You say granola. I say muesli. We both say delicious.
You see, it is possible for people with differing views to reach a consensus. We all want the same things after all, whether it’s a nutritious breakfast or safe cities or a habitable planet.
Both granola and muesli contain oats, nuts and seeds, along with dried fruit. Granola contains oil and sweetener, which make the ingredients clump together somewhat after baking. Muesli contains no oil or sweetener and is not baked. Although I don’t bake this, I do quickly toast the ingredients on the stovetop and add both oil and sweetener.
So I’m not sure what to call it.
I could call this Muesola. Or Granolsi. Granoluesli? They sound a bit like the names of Disney villains though. Or music festivals.
I saw them play at Granoleusli in 2012 before they were cool, man.
Meusli-ish mashup
Enjoy whatever-you’d-like-to-call-this with your choice of milk (find recipes for almond milk here, soy milk here and pumpkin seed milk here) or yogurt (I have a recipe for that also, here). It tastes great simmered in water for a nutty, crunchy oatmeal-ish breakfast (1 part muesli to about 1.5 parts water). It will also work for overnight oats.
My daughter MK came up with the recipe and I’ve changed it around a little bit, based on what I found in the pantry today. If you have only a tablespoon of this (chia seeds for example) or an eighth of a cup of that (say, dehydrated nut pulp from all of that nut milk making), toss those in too and use them up.
As usual, I bought all of my ingredients at the bulk bins, including the coconut oil and maple syrup (yes, I am lucky to find those!), using my jars or homemade cloth produce bags. Be sure to get your jars weighed before you fill them. You don’t want to pay for the weight of the jar in addition to the weight of the food in the jar.
Stovetop Muesli
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup chopped raw almonds, walnuts, pecans, cashews or a combination of nuts
- 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds or sunflower seeds or a combination of the two
- 2 tbsp coconut oil
- 4 cups rolled oats
- 1/2 cup flax meal
- Pinch of salt
- 1 cup dried shredded coconut or coconut flakes
- 1 cup raisins or other dried fruit, such as apricots, dates or figs or a combination of all of the above
- 2 tbsp maple syrup
Directions
1. In a large dry pot over medium heat, toast the nuts, stirring constantly until fragrant and golden but not dark, two or three minutes. Move to a large bowl.
2. Repeat with the pumpkin or sunflower seeds. Stir until fragrant, one or two minutes. Move to the bowl with the nuts.
3. Melt the coconut oil in the pot. Stir in the oats, flax meal and salt and stir often until the oats turn slightly golden but not brown, about 5 minutes. Add the dried coconut to the pot and stir for a minute or two. The mixture will smell very fragrant at this point. Transfer everything to the bowl with the nuts and seeds.
4. Add the dried fruit to the bowl and if using, the maple syrup, stirring well to incorporate. I usually use my hand and this point to mix everything up well.
5. Store in jars for a few weeks if it lasts that long.
Notes
If you buy roasted nuts, you don’t need to roast them again. However, I do find that raw nuts I roast myself taste superior and have a better, fresher crunch.
