MacGyvered Granola Recipe

In winter, I tend to stock up on oatmeal. When I’m at the store, I daydream about curling up with a warm bowl of oatmeal with brown sugar and hickory nuts, and watching reruns of hometown hero, MacGyver (he’s from Roseville). These daydreams often come true.

But sometimes, even though I’m scowling at the frost on the window, I still want cold cereal. With that in mind, I decided to call on the spirit of MacGyver this week to make some granola—using only pantry supplies, no trips to the store for anything.

As I said, I always have a supply of oatmeal in the winter. This is the only ingredient that I deem necessary for this recipe. Everything else can be MacGyvered, depending on what’s in your larder. No maple syrup? No problem. Use warm honey or rice syrup instead. No canola oil? Use olive oil or melted butter instead. No brown sugar? You can MacGyver your own with white sugar and molasses.

This recipe is loosely based on Alton Brown’s granola recipe, but in the spirit of Mac, refuses to conform to it.

MacGyvered Granola

General Ingredients
3 cups rolled oats (or quick oats, or instant oats)
1 cup pecans (or slivered almonds, or walnuts, or NO nuts)
3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut (or no coconut)
Heaping 1/4 cup of packed brown sugar (or white sugar and molasses)
1/4 cup maple syrup (or warm honey, or rice syrup, or agave syrup)
1/4 cup canola oil (or olive oil, or coconut oil, or melted butter)
3/4 teaspoon salt (don’t have any? leave it out)
1 cup raisins (or dates, or Craisins, or dried cherries, or chopped up dried mango)
1 tsp each of cinnamon, nutmeg, and powdered ginger (or allspice, or pumpkin pie spice, or cardamom, or mace)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

2. In a bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, spices, and brown sugar.

3. In a separate bowl, combine syrup, oil, and salt.

4. Mix wet and dry mixtures together, and pour out onto 2 baking pans. Spread evenly and cook for about 1 hour, stirring every 15 minutes. When it’s golden brown and crunchy, it’s done.

5. Remove from oven let it cool. Mix in raisins (or other dried fruit). Package it up.

Need some inspiration? Say no more.

Cross posted from: MacGyvered Granola Recipe - Twin Cities Taste - January 2014 - Minnesota





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