Healthy Spiced Apple Granola

This shop has been compensated by Vons. All opinions are mine alone. #AStockUpSale #Vons #CollectiveBias

Whenever I get stressed, I go on these epic grocery store raids. They wouldn’t really be a problem, either–I mean, who doesn’t need 15 boxes of Cinnamon Toast Crunch sitting around, right?–…IF I had a car for transporting all of my crazy impulse buys back to my place.

As it turns out, I don’t have a car, and with the first week of school upon us (FINALLY) stress levels are at simmering somewhere around a pleasant 7 out of 10. Apart from spending way too much time trying to figure out enrollment issues and kick-start a regular study group schedule with my fellow grads, I’ve also been going to Disneyland and watching a sneak peek screening of The Martian two nights ago um, not been going to Disneyland and definitely not spending my time watching awesome movie screenings. Pffft. (You guys have to see this movie, though.)

Staying true to the spirit of stress shopping, I decided to take the afternoon off yesterday after class + 6 hours of extra office hours and make the 3-mile trek–yes, on my feet–down to Vons so that I could raid their aisles for some serious schooltime snack food.

Now, this is where things get silly. Have you ever walked into a grocery store with exactly two items on your shopping list…and come out carrying twenty instead? Oh, and here’s the real kicker: it’s only when you’re on the way home in your (hypothetical) car that you realize you’ve completely forgotten to buy the things for which you went to the store in the first place?

This happens to me all. The. Time.

Now, when you’re without a car (like me) and weak (like me) and seriously distracted (like me), impulse buying + forgetfulness is not a good combo. Long story short, I walked into the store yesterday ready to buy a few pieces of produce–you know, so I can eat like a normal person and stuff–and ended up walking out laden down with nearly 30 pounds of random snacks and breakfast items.

What is this self-control you speak of? I’m sorry, never heard of it.

Oh, and I forgot the produce. So yeah, that happened.

Needless to say, I haven’t learned my lesson. One hour and two aching shoulders later, I was back at my place and ready to whip up some on-the-go breakfast for the rest of the week because I was feeling so pumped from all the adrenaline climbing up that last hill. Since it’s fall and basically everything on my RSS feed is filled with pumpkins and cinnamon and apples, I decided to make this healthy spiced apple granola–made with applesauce instead of oil! Then, when I finally finished, I stacked up a pile of it on top of a cup of Yoplait Greek 100 Vanilla (because I bought like, 10 of them–you know, because I’m a total hoarder when I stress shop) and devoured it in 5 minutes flat.

So were my efforts fruitless? Uh, yeah. Did not get fruit (I had exactly one apple left in my fridge when I got home, so that’s the sliver you see here). But I got multiple spicedl apple granola Greek yogurt parfaits out of the deal and that is more than enough. Plus I’m planning another trip back to Vons already because I really need the workout they’re having their stock up sale next week and a whole bunch of General Mills goodies are on sale (hellloooo, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, Yoplait Greek 100 Vanilla yogurt, Yoplait Original Strawberry, Nature Valley Crunchy Oats N Honey Granola Bar….need I go on?).

And hey, who knows–maybe I’ll actually remember the fruit this time, right?

 What snack or breakfast would you top off with this granola: Yoplait yogurt? Fruit?

Healthy Spiced Apple Granola

Healthify your fall-inspired granola with applesauce instead of oil! The warm cinnamony spices make this no-hassle granola the perfect yogurt topping.

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Ingredients

• 4 cups quick-cooking oats
• 1 cup chopped nuts
• 1 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
• 1/3 cup apple juice
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a large baking pan with lightly greased foil. Toss together oats and nuts--spread into a thin layer on prepared sheet.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat up brown sugar and apple juice. Bring to a boil, stirring, and then turn off heat. Stir in applesauce, maple syrup, vanilla, and cinnamon. Pour over dry mixture and toss until oats are completely coated.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 50 minutes, stirring every 15-20 minutes. Allow to cool completely before breaking into clumps. Serve over yogurt!