Chocolate Walnut Coconut Granola

I've mentioned this before, but I love making granola, though I wish I thought to make it more often! Weekly would be ideal. It's way cheaper than buying cereal and you have total control over what goes in it! There's not much I can say about this granola other then it's probably one of the best I've made, and my friend Erin seemed to love it as well! 

The technique is a bit more involved then granola I have made in the past, but well worth the extra effort. See, you actually toast nearly all the ingredients on the stove first. Then, only bake for 15 minutes! I much prefer this method as opposed to baking all the ingredients, especially when there is coconut in the granola. By toasting the coconut separately, then adding it at the end, you can ensure there is no burnt coconut. Trust me, if the coconut burns, the whole batch is trash. I still have a batch from this fall where I slightly overbaked the coconut. Have I touched it? Nope. It's going in the garbage real soon.

As with all granola recipes, make it work with what you have! I know I can't afford dried cherries like the original recipe (would love to try it though!), and I only had walnuts on hand. It was still awesome, especially with a sliced banana on top. Get creative, and enjoy your homemade cereal!

Chocolate Walnut Coconut Granola

Ingredients

1 cup shredded coconut

1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped

3 cups old fashioned rolled oats

3 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/8 cup ground flaxseed

1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1/4 teaspoon salt

4 ounces dark chocolate, coarsely chopped (I love the Trader Joe's 72%!)

Directions 

Preheat oven to 325F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.

In a large bowl, combine honey, brown sugar, flaxseed, cinnamon, and salt. Mixture will be thick, but will thin a lot once the hot oat mixture is added later on.

Place a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the coconut to the pan in an even layer and cook, stirring frequently, until lightly browned and toasted.  Transfer to a small bowl and wipe out the pan.  Return the pan to the heat and add the chopped walnuts. Cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned, 3-4 minutes.  Stir in the oats and olive oil and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, until the oats are lightly toasted, about 3 minutes.

Add the toasted oat mixture to honey mixture, and stir until evenly coated. Spread out onto the prepared baking sheet in an even layer.  Bake, stirring every few minutes, until the granola is light golden brown, about 15 minutes. 

Remove from oven and stir in the toasted coconut.  Move the granola to one side of the baking sheet and press gently into a thick slab.  Let cool to room temperature.  Break the dried and cooled granola into small clusters, mix in the chopped chocolate, and store in an airtight container.

Inspired by: Annie's Eats who got the original recipe from The America's Test Kitchen Healthy Family Cookbook