Do you like granola? I like granola. But I hate paying £4 for a box with 3 pieces of walnut and one cranberry. If you’re with me, join me by making your own! And might I suggest you give my granola recipe a try…
It’s really easy to scale your granola making up or down. You can also create your very own granola blend. Once you have the proportions down, anything is possible. Mine is lightly sweetened, but you can amp it up to your taste. More sweetener will also give you bigger clusters. For a vegan version, sub in maple syrup – but use less, as maple syrup tends to taste sweeter.
You can use different kinds of nuts, too. I’ve made it with hazelnuts and pecans, Brazil nuts and walnuts, and have even gone as far as a three-nut combo. Crazy, I know.
Add in your own flavorings – a sprinkle of cinnamon or a few drops of vanilla go a long way. Get creative with your crunchy granola self!
Once you have a vat of toasted granola, you might wonder what to do with it besides shoving it straight into your mouth.
Sprinkle that sweet, nutty, homemade granola on top of plain (full fat obviously) Greek yogurt with jam. Sometimes I go off the deep end into DIY territory, but hear me out. You can turn that yogurt into any flavor you want it to be. Strawberry, apricot, blackberry bourbon… just try telling me dyed-pink yogurt sounds better.
Pour some milk on it, cow or otherwise. Sprinkle it onto ice cream. Put it on a fruit crumble. Tweak your cranachan. (If you have any other suggestions, I’d be happy to try them.)
Feel like everything is out of your control? Start small with granola. Then take that slow-release energy out there and tackle the world.
Save RecipeOn the Counter
- 200 g oats
- 75 g nuts
- 1 tbsp honey
- 1.5 tbsp coconut oil
- 75 g dried fruit
What to Do
- Optional first step: Sieve the oat dust from your oats.
- Preheat the oven to 160C/gas mark 3/325F.
- Combine the coconut oil and honey. On very low heat, melt them until the mix is thin and runny. This is especially handy if it's cool in your kitchen or your honey is crystallized. Stir to combine.
- Chop the nuts into pieces about the same size (or slightly larger than) an oat.
- In a large bowl, combine the oats and nuts.
- Drizzle the oil and honey on top, stirring the oat mix as you go. Stir until evenly coated. Dig deep!
- Spread the mix evenly onto two baking sheets.
- Bake for 10 minutes.
- Gently mix in the dried fruit and bake for another 10-15 minutes. Don't let it go further than lightly golden brown.
- Cool before storing.
- Mix your granola into yogurt, on top of ice cream, or enjoy it as a cereal with milk.