I don't know where I'd be without granola. A staple during my years at graduate school and my go-to snack whenever I feel hungry, but don't have extra time to cook something. When Marcus first met me, he laughed at how much granola I ate, but I think it's the perfect comfort food, especially for an Oregonian. Filling, yet healthy and delicious when served with cold milk or over yoghurt with fresh fruit.

There are so many granola recipes out there that it feels almost silly to add another one to the world. But I've eaten enough to know a good bowl of granola when I meet one and had to share this one. It's a mashup between my mother's classic recipe and the Sprouted Kitchen's seedy granola recipe from her fantastic cookbook Bowl + Spoon. Sweet and filling meets healthy and lean. Including brown sugar and maple syrup might seem excessive, but I find it adds the perfect amount of sweetness to complement the hearty seeds. The Sprouted Kitchen recipe calls for pepitas, but you can pretty much toss in whatever seeds you have on hand.

Granola
3/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 cup butter
7 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup crisp rice cereal
3/4 cup raw, unsalted sunflower seeds
3/4 cup roughly slivered almonds
1 cup unsweetened coconut
2 cups dried apricots, dried cranberries, raisins or other fruit

Heat over to 325 degrees F. In a large pot, melt butter over a low heat. Add the brown sugar and stir until mixed. Add the olive oil and maple syrup and stir for another minute. Slowly add the oats, sunflower seeds, pepitas, and almonds, mixing until well combined. Spread over two baking sheet and bake for 25 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes. Remove when golden brown. Allow to cool completely, then add dried fruit and coconut. Enjoy!