Granola Recipes
Granola is a base of oats, sweetened with brown sugar, honey, or maple syrup, seasoned with spices, and baked to a crisp texture.
A variety of dried fruits and nuts are added for a delicious breakfast cereal and snack.
Granola is a healthy breakfast meal in a bowl of milk, delicious on top of yogurt, cottage cheese, or a bowl of fresh fruit, and also a wonderful snack for any time of the day.
Here are several variations for you to try.
Coconut Pecan Granola
Ingredients:
8 cups old fashioned oats
1/2-1 cup coconut
1/4 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup oil or butter
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup honey
1 tsp vanilla
1 tsp cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat oven to 200F. Mix first three ingredients together in a large bowl. Then mix the remaining ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Pour the hot liquid over the dry ingredients and toss to cover. Pour onto cookie sheets or roasting pan and bake for 2 hours, stirring often, until crunchy.
Coconut Almond and Cashew Granola
Ingredients
4 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashews
1 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 Tbs maple syrup
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp salt
1 cup raisins
Directions:
Preheat oven to 250F. Mix oats, almonds, cashews, coconut, and brown sugar in a large bowl. Mix maple syrup, oil, and salt together then mix into oat/nuts. Pour onto cookie sheets or roasting pan. Bake 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring often. Let cool and add raisins.
Cranberry Granola
Ingredients:
4 cups rolled oats
1 1/2 cups wheat germ
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup chopped almonds
1 cup dried cranberries
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 1/4 cups honey
1 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
Directions:
Preheat oven to 250F. Mix together oats, wheat germ, and nuts in a large bowl. In a separate bowl combine oil, honey, vanilla and cinnamon. Pour over oat/nut mixture. Spread onto cookie sheets or roasting pan and bake for 1 hr 15 min, stirring often. When cool add cranberries.
Mom's Favorite Granola
Ingredients:
4 cups old fashioned rolled oats
3/4 cups wheat germ
3/4 cups oat bran
1/2 cup sunflower seeds
1/2 cup almonds, chopped
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1 tsp salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup coconut oil
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp vanilla or almond extract
1/4 cup shredded coconut
1 cup raisins or sweet dried cranberries
Directions
Preheat oven to 250F
Mix oats, wheat germ, oat bran, seeds, and nuts in a large bowl. In a large saucepan mix salt, brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, oil, cinnamon, and vanilla if using raisins or almond extract if using cranberries. Bring to a boil. Pour over the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
Bake, stirring often, until golden brown, about 1 hour. Cool to room temperature and then add coconut and raisins or cranberries.
Tips and Tricks:
Oats: You don't need anything fancy, like steel cut Irish oatmeal. Just use old-fashioned oats. It will bake up nice and crispy and light. Quick oats will result in powdery, starchy clusters.
Ingredients: Customize your recipe to your own taste by adding or substituting different nuts and dried fruits or even candy bits for those called for in the recipe. Create blends that go well together - for example, cashews, pineapple and coconut, or peanuts and m&m's, or almonds and craisins. Use orange, almond, blueberry or other extracts and flavorings in place of vanilla. Substitute applesauce for oil or brown sugar, agave for honey, coconut or grapeseed oil for vegetable oil for a more healthful blend.
Clusters: If you like your granola to stick together in little clusters, add a dash of water then squeeze the cereal with your hands to form small clumps before baking.
Sweetners: Mix brown sugar with the dry ingredients, then use a liquid sweetener such as maple syrup, honey, or molasses. If you eat your granola as a breakfast cereal with milk you want it a little sweeter than if you just like to snack out of hand.
Bake: To crisp up your granola and allow it to brown evenly, spread out on a pan and bake at a low temperature (200F-275F). Stir at least every 15 minutes while in the oven. Allow to cool before storing.
Crockpot: To avoid burning in the oven you can put your granola in a crockpot on low, and stir frequently until nicely toasted - usually about 3 - 5 hours depending on your crockpot.
Fruit and nuts: Add half way through baking. Drier ingredients will last longer on the shelf and soak up more milk when you eat it for breakfast. If you like raisins or cranberries soft, add after all other ingredients have cooled.
Storage: Always store granola in an air and moisture proof container. Glass with a good seal, such as a mason jar, is the best. But you can also use Snapware or other thick plastic. Granola will last for two weeks on the counter, and even longer if you store it in the fridge or freezer.