The welcoming smell of cinnamon and honeyed nuts greets me as I walk around my flat. It makes my nose twitch with excitement. Yes, finally! It’s that special time of the week again. A time where I whip out my baker’s hat, pull on my pinny and begin to make a tasty batch of delicious, wholesome granola.

Since nothing else in the stores quite lives up to my expectations of what I deem, “crumbly oaty perfection” it’s become quite a regular occurrence now. These days, shop-bought granolas are either packed with refined sugars, basic ingredients in batches that last all of 5 minutes, or, if they happen to present an acclaimed “healthy” label, they come in even smaller batches for an even higher price. That was when it happened. During my fruitless searches, I started to realise that I could spend half the amount on the staple ingredients I wanted, make it far healthier and increase the size of the batches so that the deliciousness lasted even longer! Houston, I think we have an idea…

Aside from the effort of gathering said superfood ingredients, baking your own goods is actually quite a therapeutic process. It’s fun to be creative with your ingredients, get stuck in and make a mess, all the while joyfully smelling the cooked sweetness float around your home. Plus, it only takes 20 minutes or so to prepare (unless you have better guns than I do, and can stir a lot quicker!) and 25-30 minutes for the oven to do the rest. Bellissimo! 

So, don’t let the superstores gobble your money and then deliver you substandard nosh. I promise you that once you’ve baked one granola batch, you’ll never go back to bought.

Now, if you’ll excuse me. I have a honeyed pecan granola snack bar with my name on it.

Happy baking!

P.S. Put the oven on 160 degrees, allow 30 minutes to cook, 5 minutes to cool and then transfer to an airtight container. The ingredients are up to you, but I would recommend using a nut butter to bind it all together. It’s magical. For more ideas, head to my article, The Breakfast Club.