Fruit and Granola Parfaits

FOR THE GRANOLA:

3 cups quick or old-fashioned oats

¼ cup brown sugar

1/2 cup sliced almonds

¼ cup pumpkin seeds

2 tsp cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1/4 cup canola oil

1/4 cup honey

2 T maple syrup

1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract

½ cup raisins or dried fruit of choice

STEPS:

1. Begin by making the granola. Preheat oven to 350˚ F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Stir and combine oats, brown sugar, almonds, pumpkin seeds, cinnamon, and salt in a large mixing bowl.
3. In a saucepan on low heat, mix the canola oil, honey, vanilla extract and maple syrup until the liquid is evenly heated and all the ingredients are mixed. The mixture may appear fairly runny, but that is OK.
4. Dump the liquid ingredients into the mixing bowl of dry ingredients. Stir to coat the dry ingredients fully with the oil and honey mixture.
5. Spoon the granola onto the baking sheet and spread it out with the back of the spoon to create an even layer. Press down on the layer of granola with the spoon to ensure that the ingredients are compact.
6. Bake the granola for about 15-20 minutes, or until it has become solid and does not leave a fingerprint indentation when you touch it. Remove it from the oven and cool on the sheet on a wire rack for 15 minutes.
7. Once the granola feels cool to the touch, grab a large enough container that you wish to use to store the granola in. Keeping the sheet flat, use a spatula to break apart the granola into pieces of desired size. Then, dump the granola into the container.
8. Add raisins or dried fruit of choice. Use your hands or a spoon to distribute the dried fruit throughout the granola. Cover and keep in an airtight container for up to 3 weeks or proceed to the next step to make a parfait!

FOR THE BASE:

1 Cup Plain, Unsweetened Greek Yogurt (if you find this too bitter, you can use any lightly sweetened yogurt of your choice or add a touch of honey, vanilla extract, cinnamon, or fruit sauces to the yogurt)

FOR THE FRUIT LAYER:

1 cup frozen fruit of your preference (thawed)*

OR
1 cup fresh fruit of your choice (can be any of your favorite fruits, from strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries to peaches and pineapple)

*Thaw per directions on the bag of frozen fruit– typically, either let it sit at room temperature for the specified amount of time or use the defrost setting on the microwave

FRUIT SAUCE: If you wish to have a fruit sauce in your parfait rather than just plain fruit, follow the steps below.

You will need

1 cup fresh or frozen fruit

½ cup water (only if using fresh fruit)

2 T honey

2 T sugar

2 T lemon juice

2 T water and 1 T cornstarch

1. Add fresh or frozen fruit to a saucepan. If using frozen fruit, you will not need to add water, since the water from the ice will melt off to add moisture. If using fresh fruit, add ½ cup water to the fruit. You may need more to increase moisture as you proceed.
2. Heat the saucepan to medium/high heat. Add the honey, 2 Tablespoons sugar, and lemon juice to the fruit. Allow the mixture to come to a light boil and simmer for about 5 minutes.
3. Reduce the heat to low/medium. Combine water and cornstarch well. Add this mixture to the sauce to thicken and stir in well. Keep saucepan on stovetop for 5 more minutes, continuing to stir. Then, remove from heat and allow to thicken as the sauce sits.

COMPLETING THE PARFAIT

Place a layer of yogurt in a bowl or cup. Then add layers of fresh or frozen and thawed fruit, homemade granola from above, nuts or fruit sauces in order of your choice.

NOTES:

• The granola will make more than you will need for your parfait (s). However, you can have it for up to 3 weeks to add to your yogurt or eat as a snack by storing in an airtight container.
• You can substitute the same amount of olive oil for canola oil
• Any of the nuts can be replaced according to preference (pecans can be used for walnuts, etc.)