Friday, April 16, 2010

Quest for the perfect granola!

 I have been on a little bit of a quest lately for the perfect granola. For a long time I had no desire (or maybe I was just afraid to take the time and effort) to make my own granola. Once in a while I would buy it and enjoy it, but it was to expensive to buy on a regular basis, so I would just do without. Out of sight, out of mind.
But recently I have decided it would be good. and fun. and challenging. and cheaper to try out some recipes than to buy. I started searching for ones that looked like they had ingredients I would be able to find and I would be able to enjoy and also for ones that had good reviews and were somewhat healthy. And then I started saving them to my Evernote.
And then I started trying them out. Here are some that I have tried and my reviews (things I look for in a granola recipe: flavor, crunch!, ease of prep, and household approval):

Honey Crunch Granola (I like that this one has flax seed and wheat germ for added nutrition. i used almonds and did not have apple juice at the time. this was not my favorite so far, but was also my first, so I will give it another try)
Apple Granola (very simple and very few ingredients, but not crunchy enough for me. I added peanuts to have a little extra nutrition and flavor)
Honey Cinnamon Granola (enjoyable, but not my favorite. not as crunchy and not as much flavor as I would like...but still a good recipe and I like that it also has wheat germ in it)
Baked Granola (I've made this one twice, first time was very crunchy and with great reviews in my house...second time not so crunchy...must try again soon. I used applesauce instead of the oil and I did not have/use hazelnuts or cherries)
Mix-n-Match Applesauce Granola (I used less sugar, almonds for my nuts and cranberries/raisins for my dried fruit. very crunchy! and the ginger adds a new flavor I had not yet had with granola. A+)
More recipes I'd like to try soon:

Energizing Granola
Pumpkin Spice Granola
Peanut Butter Granola

Other endeavors? finding the best homemade oatmeal. and a bigger try at making granola bars... I've tried a couple of recipes, but these make me even more nervous than the granola for some reason...
Got a great recipe I should try? I'd love to hear about it!

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