Granola Recipe

I have been super busy since we returned from the family reunion. Monday will be m 12th day of work at my new job. I LOVE my new job, but I am still at that stressful stage. I am still trying to learn everything and figure out all my responsibilities; but I love that I am back in the classroom again. In my classroom I have two other teachers. They have been extremely helpful and I look forward to working with them throughout the year. I have five students and they are all so different from each other, almost polar opposites; but each one is fun and challenging. I have learned so much during my first few weeks on the job. I have studied Autism and Asperger's for several years, but I have learned more in the last few days then all my years combine in school. There are so many student's I have already bonded and feel in love with. I hope I can figure out all of my paperwork responsibilities and other duties quickly so I can focus more on the kids and less on the paperwork.

As I have been so wrapped up in my new job, I have forgotten about posting the homemade granola I made at the Calley Family Reunion. My family loved it and wanted the recipe so I told them I would post in on our blog. So family it is so late! This is an AWESOME healthy granola recipe, but I can't take full credit for it. This is a recipe that I have adopted from a dear friend of mine. She is an amazing woman and I look up to her in so many ways. I still watch her kids from time to time when her and her husband go on long trips out of town. She just had her 5th child this month! If you love to eat granola or make parfaits for breakfast you should give this recipe a try.

In an extremely large bowl, combine together:

10 cups whole oats (not quick)

6 cups nuts, seeds (almonds, pecans, sunflower, pumpkin, flax, millet, bran flakes, wheat germ, etc.) Whatever of each- equaling 6 cups.

3 cups shredded unsweetened coconut

In big microwave safe bowl mix together:

2 c. brown sugar

1 c. honey- or agave nectar

1/2 c. water

Microwave on high for five minutes. It will become liquid Carmel. Watch- cause it will bubble. Remove from microwave

add:

1 teaspoon salt

3 teaspoons vanilla

stir together and poor over oat mixture . Stir to coat. Spread granola evenly in a single layer in 3 cookie sheets. I line it with tinfoil- (a lot less mess.)

Bake 275 for 20 minutes (on all 3 racks) then rotate, and bake another 20min.

When cooled store in ziplock bags. I will also sometimes sprinkle it with cinnamon.

The recipe calls for am extremely large bowl. If you are like me and do not own an 'extremely large' bowl you can use what I use. I used a big saucer snow sled for my bowl. Don't worry I washed the sled before I used it. It worked great. (I didn't tell my family that I used a sled to mix everything together until after they had eaten it. That didn't stop them, most of them went back for seconds).