Banana PB Granola

A few weeks ago I was on overload. I didn't really have time to cook any meals and was pretty much living off snack-type foods. That combined with not having time to workout as much as I like left me feeling pretty gross. I stumbled across this recipe for Banana Peanut Butter Granola on Annie's Eats and immediately put the ingredients I didn't have on hand on my grocery list. I made it that evening and have made 4 batches of it since. I have yet to make a recipe from her blog that isn't a big hit in our house. Matt and I absolutely love the crunchy combination of Banana and Peanut Butter with a hint of chcolate. Vanilla yogurt with this granola mixed it has become my number one snack lately.

Another reason I absolutely love this is because with my old oven I could not make a batch of granola without burning it. My new oven however makes this beautifully. Each time I've made this granola I messed around with the amount of ingredients a bit, the first time I made I used more Rice Krispie (3.5cups) than Oats (2.5 cups) because I ran out of Oats. That has been my favorite batch. I also like to add some of the chocolate before mixture completely cools. Below I have the recipe as found on Annie's blog.

Banana Peanut Butter Granola
Souce: Annie's Eats



Ingredients:
3 1/2 cups rolled oats
2 1/2 cups puffed rice cereal
2 tbsp. honey
1/3 cup applesauce
1/3 cup mashed bananas
1/3-1/2 cup creamy peanut butter, warmed slightly (I use 1/2 heaping cup)
3/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/3 cup brown sugar
1-1 1/2 cups dried banana chips
1/2 cup honey roasted peanuts
3-4 oz. bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped (optional)



Directions:

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, combine the rolled oats and puffed rice cereal. In a medium bowl, whisk together the honey, applesauce, mashed banana, peanut butter, salt, cinnamon and brown sugar until smooth. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir with a rubber spatula until the oat mixture is evenly coated. Spread onto the prepared baking sheet in a thick even layer.

Bake for 30 minutes. Then, using a large spatula, turn the granola over in segments. Bake for an additional 15 minutes. Depending on the size of your baking sheet, the center may not be fully dried. If necessary, remove the edges of cooked granola and bake the remaining granola for 10-15 minutes more or until done, being careful not to over-bake. Cool on a wire rack.

Once the granola has cooled, crumble it into a large bowl or plastic bag. Add in the dried banana chips, honey roasted peanuts and bittersweet chocolate, if using. Mix well to combine. Store in an airtight container.