Granola

I've been meaning to try  out some granola recipes for a while, but reading online about what is done to grain cereals (extrusion processing) spurred me on to try it finally.   This is the finished result, with milk.     It tasted like....granola.    But made from scratch.  

It was an easy process and I'm comfortable with doing this once a week or so. The basic granola (oats) are cooked and then other ingredients are added as desired. For cereal, I'll add raisins, seeds, nuts. For Cosette's granola, just some seeds. For trail mix, I'll add everything including dried fruits, nuts, seeds, coconut shreds, etc. For fun, maybe more sweetness like a tablespoon of dark chocolate mini-chips.

Flavorings combinations are unlimited - we plan to have fun experimenting.

The basic recipe:

Oats (old fashioned or quick oats - not instant)  2 cups
1/2 cup applesauce (I use the little kid packs of unsweetened applesauce)
1-2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup honey or pure maple syrup or 1/2 cup raisins or chopped dates
1 tsp vanilla extract

Mix all the above together very well, mash with the back of a spoon or with your hands onto a parchment paper covered baking sheet. 

Bake at 325 degrees for 10 minutes, stir to break it up into small pieces, and bake another 10 minutes.