Chocolate Peanut Butter Granola

1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup peanut butter
2 cups high-energy cereal made of strong flakes, crushed
1/2 cup dried raisins or cherries
1/3 cup slivered almonds
1/4 cup banana chips
1/3 cup white chocolate chips

Break the banana chips into small pieces and set aside. Heat the honey and brown sugar in a large pot and simmer for 1 minute. (Boiling too long will make the bars brittle.) Remove the pan from the heat and stir in the peanut butter. Add the remaining ingredients and combine well.

Coat the bottom and sides of an 8-inch square pan with vegetable oil. Scoop the mixture into the pan and pack down evenly. Freeze for 30 minutes. Transfer the pan contents to a cutting board. Allow to return to room temperature and then cut into 10 bars. Wrap bars in waxed paper and store in zip-top bags. The bars will keep in the freezer for three months (if you don't eat them before then!!!).

Mixed Fruit and Nut Granola

Makes about 12 cups

6 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons canola or safflower oil
1/2 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 3/4 cups rolled oats
1 cup unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup cashews
1/2 cup pecan pieces
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1 cup fresh orange juice
2 cups mixed dried fruit

Preheat the oven to 275F degrees. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. In a medium saucepan, combine the butter, oil, brown sugar, maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla, and salt, and bring to a simmer, stirring until the brown sugar dissolves, about 2 minutes. Let cool slightly.

In a very large bowl, toss together the oats, coconut, cashews, pecans, pistachios, and almonds. Add the warm brown sugar mixture and stir to coat thoroughly. Spread the granola onto the baking sheet and bake for 1 hour 15 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden.

While the granola bakes, pour the orange juice over the fruit in a medium bowl and let stand until plumped, about 1 hour.

Drain the dried fruit, pressing to extract the liquid, and discard the liquid. Stir the fruit into the granola and bake for 5 minutes. Let cool completely. The granola will crisp as it cools.

Apricot Granola

If you like clumps in your granola, firmly compress the granola into the trays before you let it cool. Then, once it’s cool, you can break it up into clumps. Otherwise don't compress the granola.

7 cups rolled oats
2 cups slivered almonds
1 cup brown sugar
¾ cup raw sunflower seeds
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
⅔ cup vegetable oil
½ cup honey
1½ tablespoons vanilla extract
1½ cups diced apricots

Preheat the oven to 180°C. Line two large baking trays with baking paper.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, almonds, sugar, sunflower seeds and cinnamon. In a small saucepan, heat the oil and honey over medium heat until just simmering.

Pour the liquid mixture over the oat mixture and thoroughly combine with your hands (careful it’s hot!) until everything is coated. Spread the mixture onto the prepared trays.

Bake for approximately 25 minutes, stirring every ten minutes to ensure even browning. Bake until golden brown. Stir in the apricots as soon as you remove the trays from the oven. Allow to cool completely on trays.