Yogurt and granola, please

I absolutely love yogurt, granola and fruit for breakfast, lunch, or just a snack. Something about the combination of the slightly tangy, slightly sweet yogurt with the sweet and crunchy granola just can’t be matched. I have made granola many times before, usually following Ina Garten’s recipe, but this time I decided to make up my own. I had walnuts from making banana walnut bread, and I thought they might be good in granola. I think pecans would have been better than walnuts, but the walnuts weren't bad. The fun part about making your own granola is that you can put exactly what you want in it. I wanted to make a recipe similar to the Martha Stewart recipe, but a little healthier (hers uses a stick of butter!).  I had never used wheat germ in granola before, but I know that it’s good for you, so I gave it a try. I used a ½ cup in my recipe, but the flavor was a little too strong, so I would recommend ¼ cup, which is the amount the Martha Stewart recipe calls for. I don’t like a lot of spices in mine, so I just used a little bit of cinnamon. Nutmeg might be good as well. For the dried fruit, I used tart cherries in mine, but blueberries or apricots would be delicious as well.

Here’s what I came up with:

Homemade Granola

4 cups rolled oats
½ cup chopped walnuts (I would use pecans next time)
½ cup almonds, sliced, chopped or slivered
¼ cup wheat germ (optional)
½ cup honey
½ cup vegetable oil
½ teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
1 teaspoon vanilla (optional)
½ - ¾ cup dried fruit (apricots, cherries, cranberries, blueberries, raisins, etc.)
Pinch salt

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Stir together oats, nuts, wheat germ, spices and a pinch of salt in a large bowl.

In a liquid measuring cup, measure the oil first (and vanilla if using), then the honey (this prevents the honey from sticking to the cup!). Add the oil and honey mixture to the oat mixture. Stir until all the oats are coated.

Spread on a greased baking sheet (I used a Silpat). Bake for about 30 minutes until golden brown, stirring every 10 minutes.

Cool completely, then stir in dried fruit. Store in an airtight container.