Granola Love: Amazing Almond Granola

Coming back from the Galapagos (which was mind-blowingly incredible!) last week, feeling a bit sick and exhausted from 2 full days of planes, trains (boats more like it), and automobiles (mostly taxis), I felt comfortable in my own bed, and even more so in my kitchen. Though the food on our trip was usually quite delicious, especially the freshly squeezed exotic fruit (Guanabana is delicious!), I felt derailed from my normal cooking schedule and detached from the fresh California ingredients I know and love. So one of the first thing I did, after unpacking all my salty clothes, was baking up some good-old granola.

I think I love making granola because there are so many tasty tidbits you could add and mix in to the oaty base, and the recipes are flexible, and almost always delicious! Some of my favorite additions are pistachios, coconut, almond and vanilla extract, agave syrup, dried cherries, and flax seeds. So many good combinations of munchy crunchiness. In this recipe, I focused on almonds, and went almond crazy at that, adding almond extract and almond oil to infuse even more flavor along with the sliced almonds. I personally enjoy a bit of saltiness in my granola, so reductions in the salt content if desired will create a sweeter outcome.

And the outcome was splendid. Crisp and golden brown, with juicy, deep purple berries brightening up the batch, this granola was gone in a flash. The almonds are the stars, but the spices and coconut create a warm, deep flavor that round outs the mixture along with the dried fruits. So here it is, the very, very almondy granola:

Amazing Almond Granola


2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups sliced almonds
1/4 cup flaked coconut (either sweetened or unsweetened will work)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 to 1 tsp salt (depending on how salty you like it)
3 tbsp agave syrup (or honey or maple syrup if desired)
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp almond oil (if you don't have this, you may use all canola/veggie oil)
1 tbsp canola or vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp almond extract
1 cup mixed dried fruit or any dried fruit of your choice

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Cover a jelly roll pan with foil. To the pan, add the oats, almonds, coconut, spices, and salt. Mix well. In a small bowl, mix the syrup, sugar, oils, and extracts until combined well.

Pour the liquid mixture over the oat mixture and mix until all the components are grooving together nicely. Spread the resulting mixture into an even layer and bake for about 15 minutes or until golden brown. (You may want to stir the granola once during baking).

Remove pand from oven, add the dried fruit, and mix once last time. Let cool or enjoy warm, either way it fabulous! Serve over yogurt, with any type of milk, with fruit, or for a tasty snack any time of day (or night). ENJOY!