Homemade Granola Recipe

Sofia Losure

Visiting the granola aisle at your local supermarket can be a stimulating experience, as there are generally dozens of brands to choose from at a wide variety of prices and with many different add-ins. At its core, however, granola is oats, a fat, and a sweetener combined, baked, and then mixed with a variety of add-ins. Cheaper granolas are often higher in fat and sugar content and have longer ingredient lists. As you move up in price, fat and sugar content tends to decrease and ingredient lists shorten. Deciding where on this spectrum to purchase from can be difficult—especially for college students on a budget.

When attempting to make a granola purchase decision, it is vital to consider the fact that granola is ridiculously easy to make—and by making it at home, the flavor and nutrient customizations are limitless. Once you’ve made the base (oats + fat + sweetener), which is itself subject to many substitutes, you can go crazy designing the granola of your dreams.

Additionally, if you just want a bare bones, clean-ingredient granola, homemade is often cheaper than store-bought. It’s also likely that you already have oats, an oil, and a sweetener—and if you’ve got some dried fruit or nuts tucked away in your pantry, you’re completely set without even making a single trip to the store. If you prefer granolas with somewhat obscure ingredients, however (e.g., Purely Elizabeth Ancient Grains granola contains puffed amaranth and quinoa flakes, which you likely don’t have on hand and won’t use in other recipes), it might make sense to cave and purchase the expensive storebought option.

Either way, there is no denying that homemade granola is delicious. So before spending ten dollars on your next granola restock, unleash your creative side and use up some of those lingering ingredients in your pantry by making it at home.

The first ever batch of granola I made was using this recipe from Cookie + Kate. It is phenomenal, and the recipe I list below is an adaptation of it, catered to my preferences. Take both as suggestions—in the world of granola, there are no hard-and-fast rules.

Ingredients:

(Makes roughly 6 cups of granola, depending on amount of oats, nuts, fruit.)

1. 5.5 total cups of rolled oats, nuts, and seeds (I use 3.5 cups of oats and 2 cups of pecans, but anything works here. Just make sure to use at least 3 cups of oats if you want a more traditional granola composition. Adding small seeds like chia or flax works fine, but note that doing so will create denser granola.)

2. 0.5 cup oil (I prefer peanut oil, but I’ve had delicious results with olive, coconut, and vegetable oil, too.)

3. 0.5 cup sweetener (I prefer maple syrup because it creates a wonderful toasted, nutty flavor when combined with pecans, but any liquid sweetener works.)

4. 1.25 tsp salt (I recommend pink Himalayan or sea salt works well here, but again, it’s up to you.)

5. 1 tsp warming spice (Cinnamon is used most commonly here. I’ve experimented with nutmeg, cardamom, pumpkin spice, ginger, and combinations of each. I typically use ½ tsp cinnamon and ½ tsp cardamom.)

6. 0.75 cup mix-ins of choice (I like to use dried cranberries and dates, but the options here are endless: any dried fruit, any type of chocolate, coconut flakes, freeze-dried fruits, etc.)

Another potential customization: If you want your granola to be higher in protein, you can add one scoop of whey protein powder to your dry ingredients. If you do this, add an extra tablespoon or two of liquid sweetener and bake at 315 degrees Fahrenheit instead of the originally recommended 350 degrees Fahrenheit to avoid scorching the protein powder. Admittedly, this addition makes the granola slightly less toasted and crispy.

Directions:

1. Combine all dry ingredients that you wish to bake. This includes oats, spices, raw nuts, and large seeds (such as pumpkin or sunflower). If using protein powder, add it to the dry mixture here. Dried fruit, chocolate, and smaller seeds (such as chia) should be left out of the mixture, as they should not be baked.

2. Mix dry ingredients well.

3. Add oil, sweetener, and vanilla to dry ingredients. Mix well.

4. Spread out mixture onto a baking sheet with raised edges, lined with parchment paper.

5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Bake mixture until browned and toasty (about 25-30 minutes). After the first 15 minutes of baking, stir up the mixture to ensure even toasting, then continue baking for the remaining time.

7. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

8. Add any additions that were not baked.

9. Enjoy! Note: granola should be stored in an airtight container. If kept in the freezer, it keeps for up to three months (although I’ve never put this to the test because I usually finish it long before then).

A successful batch will be golden, crispy, and full of toasty flavor!