indian spiced granola

i guess its a cliche that we californians are all crunchy granola types who like our health food and tie dye. for some reason, this seemed very prevalent in children's books. i remember reading baby sitter's club books where, in the second chapter, Ann M. Martin would always explain that Dawn liked health food because she was from california, and in many of my other favorite books, there was always a weird kid from california who surfed and wore tye die all the time.
its strange that granola is part of the image, because most granola on the shelves these days is not particularly healthy or natural. i'm not a hippy at all (ok, i used to wear tie dye. but that was one i was 5 and my mom dressed me, so it wasn't my fault), but i've also never been a fan of sugary cereals. so when i saw this recipe on orangette, i was intrigued by the idea of making my own granola.
best breakfast ever! a big bowl of grape-nuts (i gotta rep the grape-nuts! such an under-appreciated cereal), homemade granola, golden raisins, strawberries, and milk.
i think the first time rita and i made granola was about 2 years ago now. in those years, with the help of our dad, we've changed the original recipe enough to make it our own, and we've come up with some delicious variations. this one is our "indian granola". its a little bit savory, but the spices are not too strong, and its great with yogurt, fruit, milk, or just as a snack by itself.
indian spiced granola
dry mix
*5 cups old fashioned or quick cooking oats
*1 cup slivered almonds or pistachio meats
*1 cup shelled sunflower seeds
wet mix
*1 cup unsweetened applesauce
*1/4 cup brown rice syrup (available at health food or natural food stores)
*1/4 cup honey
*2 Tablespoons cinnamon
*1 Tablespoon sweet curry powder
*1 teaspoon ground ginger
*2 teaspoons cardamom powder
1. preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. stir dry mix in a large bowl.
3. stir wet mix in a medium sized bowl (it will make about 2 cups all together. we like to mix it in a glass measuring cup, which makes it easy to pour into the dry bowl).
4. add wet mix to dry mix bowl. stir well, until all dry ingredients are coated with the wet mix.
5. pour granola onto one or two baking pans, making sure granola is in a single layer.
6. bake in oven for 30 minutes, or until golden brown (time varies slightly depending on your oven. the granola is still good if the bottom is a little burnt, in fact sometimes we prefer it that way).