store bought ones.
So, if you’d also rather skip the dried fruits and the coconut flakes in your Granola, this recipe is for you.
Of course, you can add all of the above to the Granola, if you so prefer. Just keep in mind, that dried fruits as well as coconut flakes can easily burn. Add them rather towards the end of baking your Granola or once it’s out of the oven.
The granola I would make back at my former apartment in my hometown in Germany, even was Paleo, meaning no grains, in that case oats, added whatsoever. The only reason for that was, that I usually would sprinkle my Granola on top of my oatmeal, which is, yep, exactly, oats. So, no need to add extra oats to my Granola.
This time, though, I didn’t have all the ingredients for that Paleo version on hand, so I decided I’d add some oats, just enough for everything to bind well together. And, put on Yogurt, especially the Greek type, this Granola is a winner. Crunchy and as sweet as honey.
As always, before I’ll introduce the recipe to you, let’s share more of those staples here.
Must-Haves in your pantry & fridge
oats
coconut oil
These are two of the staples that I’d always have at home, using both in sweet as well as savory recipes.
Oats
One of the most healthiest staples there is, at least that’s what I think. Before everyone was telling you how good oats are (read into it, they sure are!) , I already had my oatmeal every morning.
I remember a session with an Ayurvedic health practitioner years ago, when she’d tell me that my body type would need a warm breakfast to function properly. So I stuck with oatmeal ever since. Well, there’s still Pancake Sunday, of course. But that’s a warm breakfast, too, isn’t it. ;-)
I haven’t played around a lot with using oats for savory dishes, such as a binder for veggie/vegan burger patties. But there’s always room for more, right?
Coconut oil
Another amazing staple in my kitchen. It’s used a lot in vegan dishes, especially in baking. But I also use it as the oil when making an Indian Curry.
Coconut oil is one of the healthier fats, compared to butter or cheap vegetable oils. But there’s different sources telling you different things, one says it’s raising the good cholesterol, others say it also raises the bad. Well, I guess, you gotta do your own research.
My strategy is, do a mix of different things and not stick to just one. It’s all about balance, especially for your own diet. At least for me it is.
Essentials for your pantry & fridge
cashews
walnuts
almonds
pumpkin seeds
vanilla extract
Yes, I’m using a lot of nuts this time. But I also do in many of my dishes. Being Veggie leaning towards vegan nuts and seeds are my best friends.
Cashews
Oh, cashews! They’re great for snacking, but you can play around so much with them, too. Especially when making vegan creams, spreads, sauces and more. Vegan cheesecake - before there was vegan cream cheese in stores - was made of cashews. Cashews are so versatile. Oh, and toasted they’re a great topping for Indian Curries.
Walnuts
Another fun nut. I add walnuts to banana breads, to make Pesto - I’ve got an amazing recipe for a dried tomato walnut Pesto -, use it as a topping or chopped up in vegan lentil loafs. If you happen to have a walnut tree where you live, go forage some.
Almonds
Do you know Marzipan, the traditional (German?) almond paste that is used for sweet treats, Marzipankartoffeln (marzipan potatoes) are big in German Christmas sweets.
It’s made of almonds, but I’m not a huge fan of it. Except for the potatoes. I do love almonds in any other form, almond butter, almond milk (another staple that you can make at home, if you have a blender), vegan almond cheese, etc.
Pumpkin seeds or Pepita
Next to sunflower seeds these are a great topping for your salad. Even better when toasted, because the toasting extracts the flavors.
Pumpkin seeds contain some very healthy fats, Omega 3 fats, so I’d always add them to my oatmeal every morning. And hence there in the Granola, too.
Some people also use pumpkin seeds for making Pesto, instead of sunflower seeds or the more expensive pine nuts.
Vanilla Extract
This is definitely an essential in my baking. I use it a lot for oatmeal, for sweet breads, cakes and my pancake recipe.
You can totally use vanilla beans, which are more expensive. I try to opt for vanilla extract that is organic and doesn’t use a lot of alcohol for preserving.
I Germany I had found the perfect one that doesn’t use alcohol at all and no artificial flavorings, too.
Nice-to-Haves for your pantry & fridge
Pecans
Pecans are not often used in Mel’s kitchen. I grew up in Germany, I didn’t really use Pecans until 10 years ago, when I started cooking and baking through a more global lens and introduced produce and ingredients from different continents and countries to my diet.
I often used Pecans in making fall or Christmas inspired recipes, mostly cakes and sweet breads.
Mel’s Honey Nut Granola
While staying at a Retreat Center in Vermont last summer and being in the kitchen a lot helping make all their delicious food and staples, I made gigantic batches of Granola. A recipe that I twisted and tweaked until it was just perfectly crunchy and chunky.
I could see, as soon as I took the baking trays out of the oven, the first chunks were already gone before the Granola even had the chance to be stored in a mason jar.
The recipe below is different to the one I was making there, but it’s as good and probably my new favorite topping for oatmeal and Yogurt.
This is what you need for a 1 gallon mason jar (slightly more actually)
2 cups of mixed raw nuts (walnuts, pecans, cashews, almonds), chopped
1/3 cup of unsalted pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup honey, preferably organic. I used Dakin Farm honey from Vermont
1 tbsp organic virgin coconut oil
1/2 - 1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla extract
pinch of salt
How to make the Honey Nut Granola
Preheat oven to 325°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside (do not skip this step, the granola will stick if directly on the baking sheet. Which I did for the photos, because it looks nicer. Cleaning the baking sheet was a pain after…).
In a large bowl, combine nuts, seeds, oats, cinnamon and salt. Set aside.
In a small saucepan, heat coconut oil and honey until smooth and combined. Stir in vanilla extract.
Pour over nut mixture and stir until well combined. Dump the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet and spread into an even layer.
Bake for 15-20 minutes until light golden brown, rotating the pan halfway through the cook time. Keep a close eye on it so that the nuts don't burn.
Take out of the oven and let cool completely. Everything will firm up as it cools, even when it feels very sticky taking the baking sheet out of the oven.
Break into smaller or bigger pieces as you prefer and store in the mason jar. Sprinkle over your Yogurt or your oatmeal. Enjoy!
