How good is granola? So good. And how easy is it to make? So easy… Why bother buying simply okay granola from the store and pretending it’s delicious when you can make your own for cheaper. An even greater appeal to making granola than the economy is the fact that you control the ingredients. You like it sweet – make it sweet. You like cashews and cranberries? Put them in. Make a lot, make a little… Well, go ahead and make a lot because it’s so good and it keeps so well. It’s great for breakfast when mixed with yogurt (make yogurt at home too!) or as a snack any time of the day.
Granola with yogurt
This recipe is adapted from Alton Brown. It’s a good start though a little too sweet for me. See my notes for how I customize.
3 cups rolled oats (Rolled oats are the basic oatmeal oats. Steel-cut oats do NOT work well in granola.)
1-2 cups nuts (I always put sliced almonds in combination with walnuts, hazelnut or pecan pieces. Saltier nuts like peanuts and cashews would certainly work too. I would stay away from whole almonds.)
1/4 cup + 2tbsps maple syrup (This is the only pricey ingredient. But one jar is good for about five batches of granola.)
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup + 2tbsps brown sugar (I think this is waaay too much. Last time I made granola, I only put in 2 teaspoons brown sugar. That’s right teaspoons. The coconut and drizzling with honey provide enough sweetness.)
3/4 cup shredded coconut (You can definitely leave the coconut out but I’ve found that even a little bit is a great addition to granola).
Anything else you can think of – the purpose is to customize the granola. For example, I love putting some broken-up banana chips in my granola.
Mix the maple syrup together with the vegetable oil and a dash of salt. Mix everything else together in a bowl then add the oil and syrup. Mix until well incorporated. Spread on a baking pan (I put wax paper on the pan for easy cleanup). At this point, I usually drizzle with a good amount of honey. Bake at 250 F for about an hour and definitely mix everything up every 15 minutes so that all the oats get browned.
Granola is extra delicious straight out of the oven. Add dried fruit if desired and store in an airtight jar.
Granola close up
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