Stovetop Granola

Granola is such a rainy day project and nice to make in the cool weather, but since it's berry season, I like to have berries w/ my yogurt and some crunchy sweet granola on top.

I am not a lover of fruit, and will always choose vegetables first, but feel it is my duty as a food blogger to eat seasonal produce, and not just use them in cakes.

So yogurt it will be.....with some granola on top (and bottom!).

This easy granola recipe is hard to mess up.
You can use any nuts you like, and any dried fruit.

And the best part of this recipe is that it is made on the stove instead of baked in the oven.

Just work quickly, so you don't burn the nuts.

I have made many versions of this, almost weekly, and find the maple syrup version is my favorite....also a tip: use a commercial non-stick skillet if you can. I burned my good stainless steel skillet the first time around. :)

I have also made a savory version of this stovetop granola, adding in cumin and cayenne and some black pepper. It was amazing on roasted carrots and salads. Recipe soon.

Stovetop Granola:

2 tbsp of coconut oil
2-3 cups of rolled oats
1/3 cup of chopped almonds or pistachios and or pecans
1/4 cup of dried fruit, like cranberries or raisins (I also added in dried pineapple!)
1/4 cup of unsweetened coconut
4 tbsp of maple syrup or honey
pinch of sea salt
dash of cinnamon

Melt the coconut oil in a large heavy skillet. Add in the oats and toss around until the they are starting to turn golden. This should take about 4 minutes. Add in the nuts and cook another minute, keeping an eye on the nuts, so they are not burning.

Add in the honey or maple syrup and the cinnamon and salt. Stir around until the mixture is getting sticky.
(If you like a sweeter granola, then by all means, add in more honey or syrup....you can even use brown sugar and butter! You can't mess it up).

After the mixture is a bit sticky and looks golden, pour out onto a foil or parchment lined baking sheet to cool.
Flatten out with a spatula, so it is even. Cool at room temperature, then break into pieces.

Transfer to air tight containers or glass jars.

Sprinkle on yogurt with fresh blueberries, raspberries and strawberries......will stay all week, stored properly.

Addictive.