Heather Honey and Vanilla Salt Granola

Everyone has a recipe for granola and each person thinks that theirs is the best. If
you graduated from one of the many cooking schools out there, you probably have a good one too. Well, here’s another…

Granola

This is my second breakfast recipe within a week (the other, a recipe for Cherry Jam Filled Rogaliki, is over on Enjoy Life With Breakfast); and this coming from someone who by his own admission isn’t really that much of a breakfast person.  My usual pre-work breakfast consists of a bowl of cereal and nothing else, so granola is a great way to beef that up a bit with toasted oats, nuts and fruit, making it much more wholesome and nourishing.

A granola is a mixture of oats, nuts and seeds which is coated in honey or syrup and then toasted in the oven before being mixed with dried fruit.  I’ve enhanced mine by using Tropical Forest Welsh Heather Honey which gives it a distinct flavour, and tweaked that up a little with Halen Mon Vanilla Salt.  I’ve kept the quantity of salt down to a minimum as this works to enhance the other flavours without making it taste salty at all.

The Heather Honey and Vanilla Salt in this recipe are intended to highlight the Wales the True Taste Food and Drink Awards. You can read more on that topic over at www.truetaste.tv.

Recipe: Heather Honey and Vanilla Salt Granola

Summary: This is a great healthy way to start your day, full of cereal and dried fruit and bound by honey.

Ingredients

• 400g Rolled Oats
• 75g Pumpkin Seeds
• 75g Whole Almonds
• 75g Chopped Walnuts
• 50g Dried Raisins
• 50g Dried Sultanas
• 100g Mixed Dried Fruit
• 150ml Heather Honey
• 1 tbsp dark brown sugar
• 1/2 tsp Vanilla Salt (or 1/2 a teaspoon salt and a drop of vanilla extract)
• 1 tsp Ground Cinnamon
• 2 tbsp Veg. Oil

Method

1. Start by pre-heating the oven to 160 c.
2. Next heat the honey, oil, sugar cinnamon and salt in a pan until runny. Put the oats, seeds and nuts into a large bowl then pour in the honey mixture, stirring well until all is coated.
3. Empty the mixture onto a large baking tray (my oven grill tray worked well) spreading out out thinly. Place into the oven and after 15 minutes turn over then return to the oven. You’re aiming for an even golden coating, so check every 10 mins or so turning oven again if necessary. Remove from the oven when done and and while still hot put in a bowl with the fruit, stirring well.
4. When cool, transfer to a jar or sealable container and store for up to a month.

Variations

Feel free to skip the vanilla salt if you can’t get hold of it – it’s still delicious.

Preparation time: 10 minute(s)

Cooking time: 25 minute(s)