Easy Homemade Granola: Yes! Chewy, Tasty and Healthy Too
Guest Post by Shana at the Sweetly Salty blog. Republished with permission.
Homemade granola, chunky, chewy and so very easy to make ?. I was at Whole Foods this weekend shopping for groceries for the week. One of the things I was looking for was granola.
As you can probably imagine, Whole Foods has several brands and varieties of granola. There’s vegan, non-vegan, with lots of nuts, only almonds, cranberries, honey, maple, the list goes on and on.
A lot of them looked good but what did not look good to me was the price, $7.99…nah, I’m good.
Truthfully some of that is because it’s Whole Foods but also because it’s “artisanal” or whatever. Which is fine but reading the ingredients I was said, “Shana, you can make this yourself with stuff you already at home.” Boom!
One of the great things about homemade granola is that the oats are a blank canvas for whatever you want to add. There are so many options when it comes to healthy mix-ins.
You can add nuts, seeds, dried fruit, and even your favorite dark chocolate ? . For example, I used dried Bing cherries, mulberries, pecans, and unsweetened coconut flakes. Next time, I definitely want to incorporate dried blueberries.
Granola is not only good for breakfast but also makes a healthy snack and even dessert. You can take a small bowl of granola, pour a bit of almond milk over it and warm it briefly in the microwave and eat it like that.
Add granola to your favorite frozen dessert. It goes well with frozen yogurt, ice cream or non-dairy ice cream. Usually, I just grab a chunk and bite into it! ?
Homemade granola hot from the oven and customized to your liking. You never have to buy store bought again ??. Enjoy!
Easy steps for a Homemade Granola
Chewy, chunky, healthy and easy to make. Once you make your own granola you won’t want store bought again!
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 20 mins
- Total Time: 35 mins
- Course: Breakfast, Snack
- Cuisine: American
- Servings: 5 cups
Ingredients
- 2 cups Old fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup Dried fruit
- 1/4 cup Unsweetened coconut flakes
- 1/4 cup Chopped nuts
- 2 tbsp Turbinado sugar
- 1/4 cup Dark chocolate
- 1/4 cup Melted coconut oil
- 2 tbsp Honey
- 2 tbsp Maple syrup
- 1/4 tsp Cinnamon
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
- 1/4 tsp Sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 350 F. Pour the oats into a mixing bowl and add the nuts, cinnamon, sugar, and salt. Mix everything together and then add the coconut oil, honey, maple syrup, vanilla and mix again. Make sure all the oats are coated in the oil, honey, and syrup.
- Grab a sheet pan and cover the surface with parchment paper. Pour your granola mix onto the sheet pan and spread it out evenly with a silicone spoon or spatula which has been lightly coated in coconut oil.
- Place the granola in the oven and let it bake for 18-20 minutes.
- After removing the granola from the oven immediately add the dried fruit as well as the chocolate. Press them into the granola using your spoon or spatula and allow it to cool for an hour.
- After it cools completely break apart your granola and store it in an airtight container.
For vegan granola replace honey with all maple syrup and make sure the chocolate has vegan printed on the label.
This recipe yields approximately 5 cups of chunky granola not 5 cups of packed granola. If you don’t want your homemade granola chunky you can rake it apart with a fork after adding the dried fruit and the pieces will be much smaller.
About the Author: Shana, a native of Brooklyn and life long lover of all things food. Cooking, baking, creating new recipes, and sharing a meal with friends and family are among her favorite things to do. Find ideas for healthy snacks, holiday dishes, vegan meals, decadent desserts and more on her blog: Sweetly Salted. Connect with her on Instagram
