Soft and Chewy Orange Coconut Cashew Granola Cookies

Nature's Hand Granola has been around since 1971. The first batch was crafted by German-born immigrants in Burnsville, Minnesota. Their sweet, hearty granola quickly became a local favorite. So they decided it was time to share their homemade product to the general public and Nature’s Hand Granola was born.

This granola is 100% natural, sweetened with brown sugar and honey with no added salt, preservatives, artificial flavors and artificial colors. It is oven-baked and comes in eleven delicious flavors: Raisin Hazelnut, Cranberry Apricot, Coconut Cashew, Wild Blueberry, Cinnamon Apple, Maple Pecan, Vanilla Almond, Double Berry, Banana Walnut and Original Recipe. They keep coming up with new flavors to satisfy different tastes. We've tried five varieties and they are excellent---not too sweet with the perfect balance of dried fruits, nuts, rolled oats, sunflower and sesame seeds. My whole family loves this great-tasting granola!

The first bags of Nature’s Hand Granola were carried exclusively by specialty stores and health food outlets. They were not easy to find. Right now, it is available only in Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and Wisconsin but if you are interested, you can order them online at http://www.natureshand.com.

Last week, I made these moist, soft and chewy cookies using their recipe. At work everyone who tasted the cookies wanted more and asked for the recipe so I'm posting it here. Hope you give it a try!

Soft and Chewy Orange Coconut Cashew Granola Cookies

1 cup butter, softened at room temperature
1 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1-3/4 cups all purpose flour
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp kosher salt
1 cup rolled oats
1-1/2 cups Nature's Hand Coconut Cashew Granola
1/4 cup candied orange peel (I used tangerine peels)
1 cup semi-sweet chocolate pieces (optional)

Preheat oven to 375 F. Blend together butter and sugars till light in color and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Blend in vanilla.
In another bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt then stir and add to the creamed butter. Stir in Nature's Hand Coconut Cashew Granola, candied orange peel and chocolate pieces (if using this).
Drop dough by teaspoonful into lightly greased baking sheet or parchment paper. I used Silpat so there was no need to spray oil over it. Bake cookies at 375 F for 10 to 12 minutes or until the edges are brown and the centers are soft. Take out baking pan from the oven and let cookies cool a few minutes on baking pan. Remove cookies and cool completely.