Granola Your Way Recipe--with clusters!

This recipe for granola is a mash up from two sources.  The first is from an Epicurious article that offers a granola ratio "recipe" that gives you the basic ratios and lets you decide what ingredients to use.  The other is a recent recipe by Melissa Clark at the New York Times for how to get granola with some nice clusters in it, so that your granola doesn't seem too much like bird food.  The trick?  There are two:  use an egg white with the liquid and also take about a cup of the oats and maybe 1/2 cup of coconut and whirl them in the food processor until they're like flour. The ground oats and coconut help to form the clusters and egg white gives it all a bit of an extra crunch.

The basic granola ratio:
6 parts dry ingredients to 1 part wet, plus dried fruit

Here's what I used:
4 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup almonds, chopped
1/4 cup oat bran
1/4 cup sesame seeds
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1/2 cup honey
1 egg white
1 tablespoon vanilla extract


1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.  Place a piece of parchment paper on a large, rimmed cookie sheet (or two smaller ones). Parchment paper is really essential for preventing the granola from sticking!

Take about 1 cup of the oats and 1/4 cup coconut and whirl in a food processor until they're ground into a flour.  Add the ground oats and coconut to a large bowl with all of the other dry ingredients, including the cinnamon and salt. Combined the coconut oil, honey, egg white and vanilla mixing well.  Pour onto the dry ingredients and mix well with your hands to be sure all of the dry ingredients are coated well with the wet ingredients.  Spread out onto the cookie sheet and, with your hands, pinch blobs together to help ensure clusters form.

Bake for 15 minutes.  Remove and scoop/stir (being careful not to break up clumps) with a spatula to promote even browning.  Return to the oven and bake another 10 to 15 minutes, being careful not to over-brown.  When granola cools, add the raisins and toss.  Place in a well-sealed container.  Keeps for at least a week and makes about 7 cups of granola.