Healthy Homemade Granola Recipes: Low-Fat, Less Sugar and Delicious!

      Store-bought granola is too sweet and too expensive for my tastes. It's also packed with extra fat and sugar, so if you want a healthy breakfast, make your own. Plus, homemade granola is so easy to make. You'll save calories and money. So why not give it a try and make your own?

      You can adjust the amount of fat and sugar so it tastes the way you like it. But here's the basic recipe:

5 cups 100% whole grain rolled oats, old-fashioned style, not instant

1 cup oat bran

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 cup chopped walnuts

1/2 cup dried cherries

1/3 cup honey

4 Tablespoons frozen white grape juice concentrate, slightly thawed

3 Tablespooons light brown sugar

1. Preheat oven to 350°.
   
2. Mix oats, oat bran, and cinnamon together in a large bowl. Set aside.
3. Combine juice concentrate, light brown sugar, and honey in a small bowl. Tip: Use a scale and add 2 oz. honey to juice concentrate and brown sugar mixture. Then microwave for about 10 seconds to soften.
4. Stir combined sweeteners into the dry ingredients and mix well.
   
5. Add chopped walnuts and mix until evenly distributed.
6. Spread mixture on a large rimmed cookie sheet.
7. Bake at 350° for 30 minutes.
8. After the first 15 minutes, remove from oven and stir so the mixture bakes evenly.
   
9. Bake 5 more minutes then stir again. Repeat once or twice, depending on desired crunchiness.
10. Add dried cherries during the last 5 minutes.
11. Allow granola to cool completely before storing in a jar or zip-lock bag.

♥ Substitute different frozen juice concentrates – apple or orange juice, for example, for different flavors.

♥ Instead of oat bran, use wheat bran. Add a tablespoon or two of flaxseed or wheat germ.

♥ Substitute or combine any nuts or seeds you like: almonds, pecans, cashews, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, etc.

♥ Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup dried unsweetened shredded coconut.

♥ Change up the spices: Try 1 teaspoon cinnamon, 1 teaspoon ground cardamon, 2 teaspoons vanilla. (Some people swear by cardamon.)

♥ Replace the juice concentrate with 1/3 cup honey and 1/3 cup pure maple syrup. (Honey alone is pretty glumpy, but you might try 2/3 cup pure maple syrup alone.)

♥ Replace or add to the dried cherries other dried fruits: prunes, raisins, currents, dates, peaches, bananas, mangoes, apricots, nectarines, or apples, or a combination. Note: the more fruit you use, the less sweetener you need!

♥ Add minced candied ginger.