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Thursday, October 18, 2012

Pumpkin Praline Granola

In keeping with my theme of I'm mad for everything pumpkin-flavored, here's my recipe for Pumpkin Praline Granola. If you are also mad for everything pumpkin this time of year, enjoy!


A woman and I were talking about foods we enjoyed that are made with pumpkin. Pumpkin praline pie came up. And I thought wouldn't a pumpkin praline granola taste wonderful on a cold autumn morning. In response, this is what I came up with. 

Taste it before spreading in the baking pan. If not sweet or spicy enough, add some maple syrup (to sweeten) and/or additional cinnamon, nutmeg, and ginger. Stir well, then spread in your pan. (I tend to like mine a little less sweet.)


Pumpkin Praline Granola

1/3 cup (80 g) butter or margarine
1/2 cup (90 g) brown sugar
1  1/2 teaspoons (7.5 mL) maple flavoring
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 mL) salt
1  1/2 teaspoons (7.5 mL) cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon (2.5 mL) nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon (1.25 mL) ginger
1/2 cup (105 g) canned, pureed pumpkin (if you use home-cooked pumpkin, strain it in a sieve for 1 to 2 hours before measuring)
3 cups (270 g) regular rolled oats
1/2 cup (75 g) chopped pecans (if buying from a bulk bin, about 1/6th of a pound)


  • In a medium-size, microwaveable bowl, place butter, brown sugar, maple flavoring, salt. Microwave until the butter is melted.


  • Stir in cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. Thoroughly blend in pumpkin. Toss with oats. Stir in pecans.


  • Butter a large sheet pan with raised edges (jelly roll pan). Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (162 C). Spread granola mixture evenly in pan.


  • Bake for 15 minutes, stir to move granola from edges and corners to center and granola in center to the edges.


  • Bake 15 more minutes, stir again.


  • Bake 10 minutes, stir. At this point, check the pecans. Are they toasty looking? The granola will still be chewy, and will crisp up when cooled. I use an insulated baking sheet. And in our oven, this granola needs just a tad more cooking. Yours may not. But if it does --
  • Bake 5 more minutes, stir.
  • Allow to cool completely, before transferring to a storage container. It will get crisp when it has cooled. I just keep mine in a jar on the counter and it gets eaten up in about 3 days. You could also store in an airtight container in the fridge and eat within 7-10 days, or freeze and use within 6-8 weeks.


If you want to add some dried fruit, you could add about 1/2 cup, or so, of date pieces. Don't bake them into the granola, but stir them in after baking.


I love this granola, as is, but also as a topping for yogurt, with dried fruit added. The combination makes a complete meal for me, keeping me fueled with protein, complex carbs, and healthy fats until the early afternoon.

I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do!

14 comments:

  1. Replies
    1. Hi live and learn,
      it is. We've been enjoying it as often as I can make it this fall.

      Delete
  2. Yum! I bet this would be wonderful with dried cranberries added. I don't have maple flavoring, but I can substitute with what I have and try this.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Shara,
      Mmmm, dried cranberries would be delicious!

      Delete
  3. Wow, two of my favourite things (pumpkin and granola) combined :) Thanks for the inspiration

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Economies,
      Your welcome. Anything pumpkin is one of my favorites!

      Delete
  4. Oh, wow, OH, WOW! I made this this afternoon and it is sooo good! The whole house still smells wonderful! I used Mapleine. Is that what you meant by maple flavoring? Thanks for posting this recipe!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Sandy,
      I'm so glad you enjoyed it. I agree about the whole house benefitting from the delicious aroma. It's the mixture of spices, roasting pecans, and maple.

      I use a different brand of maple flavoring, but Mapleine is the right stuff. (I think mine is McCormick's).

      We have just a little bit left for tomorrow's breakfast. It looks like I'll need to make another batch. (Hubby doesn't usually comment on granola, but makes a special point to say how much he enjoys this one!)

      Delete
  5. Pumpkins are one of my favourite things about autumn! So, yes, I'm mad for all things pumpkin-flavoured, too! I'm going to try this over the weekend.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Janice,
      I hope you enjoy the granola as much as we do. It's a delicious way to sneak in another bit of vegetables!

      Thanks for leaving a comment!

      Delete
  6. Have you tried using real maple syrup for part of the sweetening instead of maple flavoring? I wonder how that would work. This sounds delicious!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Hi Linda,
      No I've not tried this recipe with real maple syrup. But I think it would be delicious!
      Here on the west coast, real maple syrup is quite expensive, about $8 or $9 for 8 oz. at Trader Joe's. But if real maple syrup was more affordable, I'd give it a try!

      Delete
  7. this looks so-o-o-o good! can't wait to try it myself. i like the idea of using maple syrup, too.
    beth

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Beth,
    I like that idea to use maple syrup, too! It sounds very tasty.
    Enjoy the granola, Beth!

    ReplyDelete

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