Maple Pecan Granola

I need to get in the habit of making this granola more often. I did really well for a while and we had home made granola for our yogurt and snacking pleasure... then I fell off the wagon. Time, time, time! Today I found some time to make granola and I used the fabulous recipe courtesy of my mother-in-law, and changed it slightly to reflect the title.

Previously, I made granola with pistachios, coconut, and almonds but needed a change this time. We like the pecan granola from Trader Joe's except that it is too sweet - so I created my own pecan granola. The recipe is a great base for whatever you might want to add. I substituted maple syrup for honey this time, used half wheat germ and half soy flour (the amounts I had on hand), and added pecans, dried cranberries, and currants. It turned out well, crunchy on the outside and a little chewy on the inside with a nice burst of dried fruit.

I should just schedule the next batch now...

Maple Pecan Granola

See Previous Post for Original Recipe

4 C rolled oats

2 C wheat flour

1 C soy flour or wheat germ

1 C all purpose flour

1 tsp salt

1/2 C canola oil

1 C maple syrup

1 C water

1 C chopped pecans

--after baking add--

3/4 C dried cranberries

1/4 C currants

Stir together dry ingredients. Add in liquids and mix well. Add nuts and spread onto two large rimmed sheet pans. Bake for 1 1/2 - 2 hours in a 250* oven stirring every 20 minutes. Since this granola is chunkier than the kind you get in the store I often break up the clumps while stirring to give a variety of sizes in the end. After it is finished baking add in your dried fruits and store in an airtight container. Recipe yields about 1 full gallon size ziplock bag (about 9-10 C).