Maple and Coconut Granola

We're painting a room in our house at the moment, and if you've painted recently you might remember the stench. Our whole house, even our front yard smells of paint fumes and it's disgusting. The dogs are sneezing constantly and staying well away and the rest of us are just trying to make do by holding our breath, opening windows and closing doors.

I tried lighting incense to combat the smell, and we even made some chai on the stove which always gets the house smelling better, but even these paled in comparison to the awful chemically haze, so I wracked my brains (and the internet) for the most fragrant, nicest smelling recipe I could, and this is what I chose.

Although it hasn't cured the whole house, our kitchen sure smells better after a batch of this, and the cooking served a good distraction from the smell. This is my new favourite muesli too, so atleast something good has come of the awful stench. The maple is the dominant flavour, sweet and smooth, but the coconut and cashew are both noticable and very nice as well. It is quite a sweet cereal, so if you prefer something a little more savoury you could certainly cut the maple to 1/4 cup instead.

Enjoy,
Mia :)

Coconut Maple Granola
 

2 ½ cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup dessicated or shredded coconut
½ cup quinoa
½ cup cashews
½ cup almonds
¼ cup coconut or canola oil 

⅓ cup maple syrup

1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cinnamon

1. Preheat oven to 150º C.  Place all ingredients in a large mixing bowl and stir until well combined. 
2. Place granola on a baking sheet sprayed with nonstick spray or lined with parchment.  Bake for 25-30 minutes without stirring! Makes approx. 3½ cups