[recipe redone] triple-coconut granola

In the past year, several of my go-to food blogs have shared their favorite recipes for granola. The ingredient lists and techniques have all been similar, but a small tweak here and there seems to make a big difference in the texture and flavor of the end product. I've tried a bunch of them and they're all delicious, but I kind of have a thing for coconut. With that in mind, I decided to tweak some of their recipes and come up with a coconut-intense version of granola to call my own. Yes, several years ago people were scared to death of coconut (mainly because coconut oil is full of saturated fat). But new studies have shown that coconut oil is actually a heart-healthy oil. Regardless, it's delicious in this recipe.

1/2 cup, packed (100g) brown sugar
4 Tablespoons coconut oil* (virgin has the most flavor)
1/4 cup (60ml) water
1/4 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 lb. (125 g) quick oats
1/2 lb. (125 g) coconut flour* (Bob's Red Mill is a brand carried by Whole Foods)
1 cup (100g) shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 cups dried fruit, chopped (apricots or golden raisins are excellent)

Preheat oven to 300 F.

In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, coconut oil, water, and salt. Microwave on high for about 3 minutes; the mixture should be bubbling vigorously. Stir in the extracts and set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, mix the remaining ingredients (except for the dried fruit) together until well-combined. Pour the brown sugar syrup over the dry ingredients and fold until fully incorporated.

Spread the mixture over a half sheet pan (17 x 13) and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and toss the granola, breaking up any huge chunks. Return the pan to the oven and bake another 15 minutes. Repeat this again (if necessary) until the granola is uniformly browned and very crispy-crunchy. At that point, remove the granola from the oven and allow to cool. Toss in the dried fruit and serve with milk or yogurt - or just munch it by the handful!

* If you don't have coconut oil, you can substitute an equal amount of butter. You could also substitute oat flour, ground flax meal, or almond meal for the coconut flour. At that point, you might as well take a look at this recipe from the Traveler's Lunchbox, which is what I based mine off of.