Homemade Coconut and Mango Granola

Some of you may have seen that really annoying post on Instagram on Monday just past, where I popped up a picture of a sunny Newcastle and @Birch’s delicious Coconut and Mango Granola Breakfast bowl. Bad form all round, posting something like that when all decent people were at their work, but that’s what retirement does for you..

The reason this post, as you may well have guessed, is the Granola, not the joys of Newcastle! I haven’t got the brass neck to ask a restauranteur for a recipe, but as far as I know there’s no law against trying to retro-engineer it so you can have it at home and share it with your friends.. Having perfected my own recipe isn’t going to stop me going to Newcastle for Breakfast though! I do love breakfast out!

Here are the results of several days’ internet trawling, and I’m very happy to report that this is pretty delicious. I doubled this recipe, which made rather a lot of Granola, but that’s a good thing, right?

It’s important with this recipe to keep quantities fairly similar, but to choose the ingredients that you like. If nuts are not a problem, then off you go..

EQUIPMENT: To make 1 very large jar of Granola.

• 1 large baking tray, lined with grease-proof paper
• medium sized saucepan
• weighing scales
• 1 large and one medium bowl
• Hand whisk
• 2 wooden spoons
• a small cup
• Clean, dry air-proof jars – Kilner-style jars are ideal
• 

INGREDIENTS:

• 40g Coconut oil or any other oil you like – the coconut oil left in the jar on my shelf was just enough for this recipe.
• 120mls of Honey or Maple Syrup, or half of each.
• 170g of Jumbo rolled Oats – see NOTE 1
• 170g of another grain of your choice – I used 170g of Linwood’s Cold milled Flaxseed, Pumpkin and Sunflower seeds.
• 200g mixed Nuts, lightly toasted and roughly chopped . See NOTE 2
• 50g of whole Pumpkin seeds
• 50g of Coconut shavings.
• A heaped tablespoon of Poppy seeds
• A really good sprinkle of Maldon salt
• 1 large Egg white See NOTE 3
• 100g of dried fruit – today I used dried Mango, Cranberries and Apricots, but you should definitely pick whatever you like.

METHOD:

• Heat the oven to 140° Fan.
• Put the Oil and Honey/Syrup into a saucepan and heat gently to melt the Coconut oil. Mix well together, then remove from the heat and let it cool for a couple of minutes.

• Weigh all the dry ingredients, except the dried fruit, into the large bowl. Use a hand whisk to combine it all together.

• Add the cooled oil/syrup mixture to the dry ingredients, and mix it in – I found the two wooden spoons really useful for this; it was like tossing a salad – until all the dry ingredients have been thoroughly coated.

• Lightly beat the egg white until it’s just slightly frothy – then mix it in to the bowl.
• Spread the mixture out evenly onto the prepared tray.
• Pop the tray into the oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes, turn it around once during the bake, and keep an eye to make sure it’s not over browning.
• Weigh the dried fruit into the small bowl.

• Remove from the oven and allow the Granola to cool on the tray until it’s fully cold.
• Sprinkle the dried fruit evenly over the granola, then transfer it gently to the clean Kilner jar. NOTE 4

• Seal, and store in a cool place – this should keep for about a month, but it’s never going to last that long!

• To me, this is best served with Greek Yoghurt, and a fresh fruit or a fruit compote –   It really is the best of breakfasts and will keep even a nibbler like me happy and content until lunchtime!
• Here’s a link to my Blueberry Compote https://eatingforireland.com/recipe/blueberry-compote/

NOTES:

1. JUMBO OATS: – these just happen to be the kind of oats that Mr Sat Night uses to make his porridge.. They’re larger than ordinary Oats, so they bake better, and don’t dry out as much.
2. NUTS: In our nut-free house, this ingredient can often cause problems, but a bag of Sunflower seeds did the trick for me this time. Having said that, I’m not sure that I’d be confident enough to give this granola to my Nut-allergic daughter. Cross-contamination is always a possibility when you’re using seeds.
3. EGGS: I’m honestly not sure what exactly the egg-white does – I think it adds to the crunchy element – so if you’ve got a person with an egg allergy, just leave it out.
4. The Granola will look as if it’s all stuck together, but it will loosen up as you move it to the storage jar.