If I haven’t already convinced you to make an edible holiday gift this year, maybe this recipe today will seal the deal. It has to be one of the easiest recipes to throw together using less than 10 minutes of precious holiday time. Plus, it’s a recipe you can make well in advance without having to worry about it going bad any time soon. Just pop it in a jar and leave it on your shelf, tucked away until that special someone pops over for a visit. I think we’ve just entered Martha territory here!
So what is this pretty little treat, you ask? It’s simply pecans and walnuts that have been coated in granola. They are baked in the oven until crisp and crunchy making a delightful finger food or garnish for a hot bowl of oatmeal. I can’t take credit for this genius idea though, it comes from Deb over at Smitten Kitchen. When I saw her recipe a few weeks ago, I knew I had to try making a vegan version or my life as I know it wouldn’t be complete. (I’m not dramatic at all despite what my husband says.)
I figured my goal of having a crispy coating of granola would only be possible with a very sticky base – almost like a “glue” for the granola to adhere to. Brown rice syrup worked wonderfully for this task.
Simply pour a few tablespoons of syrup onto the nuts. The key here is to stir the nuts very thoroughly until every nook and cranny is covered with syrup; this ensures the granola has every chance in life to succeed!
After coating the nuts, stir in the granola mixture until combined. The granola will stick to the nuts, forming a homely-looking coating. Don’t worry though, it will caramelize and turn golden in the oven leaving big clumps to break apart with your hands!
Spread the nuts onto a parchment lined baking sheet into a single layer, like so:
After 20 some odd minutes of baking at 275F, you’ll be left with seriously addictive granola-coated nuts, delightfully crispy on the outside and tender in the middle. I don’t think I need to tell you that Eric and I polished off my first trial within 24 hours. Consider this your warning (or encouragement).
[Shown above: Eric conned into being my hand model while waiting patiently to dig in.]
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Granola Nut Clusters
Yield
3.5 cups
Prep time
Cook time
Total time
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen.
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw walnut halves
- 1/2 cup raw pecan halves
- 3 tbsp brown rice syrup*
- 6 tbsp gluten-free rolled oats
- 1/4 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 2-3 tbsp Sucanat sugar*
- Heaping 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
- Scant 1/4 tsp fine grain sea salt
- freshly grated nutmeg, to garnish
Directions
- Preheat oven to 275°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place walnuts and pecans into a large mixing bowl. Pour on brown rice syrup and stir very well until combined for about 60 seconds. Your goal is to have every nook and cranny covered in syrup. No pressure!
- In a small bowl, whisk together the oats, coconut, sugar, cinnamon, and salt. Pour it onto the nuts and mix very well until combined. Some of the oat mixture won’t adhere to the nuts, but that’s ok because it adds character.
- Spoon the entire mixture onto the baking sheet including any oats that didn’t stick. Spread into a single layer so they have room to get toasty. Garnish with fresh nutmeg. Bake for 10 minutes, rotate the pan, and bake for another 10-13 minutes (I baked for 23 mins total) and allow to cool on the pan for at least 10 minutes.
- Once cool, break apart clumps and store in glass jars or Tupperware containers. I expect these would stay good for at least a month.
Tip:
- Brown rice syrup works amazing in this recipe because it is so crazy sticky. For this reason, it can be difficult to replace it in a recipe that requires its binding properties. I haven’t tried anything else, but if you eat honey that might work or even coconut nectar since both are very sticky.
- You can substitute Sucanat with brown sugar or with Turbinado sugar. I don’t recommend subbing with coconut sugar. I tried this and found that it dried the mixture out due to its powdery nature.
You might be wondering if you can use other types of nuts. I recommend using craggy nuts like pecans and walnuts since smooth nuts (like almonds) don’t have the rough texture to “grip” the granola. You can certainly try any nuts you wish though! As always, I would love to hear your feedback in the comments if you try out this recipe or your own modified version.
Hi there, has anyone tried adding dried fruit like cranberries or raisins to this recipe?
Thankyou so much for this post! These were so fun to make and really do taste as good as they look, especially in jars! totally gift-worthy. Will have to be brave and give a jar to family (they are skeptical of anything I eat). I used a mixture of honey and golden syrup, fab! My clusters were less nuggety looking than yours but I don’t mind. I love this type of vegan baking, you just can’t go wrong! Have a merry christmas Angela, I know I will with another batch of these… and some more cute jars!
These are freaking delicious! I made 2 batches to give to the guys I work with and I had plenty leftover to taste test :-) I used coconut nectar in place of the brown rice syrup and I only used a little tiny amount over 4 Tbs (for 2 batches) of brown sugar in place of sucanat. These were still so good and the diabetic guy I work with loved them. I also delivered them in mason jars with homemade lemon flavored toothpicks. It was a big hit and I’m thinking of giving the leftovers to one of my close friends. I absolutely know her kids would love them! Thanks for an awesome vegan recipe!
Thanks so much for this amazing idea! I made a triple batch for all of my work colleagues this Christmas! It is so easy and so delicious! Can’t wait to give them out in the little jars! I ran out of pecans halfway through and so used almonds as well – still worked beautifully!
I made this yesterday subbing molasses (I figured if anything would be sticky enough, molasses would be) for the brown rice syrup and they tasted great! I’m not sure how the taste/shelf time with molasses compares to the original, but the results were yummy!
Just made a batch and have another in the oven… delicious! Thanks so much for the recipe!!
These are insanely addictive! I made a double batch yesterday – half to gift, and half to keep for my family and I. Haven’t been able to stop munching since!
The Granola lasted about a half hour in our house. Made several batches and gave as gifts this Christmas. Big hit!! Thanks for this blog, it is helping to my husband and I survive our transition to veganism.
I substituted agave nectar for the brown rice syrup and it’s actually delicious and binds well still. I’ve made similar recipes that call for maple syrup and that works too.
I made these with brown sugar and honey (for a non-vegan option) and they came out delicious!
This is THE most AWESOME vegan snack I have found yet. (To be totally fair I have only been eating plant based for a week and a half – but still)
Here is my version of your version. Lovin your blog!!!!
http://mommawords.com/2013/01/11/herbivore-crack-aka-granola-nut-clusters/
This is DELICIOUS!! Anyone would be happy to get this for a gift. This is a great web-site so glad I ran across it. Thanks for all the wonderful recipes!
I love love love love these granola nut clusters. I made them for Christmas gifts, and now I make them for myself! I use any mix of nuts that equals to 1 1/2 cups. These are dangerous…. once I start eating them it is so hard to stop!
Just made these, with a mix of peanuts, almonds, cashews and a few leftover walnuts, and using quick-cooking oats (because that was what I had around). The clusters came out a bit smaller, but despite the smooth nuts and inferior oats all still worked marvellously.
They are so good! Dangerous. I’ll have to give them away before I eat them all.
These were really good, but I decided to make a few changes, & I personally like it better.
I use 2 c. pecans broken into large pcs. Add 4 Tbsp. pure maple syrup (in a large bowl). Mix really well, about a min. In a med. bowl – 1c. + 2 Tbsp. oatmeal, 3/4 c. coconut, 1/2 c. ( or a little less) sucanat, scant 1/2 tsp. salt & 1 tsp. cinn. Stir and add to nuts & syrup. Stir again for about a min. Spread on parchment lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle with a little more cinn. Bake for 14 min. at 275*. Turn without stirring and bake 14 more min. Let cool and then break into pcs.
I have to make this at least once a week if not more often.
These are amazing! First ‘granola’ recipe I’ve made where the clumps actually stick together once out of the oven :). I’m trying to gain weight at the moment (and am not much of a cake/cookie person), so the fact they’re so moreish is perfect for me!
These have got to be the best nut treats I have ever tasted! I just made a batch and needless to say it’s half gone…I had to pry myself away from the gooey scrumptiousness. I see my husband getting up every five minutes making his way to the kitchen for “one last bite.” Will definitely be using these for this year’s holidays!
These are so great! I made 2 batches in the last 12 hours… I woke up at 3am and decided to make more as gifts. Thanks!
Ohhhhhhhh Thanks for the reminder of your Granola Nut Clusters! I made them last year–can’t wait to get home from work and make these TONIGHT. Yummmmy. You’re the best. You literally feed me and my family every day. :)
Glad you enjoyed them Melanie! I had forgotten about them too. ;)
I’ve already been planning to make several batches as Christmas gifts again this year, they were such a hit last year. This recipe is a lifetime keeper.