Granola is one of those pantry staples that’s worth the small effort of making at home. Not only does it taste so good – I’ve yet to find a store bought granola that I really liked, but you can also control the amount and type of sugar and fat you’re putting in it (although I’ll admit I did not really skimp on those here.)
Once you’ve found a recipe you trust you can then tweak it as you like, as I often do with this recipe. I mainly play with the dried fruit, which I add as the last step, but my favorite combination is of chopped dates, candied orange peel and Persian dried barberries.
I use a combination of olive oil and butter to enhance the flavor and crispiness of the granola.
To sweeten the granola I prefer honey, but a combination of honey and date syrup (known as Silan in Israel) works really well. Silan is popular among Iraqi Jews and is widely used in Iraq, Iran and other Middle Eastern countries. It’s available at most kosher and Middle Eastern supermarkets in the U.S.
Serve the granola for breakfast over plain Greek yogurt with berries on top, drizzle with a little silan or honey and have a wonderful rest of the day!
Middle Eastern granola
Course: Breakfast, CerealCuisine: IsraeliDifficulty: Easy3
lb.10
minutes25
minutes35
minutesGranola is one of those pantry staples that’s worth the small effort of making at home. Not only does it taste so good – I’ve yet to find a store bought granola that I really liked, but you can also control the amount and type of sugar and fat you’re putting in it (although I’ll admit I did not really skimp on those here.) What makes this granola Middle Eastern or Israeli is the combination of dates, oranges and barberries in the mix, and using date syrup as a sweetener.
Date syrup (silan) is available at most kosher and Middle Eastern supermarkets in the U.S.
Candied orange peel is available at Trader Joe’s and at Middle Eastern supermarkets.
Barberries are tiny dried berries popular in Iran, they’re available at Iranian and many Middle Eastern supermarkets.
INGREDIENTS
1 lb. old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup silvered almonds
2 cups chopped pecans
1 cup coconut flakes
1 teaspoon anise seeds (optional)
5 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 cups (8 oz.) honey, or a combination of honey and date syrup (see note above)
½ cup dates (or dried figs,) chopped
½ teaspoon powdered sugar (optional)
½ cup Candied orange peel (or dried apricot,) chopped (see note above)
2-3 tablespoons barberries (see note above,) or dried cherries
DIRECTIONS
- Preheat oven to 325 F degrees. Line two large rimmed baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Put the rolled oats, almonds, pecans and coconut in a large bowl.
- In a small pot over low-medium heat put the anise seeds, butter, olive oil, and honey and cook while stirring until the butter melts and the mixture is well combined, about 4 minutes.
- Pour the honey mixture on the rolled oats and nuts and mix well. Spread evenly on the baking sheets in a thin layer (you might need a third baking sheet, depending on the size of your baking sheets and oven).
- Transfer the baking sheets into the oven. After 20 minutes mix the granola and switch between the baking sheets. Bake for 15-25 more minutes (it really depends on your baking sheet, the oven, and whether you use one or two baking sheets,) or until the granola is dark golden.
- While the granola is baking, dice the dates to very small dice. It sounds easier than it is, so you may want to put the dates in the freezer for 10 minutes and do it when it’s half frozen. If the diced date is still very sticky, you can sprinkle the dice with a little bit of powdered sugar before you add it to the granola.
- Cool on a wire rack. When the granola is completely cooled mix in the dried fruit and store in an airtight container.
