I love how granola adds a satisfying crunch to yogurt, smoothie bowls, or pretty much anything you add it too. I mean, why would anyone want to eat yogurt without granola? Store bought granola, yes it’s delicious, but it’s also packed with sugar and oil. Making your own granola is perfect because you can control the amount of sugar, oil, and customize the ingredients and flavors.

In order to blow through some of the thyme in my garden, I decided to make lemon thyme granola. This killed two birds with one stone. It replaced the store bought granola in my pantry and it used up even more of the ginormous thyme plant in my garden. Not to mention, I used less than half of the usual amount of sweetener and oil to make a lemony, earthy granola. The nice thing about a not-so-sweet granola is you can add it to your sweet yogurt and it will add texture but not over-the-top sweetness. It’s the perfect balance! I found that lemon and thyme pair well with macadamia nuts and almonds. You can easily switch out these two ingredients for your favorite nut or seed.

I also  want to apologize for the lack of posts recently. I have had a concussion for the past few weeks, and at first, that meant: no electronics, no reading, no physical activity, no nothing. I have used all of that time to constantly think about new fall recipes for the upcoming weeks. (Yay!) So look forward to some awesome fall flavors! This was a recipe I made a few weeks ago with the leftover thyme in my garden. Enjoy!

Ingredients
3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup chopped macadamia nuts
pinch of salt
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
zest of 2 lemons
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup oil (I used grapeseed oil)
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 teaspoons thyme leaves

Directions

Preheat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit.

Combine oats, almonds, macadamia nuts, and ginger, and salt in a medium bowl.

In a small bowl combine the oil, honey, lemon zest, thyme leaves, and vanilla.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix to combine.

Transfer mixture to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and arrange in an even layer.

Bake for 40 or so minutes, stirring every 10-15 minutes, until browned and crisp.

Allow to cool completely before using.