Home-made granola

(makes about 1kg)

basis for granola:

6 cups (500g) oats

flexible dry ingredients:

1/2 cup almond meal (or ground almonds or wholemeal flour)
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup flaxseeds
1 tsp cinnamon

flexible wet ingredients:

2/3 cup honey
2/3 cup olive or vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla essence

optional other ingredients:
raisins, chopped apricots, nuts, other seeds or dried fruit

Heat oven to 180C. Spread the oats in an ungreased roasting pan or similar large ovenproof dish, and cook, dry, for about 10-15 minutes, stirring about half way through to ensure they cook evenly, and to stop the edges burning.

Add about two and a half cups of dry ingredients, which can be altered to suit personal tastes (see notes below), and mix well. Mix the oil and honey together, and stir in, mixing well to ensure that the dry ingredients are well-covered. Spread out, and return to the oven. Cook for around 10-15 minutes, until slightly golden, stirring every two or three minutes. Turn off the oven and leave the pan inside, allowing it to cool without disturbing it - overnight is fine.

Store in airtight container. Add optional ingredients if wished, or add them when serving.

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I was given some home-made granola by a friend; it was in crunchy clumps, and looked wonderful. I asked for the recipe, and she gave it to me, pretty much as above. I've made it many times, but, alas, have never managed to make clumped granola: it's crunchy, with a few clumps, but mostly the consistency of toasted oats.

The measured quantity of the ingredients is significant, so it's not possible to give weights as they vary depending on what is used. If you don't have measuring cups, you can use a measuring jug; one American cup is eight fluid ounces or about 250 ml.

Any of the dry ingredients is optional, so long as the total amount is around two and a half cups, or 20 fluid ounces; you could try rye flour instead of buckwheat, for instance, or use a cup of sesame seeds instead of the coconut. I use almond meal that's left over from making almond milk, but if you don't have access to that (and don't mind wheat/gluten) then regular flour is fine. The great thing with this recipe is that it's entirely flexible.

I use olive oil, but any vegetable oil would be fine. I also tend to use half carob syrup rather than all honey; golden syrup would work, too, although it would be quite sweet. For a treacley taste, molasses or black treacle could probably be used instead of some of the honey - just make sure there's a total of around 2/3 cup of honey-like substances, and 2/3 cup of oil.

If you like toasted nuts in granola, then you can add any kind you wish before the second cooking part.

And if anyone makes this and finds that it clumps nicely, please let me know what you did!

I find this makes enough to last me about three weeks, eating it with extra nuts and fresh fruit and yogurt, and some fruit juice or milk to moisten.