My husband’s go-to breakfast is yogurt and granola. I like granola with a bit of milk for a snack, dessert, or used as crunchy. It’s one of the easiest things to make and allows me to change it up according to what is in the pantry. It’s a healthy sweet treat but watch your portions because the points/calories add up fast on this one.

Today, I decided that since we are officially into fall (although the weather keeps arguing with the calendar), I would make a harvest-inspired version using walnuts, apple sauce, and pumpkin pie spice. It turned out well. I changed the liquid ingredients to 1/3 cup sunflower oil, 1/3 cup applesauce, and 1/3 cup maple syrup and increased the baking time by 10 minutes. It worked out well. I hope you enjoy tweaking the recipe to reflect your favorite flavors.

Granola

Ingredients

• 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1 ½ cups raw nuts and seeds
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ½ cup melted coconut oil
• ½ cup maple syrup or honey
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 cup dried fruit, chopped
• Optional but delicious additional mix-ins: ½ cup chocolate chips or coconut flakes

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats, nuts/seeds, salt, and cinnamon. Stir to blend.
3. Pour in oil, maple syrup/honey, and vanilla. Mix well until all the oats are lightly coated. Pour granola onto the prepared pan and spread into an even layer.
4. Bake until lightly golden 20-25 minutes, stirring halfway. The granola will get crisp as it cools.
5. Once the granola is cool, add the dried fruit and optional mix-ins—store granola in an air-tight container at room temperature.

I always like to end with a quote that ties to the post. while searching of one today, I came across this. it made me laugh. I identify. I rarely use bad language, but I think I may have some stored away. Who knows, without any notice, under the right circumstances, it very well could get unpacked. Lol!

All these years there had been a Tupperware container of bad language in her head, and now she opened it, and all those crisp, crunchy words were fresh and lovely, ready to be used.

– Liane Moriarty

Have a great day and watch those crunchy phases.