OK. Glad you asked.
First the explanation:
My son is attending International ALERT Academy. It's a long story explaining who these folks are. If you are interested, go to their
website. If you have a teenage son, I HIGHLY encourage he attend at least the basic. It will make a man out of him.
Anyway, the basic training phase is actually tougher than military basic. There are several endurance events over the nine-weeks course, but one of the toughest -- not even THE toughest -- is the 50-mile, continuous 24-hour hike with full multi-day backpacks in the Winding Stair Mountain National Recreation Area in Oklahoma.
Throughout the nine weeks, the guys burn anywhere from 3,000 to 10,000 calories a day and -- as you can imagine -- are fed a very rich diet, including this super granola. My son basically became addicted to the stuff and craved it whenever he wasn't stuffing his face with it.
The guys in basic swear their granola was different from and better than the regular "Battalion" granola. There have been many attempts to discover the recipe. The guys even volunteered for kitchen duty so they could spy it out. Below is what they have determined is the "basic training" granola. The first part is the Battalion regular granola. The added parts are what makes it the special basic training granola. Still, nobody really knows for sure what EXACTLY makes up the special basic training granola. The cooks just won't spill the beans.
Somewhere in all these ingredients, however, is bound to be a pretty good granola.
Dave
Dry Ingredients:
5 c. Rolled Oats
1 c. Sunflower Seeds
1 c. Coconut
1 c. Sliced Almonds(walnuts or pecans)
1 c. Whole-wheat Flour (You can use white flour)
3/4 t. Salt
3/4 c. Brown Sugar
Wet Ingredients:
1/2 c. Honey
1/2 c. Canola Oil (or veggie oil)
1/4 c. Water
3/4 t. Vanilla Extract
3/4 t. Almond Extract
Mix all dry ingredients together in a large bowl. In a separate container, mix all the wet ingredients thoroughly until the honey and oil are blended. Pour the honey mixture over the dry mixture and mix well by hand. Put into a well-greased 9x13 pan 2 inc high pan. Bake at 350 degrees, stirring every 15 minutes. Granola is done when it is toasted (LIGHTLY toasted very lightly just turning golden, still will seem soft and wet. But won't stick. This is the KEY to good granola, don't over do it whatever you do. You won't think it is done when it is and if you think it is done it is probably over done!) and doesn't stick to spoon anymore (app. 1 hour). Let cool completely on the counter then store in an airtight container.
Each batch makes about a gallon of granola.
Now the fun part--variety!
Maple Walnut Granola
Replace Almond Extract with Maple Extract
Almonds with Walnuts
Add:
1 1/2 t. Cinnamon (or more if desired)
Remove:
Sunflower Seeds
Banana Nut
Replace:
Almond extract with 2 t. Banana Extract or 1 oz. Banana Flavoring (More maybe added for a stronger flavor)
Add:
1 1/2 t. Cinnamon (or more if desired)
More Nuts if desired
1-2 c. Dried Banana Chips
Remove:
Sunflower Seeds
Cran-Apple
Replace:
Almond Extract with Maple Extract
Almonds with Pecans
Add:
2 t. Cinnamon (or more if desired)
1 c. Dried Cranberries
1 c. Diced Dried Apples
Remove:
Sunflower Seeds
Apple Cinnamon
Replace:
Almond Extract with Maple Extract
Almonds with Pecans
Add:
1 T. Cinnamon (or more if desired)
1 c. Diced Dried Apples
Remove:
Sunflower Seeds( and or Coconut)
Ranch Blend
Replace:
2/3 Almonds with 1/3 Pecans, 1/3 Walnuts
Add:
2 t. Cinnamon (or more if desired)
3/4 c. Dried Cranberries
3/4 c. Diced Dried Apples
3/4 c. Dried Banana Chips
1/2 c. Raisin
