I am the procrastinator of all procrastinators. I keep thinking how much I’d love to make homemade granola. Once, I even wrote a list of “Things to Do Over The Weekend“, in which I included “make homemade granola“. But, in true procrastination, I never have. I guess one of the reasons I’ve yet to make granola is, while a lot of recipes appealed to me, none really SPOKE to me…until now.

I like to read the NYTimes Dining & Wine guide on my iPhone while laying in bed, before falling asleep. So when I saw the recipe for this granola made with olive oil, touted as being a sweet & salty snack, I knew immediately, the procrastination must cease! I love olive oil, and I do 95% of my cooking with it. It’s heart healthy, and I’ve grown to love the flavor.

Luckily I had enough ingredients on hand to customize this granola to my liking. I didn’t have much maple syrup, so I added in some honey, and I only had about 2 cups of oats, so I scaled down the recipe from the original. That’s an advantage of granola, you can add the ingredients and amounts YOU choose to suit your liking. This was very quick and simple to prepare, once I hulled the pistachios. I can’t wait to go to the grocery to restock my oatmeal & maple syrup, because I am sure I’ll be making more of this addictive snack very soon!

PS. Katie, my Louisville-Lady, YOU MUST TRY THIS. NOW. You would love it!

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Olive Oil Granola with Pistachios, Sunflower Seeds, & Dried Cherries

adapted from The New York Times

Ingredients:

2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cups raw pistachios, hulled & coarsely chopped
1/2 raw sunflower seeds, hulled
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon + 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon (freshly ground is amazing)
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 cup chopped dried cherries and/or raisins

Directions:

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, combine oats, pistachios, sunflower seeds, coconut flakes, maple syrup, honey, olive oil, brown sugar, salt, cinnamon and cardamom. Spread mixture on a rimmed baking sheet in an even layer and bake for 45 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes, until golden brown and well toasted.

Transfer granola to a large bowl and add dried cherries/raisins, tossing to combine. Serve atop greek yogurt, fresh ricotta, or anything you'd like.