Measuring, stirring, toasting, eating: Nothing but healthy goodness in a bowl!
Dutch version coming soon…
Normally I am all about scales and weighing ingredients, but this recipe works very well with cups and spoons. You can see why of course, it doesn’t have to be measured exactly and there is much room for creativity. This wholesome recipe is my adaptation of a recipe that was handed to me after a visit to a welcoming guest house on Vancouver Island, many years ago. I have made it ever since, for myself and others. I would describe it as toasted muesli but other people would call it granola because it also has some added sweetness. But this sweetness comes in the shape of maple syrup and I know it has the same calorie content as sugar, but it also has some nutritional value (zinc a.o.) and it’s taste is unique. So maybe you could call it a healthy kind of granola or a sweetened muesli or cruesli or granuesli… In other words: Call it what you like, just try it, it’s seriously good!
I eat this hodgepodge almost every morning with yogurt and honey and vary much with the ingredients you see listed below. You could say I thrive on it! I sometimes like to add buckwheat seeds (very crunchy), spelt flakes or spelt bran, walnuts instead of pecans, pistachios, dried figs and I also started adding hemp seeds, a very good source of protein with a nice nutty flavor. The base, oat flakes, gives you lots of energy to kick start the morning and the nuts are food for the brain. After you have made this, there is no going back to any store bought product. I have tried a lot of these and nothing comes close to the freshness, texture and taste of this home made mixture.
With the amounts in this recipe you can feed the whole family for weeks, or so I think, so it’s an option to make half the recipe and see what you think of it first. It’s better anyway to make smaller batches more often. It will stay fresh in an airtight container for about two weeks.
Just add extra blueberries, inca berries, goji berries, hemp or chia seeds to make it a super food toasted muesli fest!
Recipe for Maple Toasted Muesli
5 cups oat flakes
1 cup shredded coconut
1 cup wheat germ
1/2 cup bran
1/2 cup (chopped) almonds
1 cup coarsely chopped pecans or walnuts
1/2 cup sunflower and pumpkin seeds
5 tbsp sesame seeds
3 tsp grated orange peel (optional)
1 tsp vanilla extract (optional)
1/2 tsp salt
6 tsp vegetable oil (optional, can also try less or without)
1/ 2cup maple syrup
after Muesli has cooled add:
1 cup raisins (sultanas and blue jumbo)
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup chopped dried apricots, cherries or other dried fruit
Making the Maple Toasted Muesli
Place all the dry ingredients in a bowl and stir. Combine the oil, maple syrup, salt, orange zest and vanilla (It’s also very good without vanilla and orange, see what you like best) and stir so everything is combined. Spread the muesli on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Toast at 140ºC / 285ºF for 30 to 40 minutes. Stir every 10 minutes, making sure everything is evenly toasted. Leave to cool completely in a bowl then add the dried fruit and store in an airtight container.
NB: A lot of the ingredients for this recipe are used in one of my favorite recipes for Muesli Buns. Check it out here!
Sylvia Vervest says
You guys do it once again!
I’ve been looking for a good home made Musesli and really not found anything I really liked I was going to sling something together myself but then I find this little gem on your site (quite by accident actually). I’ll be making a batch of this this weekend and I’m sure it will be delishious, although the Almonds will be replaced with some other nut as my partner is allergic to them.
Thanks again, in advance 🙂
Sylv.
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Sylvia,
Thanks! I am almost sure you will like it a lot! Pecans and walnuts with pistachios will also be delicious.
Enjoy!
Marieke
Karin Anderson (Karin's Bäckerei) says
Very nice. We have muesli every morning, and I will try your recipe.
I used hemp seed so far only in breads.
Happy baking,
Karin
Weekend Bakers says
Great Karin,
I hope you like it too. I always look forward to eating it in the morning. And I keep it interesting by varying ingredients, especially nuts. I am going to try the hemp seeds in bread baking too.
Happy baking,
Marieke
Marina says
Hi! Thanks for the recipe. I guess you are living in the NL given the pictures of your products. Is there a shop in particular where you find all these healthy ingredients other than the ones you could find at the supermarket?
Thanks in advance.
Regards,
Marina.
Weekend Bakers says
Hi Marina,
Yes you are right. I would suggest buying them at an organic store. There are chains in Holland called ‘De natuurwinkel’ and ‘Ekoplaza’ but there are also independent shops found all over Holland, sometimes they are also called ‘reformwinkel’.
Another option are (wind)mills or ‘molens’ that sell flour for bread, they usually also sell grains and seeds and dried fruits and nuts. Like the mill we buy our flour at, called ‘De Zandhaas’ in Santpoort. And sometimes these ingredients are also found at farm shops.
You can find a good list with all these addresses at www.biogids.nl
Hope this helps,
Marieke