Energizing Granola

I love granola

with yogurt

and fresh cut fruit.

But I also love it for a to-go snack.

So here's a recipe from the TasteofHome Comfort Food Diet Cookbook.....book

Ingredients:

2 and 1/2 cups old-fashioned oats
3/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup unsalted sunflower kernels
1/3 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup flaked coconut (sweetened or unsweetened. I used sweetened.)
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
1/3 cup water
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons molasses (I didn't have any molasses so I just doubled the amount of honey and used a little bit of maple syrup)
1 tablespoon canola oil
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup golden raisins
1/4 cup dried banana chips
( I also put in about 1/2 cup of dried cherries so feel free to put any kind of dried fruit you like or leave out any of these that you don't like)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. In a large bowl, combine the first eight ingredients.

In a small saucepan, combine the water, honey, molasses, and oil. Heat for 3-4 minutes over medium heat until heated through.

Remove from the heat, stir in the vanilla, salt, and cinnamon. Pour over the oat mixture; stir to coat.

3. Transfer to a 15-in. x 10-in. x 1-in. baking pan (a big cookie sheet works just fine) coated with cooking spray (or perhaps just lined with parchment paper or foil because I feel like my granola got a weird taste from the cooking spray). Bake for 25-30 minutes or until lightly browned (I ended up only baking mine for about 19 minutes), stirring every 10 minutes (This is very important. Some of my granola was very thin on the edges of the pan and it got slightly burned). Cool completely. Stir in dried fruit. Store in an air tight container (or ziplock bag).

LOOK AT IT.

Nutritional Value: 1/2 cup equals 260 calories, 12 g fat (2 g saturated fat), 0 cholesterol, 110 mg sodium, 35 g carbohydrate, 4 g fiber, 7 g protein