Girls Camp Granola

*Chef's Note: Since summer is finally here and my pregnancy is in full swing, I've been needing more snacks in my life. I've made a number of granola recipes in my life but this one stands out head and shoulders above the competition. Last summer when my parents were the head cooks for a girls camp that hosted 400 hungry campers they made this and person after person came up to us to say how much they loved it.  It's not overly sweet and it bakes up a little chewy and keeps really well. This is the kind of snack that I don't feel too bad indulging in because it's so full of great stuff and it's so easy to make! And do yourself a favor--pick out a few of the pecans when this has been out of the oven for just a few minutes and experience the magic that is warm, sweet, cardamom-kissed pecans. They are out of this world!*

Girls Camp Granola

Prep: 15 minutes
Cook: 45 minutes
Makes: one large cookie sheet full, or enough to fill up a gallon ziploc bag


Ingredients

1 1/4 c flour
 3/4 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cardamom

1 1/3 c sweetened coconut - not packed
1/4 c flax seeds
3 1/4 c old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup pecans, broken in half
1 cup raw almonds

1 cup light brown sugar
1/3 cup water
1/2 cup butter
1 tsp vanilla

--optional--
1 cup dried cranberries


Directions

Whisk the flour, salt, cinnamon, and cardamom together in a large mixing bowl.  Add the coconut, flax seeds, rolled oats, pecans, and almonds to the bowl and mix to combine until everything is evenly distributed.

In a small saucepan or a microwave safe bowl combine the brown sugar, water and butter and heat until the sugar is dissolved. Don't let this boil or the granola tends to be crunchier. Take the mixture off the heat and add the vanilla. Pour the mixture over the dry ingredients and stir until everything is evenly coated. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Let the mixture stand for 10 minutes.


Spread the mixture on cookie sheet bake at 300 for 45 min, stirring every 15 minutes. Keep an eye on it in the last 15 minute period and take it out if it looks like it's over-browning.  Cool completely on the cookie sheet. Add the cranberries now if desired. Transfer to an airtight container and eat within a week. 


Tips:
*You can use half white flour and half wheat flour and there's no flavor difference. It may be possible to only use wheat flour successfully, but I haven't tried that yet. 
*If you don't have cardamom, it's available in bulk (read: you can buy a teaspoon at a time without paying an arm and a leg for a little bottle) at places like Sprouts or Whole Foods. It's not absolutely necessary, but it adds a unique citrusy flavor that cinnamon alone can't touch. If you really don't want to buy cardamom, just add 1/4 teaspoon more cinnamon. 
*As with any recipe for granola, this can be customized for any palate, just make sure you keep the right amount of stuff. If you don't like almonds, try substituting another nut. If you don't have flax seeds you can probably leave them out completely, but they're a great source of omega-3's that we keep hearing about. 
*You can use canola or vegetable oil (or maybe even coconut oil) instead of the butter  but the texture will be slightly different, and I'll be honest--this stuff is phenomenal when made with butter. 
*The granola doesn't really look very cooked when it's done (it hardly browns at all) but it hardens a bit when it cools. If you like your granola crunchy, let it cook until it turns golden brown, otherwise just take it out when the time is up and it should be slightly chewy.
*This stuff keeps really well in the freezer, so if you don't plan on eating it within a week, store it in a freezer safe container and it should stay good for a month or two.