I’ve become sort of famous among my friends for my granola. The credit really goes to my mom though, it’s her recipe. I thought I would share it here today…

Grains have sort have been a touchy subject for me lately. So many people are developing gluten and wheat intolerance and others claim our expanding waist lines could be secondary to our excessive and unnecessary grain intake (See this book.) Regardless, have you all seen the new MyPlate method developed by the FDA?

1/4 of your plate should be grains! This would include things like pasta, rice, potatoes, breads, cereals (ahem, granola), corn, grains, and legumes and squashes if you want to get technical. Grains provide instant energy and the glucose from carbohydrates are what essentially feed our brains. So in my opinion, yes, we need grains in moderation.

Unfortunately for the gluten free people out there, oats are not considered gluten free. Which really is a shame because they don’t actually contain gluten. By the way, gluten is a protein found in grains; it’s what makes bread dough stick together and makes those long elastic types of threads. But because oats often times are produced in facilities where there is cross contamination with other gluten products, it’s put on the no-no list. However, I hate to post a recipe that is prejudice, so consider buying Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oats and cutting out the wheat germ (you could add flax meal instead)!

Greatest Granola

6 cups oats

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup powdered milk

1/2 cup wheat germ

Mix above ingredients in large bowl

2/3 cup canola oil (make sure this is pure canola oil and not vegetable oil labeled as canola oil, annoying I know but it happens)

2/3 cup honey or agave

2 Tbsp water

1 Tbsp Vanilla

Mix above liquids separately from dry ingredients and then pour over dry ingredients. Mix well. Pour onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake @ 300 degrees for 30 minutes, stir at fifteen minutes!

Enjoy with Greek yogurt (unsweetened or plain, the granola will add the sweet), your favorite milk and berries, add with nuts and dried fruit for a trail mix, or eat plain, it’s that good.

Bon Appetite!

(sorry I have no picture, next time I will be better at that)