Granola sounds healthy and tastes good, but most commercial varieties are loaded with sugars, fats, and additives. This is the healthiest and easiest homemade granola recipe. It only takes a few minutes to mix up and you probably have most of the ingredients on hand.
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Granola is one of my favorite breakfast meals. I have been eating lots of granola all my life. Especially, during my study years, I practically lived on granola!! And, a yogurt parfait with granola is a healthy meal in less than 3 minutes. Always a winner!
And yet, did you know that most store-bought granola is loaded with a lot of sugar and oil? I didn't know that until I saw a documentary about all the added sugar and oil. In fact, that's when I started to make my own granola at home. Kinda feels good to know you are in control of what you put in your body and give your family. Isn't it?
Why make homemade granola
- The best thing about this granola is that it is very versatile! You can add your favorite ingredients or omit those you don't like.
- And most of the ingredients in this recipe are easy to find or simple pantry staples.
- I love to use a combination of 3 nuts, 3 seeds, and 3 dry fruits to enhance the flavors and texture of this granola.
- The recipe comes together in no time at all. It takes 5 minutes to combine the ingredients and 25 minutes to bake the granola.
- I love granola parfait with yogurt and fruits but just milk works just as well.
- And this granola can be stored in a jar for 10 to 15 days at room temperature.
Ingredients and substitutes
- Oats - Always use rolled oats and not the crushed variety. Those do well when cooking. And yet, the quick-cooking or crushed variety soaks up the liquid and becomes messy.
- Nuts - I love to use three nuts. Today I am using almonds, cashews, and pecans. But, hazelnuts, macadamias, walnuts, and pistachios are all an option.
- Seeds - I have used sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and flaxseeds.
- Dry fruits - I have used three fruits dried cranberries, currents, and raisins. But, you can also use other dry cherries, blueberries, apricots, and figs,
- Special ingredients - Flaxseeds and chia seeds are excellent fiber, protein, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals sources.
- Oil - I used flavorless cooking oil or coconut oil but you can also use other types of oils. You can also use extra virgin olive oil if you like the flavor.
- Sweetener - Today, I am using natural sweeteners like honey, but brown sugar or date syrup will also do for sweetness.
- Optional ingredients - I love to use coconut oil and coconut flakes to give it a nice twist. You can also add spices like cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla extract, salt. Of course, chocolate chips are an option too.
Best granola recipe
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/ 375°F/ Gas Mark 5. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper for easy cleanup.
- Oil - In a large mixing bowl, combine the rolled oat and add the cooking oil. Combine well so each and every grain is coated with oil.
Pro tip - The oil will give the granola a nice golden color and adds crispness. - Honey - Add the honey and combine well. Then, add the nuts and seeds too. Combine well.
Pro tip - The honey will give the granola some nice clusters while also adding sweetness.
- Bake - Pour the granola onto a parchment-lined sheet pan and spread evenly. Bake on the middle rack for 20 to 25 minutes stirring once or twice in between.
- Fruit - Add the dry fruit to the hot granola as soon as it is out of the oven. Toss it well together.
Pro tip - The hot granola softens the fruit and makes it taste wonderful and easier to eat. - Cool - Make sure to cool the granola completely before you store it in an airtight container. I like to use these glass containers.
How to make a yogurt parfait
- In a glass, add 2 tablespoon of Greek yogurt.
- Top with 2 tablespoon of granola.
- Followed by chopped fruits, such as strawberries and blueberries.
- Then, top with more yogurt, granola, and fruits.
- You can also add some natural sweeteners like honey or silane.
Granola variations
- Date and walnut granola - use date syrup instead of honey and walnuts for the nuts.
- Almond cranberry granola - Use more almonds for nuts and a variety of dried cranberries.
- Almond Blueberry granola - use lots of almonds ( i like a combination of blanched and skin-on) along with dried blueberries and koji berries for the fruit.
- Toasted coconut granola - Use coconut oil instead of cooking oil. Add coconut flakes with the nuts. You can even use ¼ cup of coconut milk with the sweetener to enhance flavor.
- Spice granola - Use spices like cinnamon, nutmeg or pumpkin spice to the oats.
- Gingerbread granola - perfect in winter. Use molasses instead of honey for sweetness along with gingerbread spice for flavor.
- Chai spice granola - Chai spice mix has a wonderful aroma that can be used instead of other spices in the oats.
- Banana granola - if you like bananas a good sprinkle of banana chips added at the end gives wonderful texture and crunch
- Pumpkin spice granola - perfect in winter! Use pumpkin spice in the oats and add ¼ cup pumpkin puree to the sweetener.
- Maple Granola - Maple syrup can be a great substitute for any granola when affordable. A wonderful combination is maple walnut granola or maple pecan granola.
- Peanut butter granola - Add ¼ cup peanut butter or almond butter to the oats along with the honey. This makes a wonderful clustered granola.
- Cinnamon apple granola - A winter classic. Add a generous sprinkle of ground cinnamon and use apple sauce instead of honey. Toss with dried apple chips when done.
- Chocolate chip granola - Obviously add a generous amount of chocolate chips to the baked granola.
Ideally, granola has a long shelf life of about 4 to 6 months. However, it must be stored in an airtight container. Having said that, nuts in granola can go rancid after a while. Therefore, I always recommend using my granola recipes in about a month.
Well, the truth is it all depends on the ingredients you use. If you use granola loaded with sugar then it's probably not as healthy as it can be. Having said that, granola contains nuts, dried fruits, and oats which on its own is a great diet, especially when combined with fresh fruits and yogurt.
Don't stir too much! Let the honey/syrup hold on to some of the clumps. During baking toss no more than once. Once baked don't stir leave it to cool completely. When cooled, stir leaving the clusters as large as you want.
Once the granola is baked add 2 cups of your favorite cereal to the cooled granola. Try
2 cups of cornflakes to make cornflake granola.
2 cups of rice crispies to make rice puff granola,
or 2 cups of cinnamon crunch to make cinnamon crunch granola.
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Printable Recipe
Best Homemade Granola
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Conversions Used
1 lb = 453 grams, 1 cup = 240 ml, 1 stick = 113g, 1 tbsp= 15 ml, 1 tsp= 5 ml,
Ingredients
Dry ingredients
- 4 cups (324 g) Rolled oats
- ¼ cup (60 ml) Cooking oil
- ¼ cup (60 ml) Honey
- ½ cups (75 g) Almonds
- ½ cup (65 g) Cashews
- ½ cup (50 g) Pecans
- 2 tablespoon Sesame seeds
- 2 tablespoon Flaxseeds
- ½ cup (50 g) Dry cranberries
- ½ cup (70 g) Dry currants
- ½ cup (70 g) Raisins
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 190°C/ 375°F/ Gas Mark 5. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper for easy cleanup.
- Oil - In a large mixing bowl, combine the rolled oat and add the cooking oil. Combine well so each and every grain is coated with oil. Pro tip - The oil will give the granola a nice golden color and adds crispness.4 cups Rolled oats, ¼ cup Cooking oil
- Honey - Add the honey and combine well. Then, add the nuts and seeds too. combine well. Pro tip - The honey will give the granola some nice clusters while also adding sweetness.¼ cup Honey, ½ cups Almonds, ½ cup Cashews, ½ cup Pecans, 2 tablespoon Sesame seeds, 2 tablespoon Flaxseeds
- Fruit - Add the dry fruit to the hot granola as soon as it is out of the oven. Toss it well together. Pro tip - The hot granola softens the fruit and makes it taste wonderful and easier to eat.½ cup Dry cranberries, ½ cup Dry currants, ½ cup Raisins
- Cool - Make sure to cool the granola completely before you store it in an airtight container. I like to use these glass containers.
Recipe Notes & Tips
- Gluten-free granola – to make gluten-free granola use gluten-free oats
- Nut-free granola – to make it a nut-free granola use seeds such as pepita and sunflower instead of nuts
- Vegan granola – to make a vegan granola use maple syrup instead of honey, and coconut oil instead of canola oil
- Granola is delicious on its own, with milk or with yogurt for breakfast or snacks.
- Try yogurt granola parfait with yogurt and fresh fruits as we did in this granola parfait or breakfast parfait
Nutrition Information
The nutrition information and metric conversion are calculated automatically. I cannot guarantee its accuracy. If this data is important to you please verify with your trusted nutrition calculator. Thank you
Laura
It certainly looks like something I would enjoy having a few times a week in the morning. Delicious, great looking and, I am sure, as delicious as granola can be.
Veena Azmanov
Thanks, Laura. Yes, it is really so easy to make Granola
Alison
This is a fantastic granola recipe. The dried fruit and nuts add some sweetness and crunch.
Veena Azmanov
They sure do, Alison. A nice cruch with yogurt parfait