Maple Almond Granola

I love cereal of all kinds and especially granola. I've known that granola is something that can easily be made at home but had never given it a try. This weekend I decided to make some of my own and I'm definitely glad I did. After perusing a few different granola recipes on Epicurous (great website, by the way), I chose one that uses egg whites as the binding agent instead of the usual butter or oil. I then changed it based on my own preferences and what I had available. The result was a deliciously crunchy cereal that's both good and good for you. I also like that it's not too sweet as I'd rather add some honey over yogurt or chocolate for trail mix. Feel free to use a combination of nuts and dried fruit as opposed to just almonds and cranberries. I plan to make different versions of granola till I come up with the perfect combination. Fortunately for me, that involves eating lots of it!

Maple Almond Granola

• 3/4 cup brown sugar, divided
• 1/2 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 large egg whites
• 1 tbsp vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground allspice
• 3 cups old-fashioned oats
• 1 cup almonds, chopped or slivered
• 1 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 325F.
In a small sauce pan, combine 1/2 cup brown sugar and maple syrup over low heat.
Stir until sugar is dissolved.
In a large bowl, mix egg whites, vanilla extract, cinnamon and allspice.
When the maple syrup cools, add to the bowl with the extra 1/4 cup brown sugar, stirring to combine.
Stir in oats and almonds.
Spray a large cookie sheet with nonstick spray.
Spread the mixture in one even layer onto the cookie sheet and bake for 30 minutes.
Turn the granola over to brown the other side. Add cranberries and cook for another 10 minutes or until top begins to brown and cranberries dry out.
Cool the granola on the pan and then break up into small chunks.

My favorite use for granola is sprinkled over Greek yogurt (much tangier than regular yogurt), drizzled with honey and topped with berries or sliced banana. Yum! But the great thing about granola is that there's tons of uses so feel free to experiment.

For a printable recipe click here