Our Granola Recipe

Maybe this should be titled "THE Granola Recipe".
Yup. It's that good.
I'm sharing this because I've been asked for it a few times since Baby Sister's wedding.
That's because we made enough of it for 150 people as favors for the wedding so the goodness was shared with some of our favorite people.
The great thing about granola is that it can be played with and you'll still get great results so I'll share my most used recipe with the encouragement that you play around using things you like...

"THE Granola Recipe"

(start to finish: 30 minutes or so :  yield: about 12 cups, 3 - qt mason jars)

6 cups of rolled oats (not quick oats)

1.5 c unsweetened shredded coconut

2 c sliced almonds, raw
1.5 c sunflower seeds, shelled and raw
2/3 c coconut oil
1 c pure maple syrup
2 c raisins (optional)

Set the oven to 325.
In a large mixing bowl, mix oats, coconut, almonds, and seeds. Set aside. 
In a medium saucepan over medium/low heat,  melt coconut oil and maple syrup until they are well mixed. This will not take long since coconut oil's melting point is so low, maybe 2-3 minutes. 
Pour melted oil and syrup over dry ingredients and stir until all is well coated. 
Pour enough of the mixture onto a baking sheet so that you have a thin layer of granola and are able to stir it around without spilling everywhere. 
Place into oven and bake for 5 minutes at a time, stirring after every 5, until the granola is a nice golden brown. Between 15-20 minutes per batch. (The mixture will not likely feel crunchy while still hot. The crunch comes as it cools so look for color, not crunch.)
Let cool for a few minutes. 
Once cool, either pour into a large bowl to break up any chunks and to stir in raisins, or place directly into storage container(s). (We use three quart sized mason jars.)

The kids love their granola like they do cereal, in a bowl with milk. I prefer it over some homemade yogurt and Hubs inevitably ends up taking it to work with him with milk and blueberries. It's also great over ice cream.
No matter how you like it, you've really got to try this deliciousness!

* Depending on how you feel about certain foods, you can substitute some of the ingredients and get similar flavor results. For example, you can use vegetable oil or canola oil instead of coconut oil (though I would not recommend it). You can also substitute honey for maple syrup or a mixture of the two.