I really like granola with yogurt. I never liked it when I was younger, back when granola was the all-natural, hippie food of choice. It’s taken years for granola to work its way into my heart. But now I eat it all the time. Sometimes straight from the container. Of course, I still don’t like store-bought granola. I have to make it at home, exactly to my specifications. No surprise there!
Usually, I make a variation on a Cooking Light version, which I will someday share with you, and I make it because it has less oil than most recipes. But in attempting to stave off mid-winter boredom, I tried a Bon Appetit recipe the other day. It’s good. Not wake-me-up-in-the-middle-of-the-night stellar, but good. Needs some playing around and tweaking to perfect it to my taste. But if you know me at all, you know that was going to happen anyway.
What caught my eye was the use of egg whites. And why not? Of course, they are the perfect ingredient to initially add moisture, yet they dry to a crisp as the mixture heats up in the oven. I also finally bought walnut oil to make this recipe. It has always seemed ridiculous to buy one more oil, when we live in such a small space, and I already keep several oils in the house. I was so wrong. Best salad dressing on earth (okay, my current favorite) is made simply with sherry vinegar and walnut oil, sea salt and pepper. Tossed over the gorgeous lettuce I pull from our garden once a week – a gift from the gods – and nothing less. Why did I wait so long?
If you don’t use walnut oil, feel free to add cinnamon or other spices. If you do use the walnut oil, keeping this granola simple is key to letting the oil’s flavor shine.
Walnut Granola
from Bon Appetit, February 2009
4 tablespoons walnut oil, divided
3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup egg whites
1/2 teaspoon (scant) kosher salt
3 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup walnut halves, broken in half (or seriously, just use walnut pieces, it won’t make that much difference)
1/2 cup flaxseed meal
1 cup pitted dates, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup honey
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Brush heavy rimmed baking sheet with 2 tablespoons walnut oil. Whisk together the remaining 2 tablespoons oil, brown sugar, egg whites, and salt in a large bowl. Add the oats, walnuts, and flaxseed meal. (You can buy flaxseed meal, but I grind mine from flaxseed in an old coffee grinder.) Toss together well.
Spread mixture on the oiled baking sheet. Bake 15 minutes, then stir the granola. Bake for another 15 minutes and stir again. Sprinkle the dates over the hot granola mixture and drizzles with the honey. Bake until golden brown, about 10 more minutes. Stir again. Transfer the mixture to a clean baking sheet to cool completely. Store in the refrigerator in an airtight container. Makes about 6 cups.
