I've Done It. Granola Perfected.

I have absolutely no intention of this becoming some kind of recipe blog.  That just doesn't feel like my style, but my daughter has been begging me to make granola again for weeks and my mom also gently suggested that I make some to take with us on vacation next week.  (By gently suggested, I mean that she shoved a large container of oats at me as well as 2 large containers for the finished product.)  This seemed like the perfect opportunity to try something somewhat original and so I consulted 4-5 different granola recipes, picked and chose what I thought would be tasty, and added my own flair.  The finished  product is pleasing to the palate, to say the least.

This is a big batch, by the way.  This stuff doesn't last long around our house.

The Recipe

6 cups oats

2-3 cups coconut (I love coconut, so I definitely do 3)

1 1/2 cups sliced almonds

1 cup wheat germ

1 cup flax seed

3/4 cup brown sugar (I use the splenda 1/2 and 1/2 blend)

2 cups craisins

1/2 cup canola oil

4 egg whites, beaten

1 cup honey

2 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. almond

2 1/2 tsp. cinnamon

Preheat oven to 325.

Heat the brown sugar, honey, and oil in the microwave for approximately 45 seconds.  

Allow to cool slightly and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

Add egg whites, vanilla, almond, and cinnamon and then stir in everything else, except for the craisins.

Spray 2 cookie sheets and spread in an even layer.

Bake for 25 minutes.

Remove from oven and stir.  Bake for 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and stir again.  Add craisins.  Stir.  Bake for 5 more minutes.

Allow to cool completely in order to achieve maximum crunch and then transfer to an airtight container.  

The Nutrition

Serving Size:                1/2 cup

Number of Servings:    34.5 

Calories:                240

Fat:                         11

Carbohydrates:       32

Protein:                    5

Fiber:                       4

Weight Watchers Points Plus:  6

The Nutrition Breakdown

There is a good chance you may want to eliminate certain ingredients, so I have broken down the nutritional information for each ingredient so that you can come up with a new nutritional information per serving on your own.  Math is not my strong suit, but I am going to do my best.  

Nutritional Information for the Entire Batch

I find these numbers somewhat disturbing...

                                               Calories          Fat         Carb         Protein          Fiber

Oats                                        1800                 36           324              60                   48

Coconut                                  1680               120           168              24                   24                                

Almonds                                 1026                 90             42              36                   24

Wheat Germ                             400                   8             48              27                   16

Flax Seed                                 400                  27.5          27.5           15                   22.5

Brown Sugar Blend                 120                   0              24                0                     0

Craisins                                    780                   0            198                0                   18

Canola Oil                                960                112              0                 0                     0

Egg Whites                               100                  0                4               20                     0

Honey                                     1031                  0            279                1                      0

Nutritional Information Per Serving

These numbers are approximate.  I did a lot of rounding up or down for the purpose of eliminating certain ingredients if desired.  This is why the numbers don't add up at all when compared with the general nutritional information provided above.  Definitely go with those numbers; they are much more accurate.

                                               Calories          Fat         Carb         Protein          Fiber

Oats                                            52                  1               9                   2                  1.5

Coconut                                      49                  3.5            5                   1                  1

Almonds                                     30                  2.5            1                   1                  1

Wheat Germ                               30                   0              1.5                1                  1

Flax Seed                                    30                   0              0                   0                  1

Brown Sugar Blend                      3.5                0              1                   0                  0

Craisins                                       22.5                0              0                   0                  0

Canola Oil                                   28                   3             0                    0                 0

Egg Whites                                    3                   0             0                   1                  0

Honey                                         30                    0             8                    0                 0

The Reflections

Do not eat the entire batch in one sitting.  Your stomach will explode.  

I may try to eliminate the oil and possibly add a few more egg whites.  There is a whole lot of fat in that stuff.  There seems to be a whole lot of fat in the coconut too, but I really don't care.  Did I mention that I love coconut?  I also may consider adding more almond extract... something else I love. 

Keira is going to be super excited in the morning.  She has been talking about mixing granola in her yogurt all day.