Gluten-Free Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookie Granola

We stopped eating breakfast cereals years ago, we did smoothies, eggs, home made bread, etc... but then we started cutting out animal products, and then I couldn't eat wheat. So I decided I wanted to make something quick and easy to have on hand for breakfast. I've tried a few of incarnations of granola throughout the years, but this one has stuck the longest. It just developed out of a lot of different variations and we all love it so for now it's not changing anytime soon as our breakfast staple. 

Firstly, I must clarify, not all oats are gluten free. They are processed with wheat and contaminated. I order Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Oats online from Amazon. They come in bulk and are much cheaper than buying them by the bag at my local co-op.

Ok. So you need:

1 32 ounce bag of GF Whole Oats (that's about 8 cups)

1 1/2 cups of raisins

1 1/2 cups of nuts (I just pulse mine in the blender instead of chopping)

1 1/2 cups dried, flaked coconut, unsweetened

2 cups of honey (I love my local raw honey, check to see if you have local honey at your nearest health food store. The taste is much better and it retains it's anti-microbial properties)

2 10oz bags of mini chocolate chips (I highly recommend Enjoy Life brand as it is soy free and dairy free)

2 tbls. cinnamon

1 tbls. nutmeg

1 tbls. vanilla (I buy the alcohol-free brand. Pure vanilla and glycerin without the artificial "vanillin" stuff)

Preheat oven to 350. Pour the oats, raisins, nuts, coconut and spices into a large bowl. 

In a small saucepan heat the honey through on low heat. You don't want it to boil, just thin out for pouring. When it is warmed through, pour over the bowl of oats. Stir thoroughly and make sure everything is wet. 

Put unbleached parchment paper in a large pan. I use a 12x17 roasting pan, but you could use a cookie sheet with side or a jelly roll pan. 

Pour only half the mixture into the pan. 

(if you have a big oven and two big pans you could totally do two pans at once, but my oven was the first oven ever constructed. It's probably 40 years old, and it is tiny). 

Bake for 20 minutes on 350, stirring occasionally. 

If you did two pans at once, then take them out, let them cool and when they are totally cool, not even kind of warm, dump them back into a big bowl.

 

Pour on the chocolate chips and stir. 

All done!

I place mine in pourable tupperware containers. This usually lasts five people about a week to a week and a half.

From Kaydence's Kitchen