Granola Round-Up

Hello friends, this is a recipe round-up with a difference. Instead of rounding-up recipes from a single book, I am instead rounding-up a type of food from several books. In this case, granola. I have really been on a granola kick of late. I just love me some oats! I started off buying this apple crumble ganola that I loved, I would eat it so often with yoghurt. It was really really good. And then one day, I just didn't enjoy it anymore. *shrug* So I started making my own granola from my recipe books, which is really super easy! I generally halve, third, or even quarter the recipe (some of them make huge amounts) because I have been wanting to try lots of different onces. Granola making and eating has become something I have really been enjoying since I've been isolating. I normally will eat it with yoghurt, fruit, and sometimes a big blob of peanut butter. Also, sorry in advance, I am not very inventive when taking photos of granola.

Macadamia Yoghurt Granola from 500 Vegan Recipes by Celine Steen and Joni Marie Newman: This is a very subtly flavoured granola, oaty and nutty with a slight sweetness. It is good for using on stronger flavoured yoghurts. I halved the recipe, which made three serves (a serve for me is normally a heaped half cup measure), and I replaced the coconut oil with canola oil.
Rating: :)



Maple Cinnamon Granola from Power Plates by Gena Hamshaw: This is a delicious granola, it is buttery and maply and salty and sweet crunchy and all things good. I made a half recipe, which fit perfectly onto a single baking tray. There are a few options for ingredients, I used wheatgerm (but raw, not toasted), a mix of pumpkin and sunflower seeds, sliced almonds, and dried cranberries.
Rating: :D



Fruit-Sweetened Chai-Spiced Granola from Big Vegan by Robin Asbell: This is sweetened using apple juice concentrate, though I only had apple juice, but there is the option to add brown sugar (which I did). I quartered this recipe, for three serves. It has a lovely blend of spices, including black pepper for some warmth, and also has pecans.
Rating: :)



Easy Homemade Granola from 350 Best Vegan Recipes by Deb Roussou: Alas, a disappointing granola. The problem may have been that it had no sweetener, other than orange juice, and it seemed to have far too much liquid when I mixed it all together and then it stayed soggy and pale in the oven for too long. It had a 90 minute baking time, I ended up increasing the heat for the final 30 minutes to get it to brown and crisp up. Also, because it was just orange juice and no sweetener, it didn't get that nice sticky coating. Thankfully I had only made a half recipe of this, because it was underwhelming. It had the usual suspects of almonds, sunflower seeds, and pepitas in it. The spice was cardamom, which was nice, and it had dried blueberries as well.
Rating: :|



DIY Granola from Veganize It by Robin Robertson: This is a nice mix of almonds, coconut, pecans, dried cranberries and blueberries, and spice. It was meant to be cinnamon, but I unexpectedly ran out so I used a mixed spice that was mostly cinnamon with a bit of nutmeg and allspice in it. I made a half recipe of this (which was still 4 cups worth of granola!), and it was done a bit sooner than the baking time if you were making the whole recipe. I think the key to granola is always just to regularly check it in the oven so it doesn't burn.
Rating: :)



Peanut Ginger Berry Golden Oats from The Complete Guide to Vegan Food Substitutions by Celine Steen and Joni Marie Newman: This was a lovely warming recipe, thanks to a hefty dose of ground ginger! It is sweetened with brown rice syrup, though I used rice malt syrup, and I also used crushed peanuts as that was what I had on hand (also it is nicer eating smaller bits of crunch I think). You can add any dried berry to it, so I added cranberries. Quite a festive granola with ginger and cranberry. I made the whole recipe of this, as it only made two and a half cups, and I am glad that I did. I did have to bake it for a bit longer in the oven to get it to go nice and brown.
Rating: :)



Cute Kitty Photo of the Post



Yes Dim Sim, this looks like a very comfortable way to sleep. But she's got the crocheted blanket, so she is very happy.