Popped Wheat Berry Granola

So yeah, now I'm one of those people who make their own granola. Let's get crunchy.

Of all things homemade, certainly one with a pretty high reward is homemade granola. It's super cheap, has a super long shelf life, and is endlessly customizable. I've been on the hunt for a good granola recipe to call my own since I first made it way back in the fall of 2005. Earlier that summer, Chris was interning in Washington State and living with his aunt and uncle just north of Seattle. On a weeklong visit to see him at the end of the summer, I was introduced not ONLY to pad thai, Costco (and their cheesecake), Catamarans, the San Juan islands, and IPAs, but a granola recipe his aunt would make that was pretty hard to beat. To 20 year old me, making ones own granola felt silly. Why make granola when they sell tons of varieties at the store? (note: I did not really ever eat granola at the time). It didn't take too terribly long to realize making your own granola allowed you to put whatever the heck you wanted into it, make it as sweet or unsweet as you want, and it cost about 1/5 the amount at the store.

Cut to cough13cough years later and here I am shopping at Costco, eating thai food, drinking all the IPAs and touting the benefits of making my own granola. Maybe that trip had a little more impact than I give it credit.

This particular recipe was pretty exciting because it was born out of the discovery that you can pop wheat berries. My favorite little grain-salad base could be popped into a delightfully nutty, crunchy little grain that I knew would be pretty stellar stirred into some oats. I tossed them in a little vegetable oil over medium heat and pop pop pop they puffed up all toasty and brown.

These precious little crunchies were toasted, put in a ziplock bag and kept in my pantry for a couple of weeks before getting to making the actual granola, so they have a long shelf life too.

The granola recipe itself is pretty simple, and easy to make with ingredients on hand and I'm happy to have it emblazoned on the web for me to look up. This is my ideal granola. Crunchy enough to have with milk as cereal (although I prefer it over yogurt!) NOT clumpy at all-- most of the components are individually crunchy--, with toasted pecans and crunchy wheat berries throughout. I added cranberries for a little tart chew and this recipe makes about 5 cups which is good enough for a consistent week of heavy granola to yogurt ratio breakfasts.

Popped Wheat Berry Granola

Ingredients

3 C Old Fashioned Rolled Oats

1 C wheat berries, popped

1 tsp kosher salt

1/2 C Olive Oil

1/3 C Honey

1/4 C Maple Syrup

2 egg whites

1/2 C dried cranberries

Method

To pop the wheat berries:

In a large skillet set over medium-high heat, add 1 Tbsp vegetable oil and allow to heat until wisps of smoke appear . Add wheat berries and toss to coat with oil. Shake the pan back and forth until you start to notice the little berries popping up (this will not be as dramatic as popcorn) and starting to smell toasty. Keep shaking the pan back and forth until it appears all of the grains have popped (keep a few unpopped grains nearby in case you can't even remember what they looked like when you started). Once they are all popped, remove from pan (I put them in a small bowl) and season with salt. I like them pretty salty to counteract the sweetness in the overall granola but it's up to you. Popped wheat berries will keep for a couple of weeks in a zip lock back or airtight container. If you dont' want to use them in granola they are also awesome sprinkled over roasted or grilled veggies or in a salad for a little crunch!

To make the granola:

Set oven to middle rack and preheat to 300F. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper and set aside.

In a large bowl, combine olive oil, honey, maple syrup egg whites and 1 tsp kosher salt and whisk until combined. Add three cups of rolled oats and using a spatula mix to fully coat. Spread mixture out onto prepared baking sheet and cook for one hour, stirring every 20 minutes or until oats turn a toasty golden brown and are smelling great.

Remove sheet from pan and allow to cool for a few minutes. Add wheat berries.

Add cranberries (or any other dried fruit you might prefer) and stir to combine. Add to airtight jar or container. Will keep for up to 2 weeks, but no way it will last that long.

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