Chocolate Peanut Granola

the granola gave us enough energy to do this! ^^

So, I've been following this awesome blog for a while, and want to make every single one of her recipes. The other day I decided to make her Chocolate Peanut Granola to take with us on a 9-day beach cabin vacation.

Oh. My. Gosh. It's the best granola I've ever had. Along with everyone who has tried it.

The great thing is that it's not too sweet to enjoy in the morning. It's a perfect balance of salty and sweet, and satisfyingly crunchy. I absolutely love it for breakfast, a snack, and dessert, in a bit of whole milk. You could enjoy it in yogurt, on ice cream, with fruit, or just plain, though. It's fantastic. It's also made with coconut oil, plenty of seeds, nuts, and maple syrup, so you know you're not ingesting crap :)

And, for once, I made the recipe exactly as directed, and have absolutely no reasons to change it. (Weird!)

Here's the recipe, if you're too lazy to click over to her blog; you should seriously look, though, she's got some awesome recipes.

Chocolate Peanut Granola

(from Deliciously Organic, adapted from Food Network)

1/4 cup cocoa powder
4 1/2 cups rolled oats
1 cup sunflower seeds

3/4 cup white sesame seeds

2/3 cup coconut oil, melted

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/2 cup sucanat, you may substitute organic whole cane sugar
2 cups raw peanuts

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

Preheat oven to 300°F and adjust rack to middle position. Mix everything together very well in a large mixing bowl.

Spread the mixture evenly on two baking sheets lined with parchment paper (I used my silicone baking mats) and bake for 45 minutes, turning over half-way through baking. Cool completely before serving. Crumble and store in an airtight container. (Your house is going to smell AMAZING.)