Homemade Yogurt with Berries and Granola

I have recently started making homemade yogurt and have LOVED IT! My kids are loving it too - my husband and I have yogurt, fresh fruit and granola most mornings, and the kids are enjoying lots of breakfast smoothies with hot oatmeal or fresh muffins. I make lots of yogurt pops too, so that when they ask for ice cream, I can offer a yogurt pop instead. My friend Tyler even posted a great real fruit pop recipe yesterday that I am going to try for the kids.

Making your own yogurt is very frugal and you can use the ingredients that YOU want to use. You control the milk, the starter, the sweetener (if you even want any), and you can add fresh fruit instead of having those little pieces of something that is suppose to be fruit (very questionable).

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Every week or two I make some more granola to add to my yogurt. I love that I can add whatever I want to to it, that I control the sweetener and fats, and that it saves me tons of money for very little work!

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Homemade Granola:

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4 cups Large oats

1 cup Coconut

2 cups Nuts (any nut or seed you like will do- I use almonds or pecans, which are our favorites)

2 tsp Cinnamon

1/2 tsp Nutmeg

1/4 cup Coconut oil or Vegetable oil

1/2 cup Honey

2 cups Dried fruit (optional, sometimes I will add, but not always)

Combine all the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Combine oil and honey and pour over dry ingredients. Mix well, making sure that the oil and honey is well distributed.

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Bake on a large baking tray at 350 F for 10 minutes, stir gently. Bake for an additional 10 - 15 minutes (cooking time will depend on your baking tray), checking every 5 minutes to stir, remove when I light brown. You will want to watch it closely for the last 10 - 15 as dark brown granola does not taste as good.

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Let it sit on the counter to cool for 20 minutes then put in an airtight container.

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Even if you are not totally health conscious all of the time (me), it is nice to have some options for food that is healthy, nourishing, easy and frugal. For more tips and recipe ideas see The Nourishing Gourmet and Balancing Beauty and Bedlam.

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Related posts:

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50 Money Saving Tips!
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Healthy and Nutritious Eggs

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Blessings,

Christine