If we don’t count the several cups of coffee, I really don’t have a habit of eating breakfast. And I know it’s bad. Very very bad. While I am doing my best to get into the habit of feeding myself something nutritional every morning, I haven’t had much success in the past. Traditional Turkish breakfast dishes such as feta cheese and tomatoes in olive oil, honey and clotted cream, poached eggs with yoghurt, etc. are the last things I want to see in the morning. I’ve come to realize that I have a better chance with things that can be soaked in milk. So when I read Molly’s post about homemade granola, I wanted to give it a shot.
If she says it is the greatest, there is no need to think twice (she is one of those food bloggers whose recipes I follow religiously).
The preparation was a breeze. I’ve made it twice since then and reached a perfect mix for my own taste. The photos belong to the first batch. For the second batch, I used almonds with skins and it definitely tastes better (much healthier too). I also reduced the amount of almonds to 2 cups and got rid of pecans (not a big fan). Brown rice syrup isn’t available here in Turkey so I used grape molasses instead. Since grape molasses is already naturally sweet, I didn’t use any brown sugar. Apple sauce isn’t easy to find in Turkey as well, so I used baby food (fruit puree without additives and sugar) instead! There were lots of varieties and I’ve decided on a mix of apple and peaches.
By the way, I totally concur with her suggestion of soy milk. I was especially fond of the result after the granola was soaked in soy milk for about half an hour. It might not make sense to soften the granola after all the stirring to make it extra crispy in the oven, but the soaking process tints the soy milk (a wonderful teak color) and lends a delicious smoky flavor. Just yum!
A big thank you to Molly for introducing this great recipe.
HOMEMADE GRANOLA RECIPE
Molly’s original recipe is here.
Ingredients
Yields approximately 9 cups
Dry ingredients
- 5 cups rolled oats
- 2 cups raw almonds (with skins on)
- 1 cup hulled raw sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cup sesame seeds
- 1 tbsp ground cinnamon
- 1/2 tbsp ground ginger
- 1 tsp salt
Wet ingredients
- 1/2 cup unsweetened apple sauce
- 1/2 cup unsweetened peach puree
- 1/3 cup grape molasses
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 tbsp olive oil
Method
- Preheat your oven to 300 F.
- Line two rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients. Stir to mix well.
- In a small bowl, combine all of the wet ingredients. Stir to mix well.
- Pour the wet ingredients over the dry ones, and mix until completely blended.
- Spread the mixture evenly on two rimmed baking sheets.
- Place the baking sheets on lower and upper thirds of your oven.
- Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, rotating pans and stirring the mixture every 10 minutes.
- Remove the pans from the oven, give it a good stir and set aside to cool.
- Transfer to an airtight container and store in your refrigerator.
love the first shot! I normally skip breakfast, but seeing your cheerful presentation of granola makes me want to whip up a batch now!
I am one of the weirdos who looooveee breakfast. It’s the best meal of the day. But it’s all about finding the right texture and taste for your first meal or else you’ll hate it. I prefer soft and sweet. Normally some fruit with oatmeal, and sometimes some yogurt and granola ilke yours because it gives a nice slaty crunch to the sweet yogurt.
Making your own granola is the best thing. Well done for finding everything to make it.
The first snap is so very colorful.
Your site is so nice and usefull I’d like to translate it to portuguese… I just don’t have such time…
Very good recipes and beautiful photos.
I’m back every time there are new contents…
It looks so good — makes waking up and getting out of bed totally worth it 🙂
Mmmm I am not a breakfast person at all (at best I’ll have a coffee or a tea) but nonetheless this looks SO GOOD (with great photos, as usual!). Love all the substitute ingredients you ended up using for those that werent easily found in Turkey! Although I wouldnt eat granola in the morning, I think I’d eat it for a 4PM snack (yes, maybe thats a bit odd… but that’s me)!
Yay! Ive been looking for a good granola recipe!
I noted Molly’s post as a MUST-TRY but never got around to it. Now that you’ve re-tempted me I’ll have to give it a go this weekend!
I too do not like breakfast, it is my least favourite meal of the day but after reading your post, I feel inclined to make an effort.
Breakfast is the most important meal of the day … i actually wake up from bed hungry, craving for breakfast! Its a really healthy habit, and home made granola is the best to feed it !!
Hope u stick to eating breakfast everyday too … its good for you 🙂
the colors in the photos are gorgeous
I love homemade granola! Have seen this recipe as well at Orangette and bookmarked it…it sounds delicious (with the soy milk too…yum)!
Your photos are stunning 🙂
I’m sure the granola is delicious, but what I really want to know is where you found that gorgeous purple bowl?
Thanks to everyone for their comments!
Erin – The bowl is handmade by a friend of mine who is a ceramic artist. The bowl is one of a kind 🙂
boy! your pics are so inspiring Cenk!:) soy milk sounds good!:)
I’ve tried the recipe a few weeks ago too. Used maple instead of brown rice syrup. It was very good, but I’d cut back on the amount of nuts next time.
You take lovely pictures 🙂
This has really gotten me to the point where I HAVE to make my own granola. Not only does it sound and look delicious, the health/cost factor is better than what can be purchased. YUM!
great recipes and pictures 😀
A question…where can I find rolled oats in Istanbul? I haven’t seen them in grocery stores. I really miss oatmeal porridge and oatmeal cookies!
Kathleen – I saw them once in Macrocenter.. I use regular oatmeal for these and it just works fine.
Just tried your granola recipe. De-li-cious! Thanks so much. Only question: how to you get those nice big chunks like on the picture? Mine looked more like a muesli, didn’t stick together much…
Marie-Helene – If yours didn’t stick together as much, you might want to increase the molasses and fruit puree a little bit.
Yummy, these turned out excellent.. I made my own applesauce and substituted the grape molasses with carob syrup (keciboynuzu)..its just a little sweet and makes a great snack if you are on the road…love your blog.. just moved here(Marmaris) from Washington DC and really enjoy your recepies