I think Mother Nature was reading my blog post yesterday and decided to play a trick on me.
I woke up to a fresh blanket of snow this morning. It is gorgeous out there right now! No more grass for this town.
Eric has been asking me to make homemade granola for a few weeks now, and I finally got around to it. I always forget how much I love making granola.
The smell of the fresh granola coming out of the oven is intoxicating, as I sneak bites knowing full well that I am going to burn my tongue, but it tastes too good to wait for it to cool.
And that first bowl of granola with almond milk poured over top…well nothing beats it.
I’ve made Power House Glonola before, but I wanted to improve upon the recipe and see what I could come up with. I doubt I will ever make the same recipe twice!
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My Favourite Granola (to date!)
This granola is crisp, flavourful, and addicting. Have fun mixing up the nuts and seeds. Enjoy it with your favourite milk poured over top for a delicious breakfast. Next time, I might try adding an extra 1 tablespoon of brown rice syrup to help it clump up a bit more as this granola was not as clumpy as I wanted it to be. It will keep for about 1 month refrigerated in an air-tight container.
Yield: ~6 cups
Ingredients:
Dry:
- 2.5 cups rolled oats (regular not instant)
- 1 cup raw almonds, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup raw walnuts, roughly chopped
- 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/2 cup raw sesame seeds
- 2 tbsp ground flax
- 2 tbsp sweetened coconut flakes
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- Pinch of ground nutmeg
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
Wet: (See note below)
- 3-4 tbsp brown rice syrup (I used 3 tbsp, but next time I will use 4 tbsp so it clumps more)
- 1 tbsp agave nectar
- 1 tbsp coconut oil
- 2 tbsp applesauce, unsweetened
- 2 tbsp peanut butter
- 1/3 cup packed brown sugar
Add-ins:
- 1/3 cup dried cranberries
- 1/3 cup raisins
- handful pepita seeds
Directions: preheat oven to 300F. In a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the wet ingredients. Stir well. Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
In a very large mixing bowl, Mix together the dry ingredients.
Add the wet mixture (while still warm!) over top the dry mixture and stir well. It will be very thick and hard to stir, but keep at it until everything is thoroughly combined.
Spread onto a pan lined with parchment paper or a non-stick mat and bake in the oven for 45 minutes at 300F. Remove the pan from the oven every 15 minutes and give the granola a good stir to ensure even baking.
Allow to cool for 20-25 minutes on the pan before serving. The granola will stiffen up as it cools. Makes about 6 cups and will keep for 1 month in the fridge in an air-tight container.
Note: You can probably substitute the brown rice syrup and agave nectar for other liquid sweeteners, although please note that the flavour and crispness will change.
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The first thing you do is gather your wet ingredients…
I always admire my brown sugar when it comes out of the measuring cup like that!
Stir well in a saucepan.
Heat over medium.
Bring to a boil and then simmer on low for 7-10 minutes, stirring frequently.
While the wet mixture is simmering, grab your dry ingredients.
For the nuts and seeds, I used 1/2 cup sunflower seeds, 1/2 cup sesame seeds, 1/2 cup walnuts, and 1 cup of almonds. All raw. I roughly chopped the walnuts and almonds, but you still want mostly large pieces.
Oats, sweetened coconut flakes, kosher salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and ground flax.
Mix all of the dry ingredients together…
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix well. It will be very thick and sticky, but keep at it until it is thoroughly mixed. You can do this!
Now we’re talking!
Grab a spoon and shove into mouth.
That is some good granola.
Spread onto a baking sheet…
Bake for 45 minutes at 300F, stirring every 10-15 minutes to ensure even baking.
Voila!
As the granola cools it will firm up. The result is a crisp granola, but the clumps did not hold together. Next time, I will add another tablespoon of brown rice syrup in hopes of increasing the clump factor!
Allow to cool for about 30 minutes.
Now stir in your dried fruit. I added 1/3 cup raisins and 1/3 cup dried cranberries. I also decided to toss in some pepita seeds for colour.
Lovely.
Just lovely.
Grab a 2 litre bell jar.
That’ll do.
It fits perfectly!
This granola makes a wonderful gift too. Valentine’s Day, perhaps? Maybe there are some men reading whose girlfriends/wives would like some…
That would be so romantic, wouldn’t it?
I’m here for you girls.
Now pour yourself a bowl and enjoy with some of your favourite milk. I love it with Vanilla Almond Milk and a tablespoon of hemp seeds tossed in for some protein.
It is just the perfect winter breakfast.
angela, holy yums.
I’m eating homemade olive oil granola as we speak! (From that NYT recipe, although I reduced the sugar it was still extremely sweet)
This granola looks delicious, I’ll try making it this weekend! I love toasted, crunchy and not overly sweet granola!
I’ve never made my own granola! TOTALLY going to try this. Thanks so much for the recipe!
Today I made sundried tomato pesto: http://www.leiasdelights.com/2011/01/sun-dried-tomato-pesto.html :)
yum yum yum! That looks so good!
that looks so good.. and colouful! i’ve never made granola… only tried it in healthy bars once actually. can’t wait to try it! and its healthy too! :D
One day, one day Angela I will bake as much as you do. My dream! If only I had more hours in the day. You inspire me
I love making my own granola! I’ll definitely make this recipe this week, with maple syrup/honey mix instead of brown syrup. I hope it will clump :D
I’ve made homemade granola a few times, but yours looks like it would be even better! Also, I love how it makes six cups. The other recipes that I’ve made only make like 2 cups – they disappeared waaaaaaaay to quickly! :)
I’ve made homemade granola a few times, but yours looks like it would be even better! Also, I love how it makes six cups. The other recipes that I’ve made only make like 2 cups – they disappeared waaaaaaaay to quickly! :)
I’ve never made homemade granola. You have inspired me to do so. Looks tasty; wish I could reach through the screen!
That looks amazing and way better than store bought.
homemade granola is the BEST! I love doing homemade granola bars, too! Yum!
i love making granola, too. In fact, I plan on making small jars for favors at my wedding! Wheee!
I’ve never seen a technique of bringing the liquid elements to a simmer. I bet that really helps blend the favors. Yum!
I love all the colors in this granola!
Beautiful! I love using glass jars to pretty-up just about anything! Everything seems more special in them :) I also do agree with the perfect brown sugar – I never want to mix it because it’s so beautifully molded!
oh my gosh angela, that looks amazing! i was literally just sitting here about to go grab a snack when i saw this post…now i am craving granola! definitely making this soon :)
london has also been snowy recently – only it’s much less beautiful than yours!
Oh my goodness, that looks SOOO good. I bet it tastes better than the “bought” stuff!!! Love the photos as always too!! Have a great day, enjoy the granola!!
I just made this (well, it’s baking now) and I had a really hard time incorporating the liquid into the dry. I made a few subs (canola instead of coconut oil and since I didn’t have any applesauce, I made up for it by using 2 tbsp of agave and 3 tbsp of PB), maybe that’s why? Or maybe I’m just a lazy stirrer! The raw granola still tasted delicious, though!
Gorgeous snow pics! And the granola looks amazing, beautiful pictures! Thanks!
Wow your granola looks fabulous!! You always package so pretty! Do you have the nutritional stats on the granola?
Thank you!
Thanks, Angela! I have been on the hunt for a granola recipe and this one looks fantastic and easy to make…yum!
I love brown sugar for exactly that reason! ;)
This looks absolutely heavenly! Thank you for sharing :)
YUM! I love making and eating granola. This recipe sounds awesome and full of protein and other good stuff. Thanks for sharing this recipe. I’ll be making it this weekend!!
made this today – SO GOOD! used 4 Tbsp brown rice syrup and it was clumpy enough for me. thank you! can’t wait to share this with my friends on our trip to mammoth next weekend!
I made the granola this afternoon. I added the extra tablespoon of brown rice syrup. I also cooked it five minutes later and I had actually started stirring it more times then the recipe called for because I got confused and didn’t realize it said every 10-15 minutes.
It turned out GREAT. My 14 and 10 year old boys kept coming back for more. Granted they picked through the cranberries and raisins but still………………..
OH, and I didn’t put the dry ingredients in a bowl. I put them in a 9×13 inch pyrex dish and then poured the wet ingredients on top of it. I think it probably made it easier to stir and mix to make sure everything was coated well.
so glad you enjoyed it!
Wow! I just made granola for the first time using your recipe as a template…amazing :) I will never buy granola from the store again!!
this is SO good! it’s baking right now, but i must have eaten a quarter cup before it got there. ;)
changes i made:
five tablespoons of honey instead of brs/agave
peanut oil instead of coconut
a half cup each of walnuts, pecans, and hazelnuts
no seeds
pumpkin instead of applesauce
more cinnamon and nutmeg, as well as some cloves and ginger
i’ll add dried cranberries and sunflower/chia seeds separately when it gets out.
it’s smelling up the house now. :D thank you!!!
Hey Angela, just curious, why do you suggest keeping the granola refrigerated? Thanks!
I’m really not sure why I said that to be honest! haha. I usually don’t refrigerate my granola…strange!
Haha that’s too funny :) Thanks for the response!
I simply love your granola recipes. I’ve done it multiple times along with several variations but not this particular one which I’m dying to try. This morning I made one with only using Agave nectar for the wet ingredient; I’ve used the maple syrup in the past and found that both actually work the same. However, this time around I used non-stick sprayed foil paper instead of the wax paper for cooking and I found that the granola burns more easily in addition to not being crunchy all the way through. Should I just stick to the wax paper?
Also I been very curious to know where do you find your mason jars for storage
I usually get the jars from Canadian Tire and Wal-Mart :)
I use parchment paper for my baking and it tends to work fine. If wax paper works for you, I say stick with that.
WOW…I would never have thought of Wal-Mart…I was thinking more of antique shops or vintage trinket shops. But this may be even better and more economical…Great! Thanks for the advice.
I’ve made a lot of granola, but I always pull up this recipe now and make the same adjustments:
I swap the applesauce for 1/2 mushy banana. I swap the coconut oil for olive oil. I swap the brown rice syrup for 2 TB agave and 2 TB maple syrup. I only added almonds and raisins to the dry oats, and 1/2 tsp ginger.
Sometimes I munch on it plain. Sometimes I mix it with 1/2 C yogurt and a few blueberries for breakfast.
This IS SO YUMMY!!
So glad you love it! Great subs.
Angela,
I made your granola today and followed the instructions exactly and my granola came out burnt around the edges and also burnt in some places on the bottom of the granola? Did that ever happen to you?
i stirred every 10-15 minutes as suggested, do you think i should cut my cooking time down from 45 minutes next time?
Hey Alison, I’m sorry your granola burned! I find it can quickly go from good to bad when it comes to granola. Do you have an oven themometre? Sometimes if it’s off it can cause this result. I would suggest baking it at a lower temp and reduce the time. I made a batch of granola recently and I baked it at 275-300F and had no issues of it burning quickly. Best of luck!
i will try 275 degrees the next time, thanks for the info!
where do you put your shelf in your oven? on the top or middle? maybe that affected mine as well?
thanks again!
Hi Angela,
Love this recipe and have made it a few times and given it as gifts. For Christmas this year, I’d love to send/mail some to my family. Since you suggest keeping the granola cold in the fridge for up to one month, is there anything specific you would recommend about shipping it? Shipping food always make me a little nervous, and I definitely want my family to enjoy the yumminess of your recipe. Any suggestions or comments would be most appreciated!
Thanks very much!
What could you use in place of brown sugar? Sugar free household over here.
I absolutely love your recipes, thank you so much! I have been trying to find a homemade granola recipe but I want it to be plain (no nuts, fruit, etc) to be used in parfaits. Would your granola recipe work if I just omitted the seeds/almonds/etc. or would I need to adjust the amount of other ingredients such as the agave, peanut butter, apple sauce, etc? I hope that makes sense to you. :)
This is the BEST granola I have ever tasted, so much better than store bought brands. You make being vegan/plant-based so much more joyful. I replaced the brown rice syrup and the agave (personal reasons) with organic maple syrup and it turned out the perfect texture.
I left out the cinnamon and nutmeg and added a heaping spoonful of cocoa to the wet ingredients. OMG good and no less healthy. The kids will think I’ve lost my mind when they get to eat it for breakfast!
Hi love, Mandi from Downunder (Australia -that is…) I love your recipes amd blog!!!! I’m a very new vegan and have diabetes 2 so I’m just interested, do you have a carb count for a serve of your granola??? I loooove crunchy sweet breakfast cereals but never eat them due to high carb load….so I’d love to make your granola and try it…I’ve just finished eating my first breakfast parfait and love it!!!’ I’m also happy to say I had a pleasant small rise in y blood sugar after a decent size serve so I’m thrilled…thanks for your generosity of spirit and creative genius! Love from Oz – PS taking my iPad to show my vegan friends your blog!!!
This granola is a GAME CHANGER! Just pulled it out of the oven… smells like Christmas! B-b-b-bring it! Cheers Angela – you kick some serious goals!
This granola sounds wonderful…..will have to try it, but would rather make it into bars….can you do this ,with this recipe and make it the same way ?Could someone let me know if they have tried this recipe for granola bars too ?
Just found your blog Angela and right away I loved it…..could be also because my daughter is named Angela also and we live in the south…..but I have a dear friend who lives in Canada also :) Will let her know about your blog too…..
BTW ANGELA, WHERE DO I SIGN UP FOR YOUR BLOG ? I DO NOT SEE A PLACE HERE…..
Hello! Just made this recipe this afternoon and I am so happy! Granola is so fun to make because you can throw anything you want into there… Instead of sesame seeds, I put hemp hearts and I also put dry blueberries in it as well! Thanks so much so for the amazing recipe Angela! Your blog never lets me down! :)
Just put this in the oven and can’t wait to try it! I did take a little taste before putting it in and awesome tasting, I am sure it is gonna taste even better cooked. First time making granola. I buy it for hubby and it is expensive so I thought I would give tis a try.
hi, are there any substitutes for the next ingredients, where I live is imposible to find them.
brown rice syrup
applesauce
peanut butter
thank you can’t wait to make it looks delicious!!
Hi Angela,
I have been a big fan of yours for years. I make many of your blog & Instagram recipes on a regular basis but I just made the granola recipe from your cookbook!
OMG it is to die for and will likely change my life! Even my husband who is a skeptic of homemade versions of items like this is eating it in fistfuls! Thanks so much!
Keep up all your amazing work and good luck with the bambino.
:)
Lyndsey
Thanks Lyndsey, so glad you guys are enjoying the recipes.
Angela – I made a quadruple batch of this as gifts for my baby shower, like you did! I ended up with about 34 cups of granola. I simplified the nuts and fruit, using just almonds, cranberries, and raisins (plus the coconut and flaxseed in the recipe). Added a little more brown rice syrup like you suggested and got plenty of great clumps. Thanks for a great recipe and a great gift idea!
Hi Angela,
I don’t have brown sugar on hand. Could I substitute coconut sugar? Kind of looks the same! Not sure if it will work…
I made this today and although I changed it up a bit with what I had available, it was still very delicious!! I used coconut nectar instead of rice syrup and some Yacon syrup and it turned out to be fantastic… The beet smoothies are a fabulous hit too!! Never thought I’d like them but loving them every day !!! Thanks love your website
Loved this! We couldn’t stop eating it. And we loved the larger clumps. Yummy!!!!