A request for granola

How rude of me! I put my tempting picture of home-made granola on my last post, but neglected to add it to my blog! Here you go:

"Ginger's Almondy Granola"

2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup chopped almonds

1/2 cup toasted pumpkin seeds (i use salted)

1/2 cup toasted sunflower seeds

1/2 cup chopped pecans

1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

1 cup unsweetened, dried cranberries

1. mix all dry ingredients (except cranberries) together in a large bowl

1/4 cup real maple syrup

1/4 cup honey

2 T olive oil

1.5 T almond extract

1 T vanilla extract

1 T salt

2. mix all wet ingredients (plus the salt) in a small bowl

3. pour over oat and nut mixture and stir until everything is coated well

4. spread mixture onto a cookie sheet and flatten out the pile the best you can

5. bake at 300 for 30 minutes (stir 1/2 way through at the 15 minute mark) do not overcook!

6. stir in cranberries while the granola is still warm

7. spread out to cool on foil and then store in an airtight container

I feel so much better knowing that I am eating granola I made myself on top of plain yogurt, free from preservatives, additives, sugar, and artificial color. Its so easy and so worth it. Something that really concerns me is that many highly sweetened yogurts are marketed towards children (and adults) as a "health food". "How to find real food" has a great blog post right now with more information about yogurt. Personally, I called it quits when I realized that I was consuming as much as 20 grams per tiny container. It seems different at first, but I have become very accustomed to the plain flavor. YUM!!