The Best Granola Recipe
My family calls this The Best Granola Recipe for a reason. It’s loaded with cashews, pecans, almonds and sunflower seeds, and its lightly sweetened with pure maple syrup. It’s perfect for breakfast or as a topping for frozen yogurt and summertime desserts (baked berries and homemade ice cream).
In my opinion, this is The Best Granola Recipe there is. Hands-down! It’s delicate and crispy and chock-full of nuts. It’s a healthy granola that’s sweetened only with pure maple syrup and roasted to perfection.
HEALTHY GRANOLA RECIPE (What you’ll need)
- Organic oats (not steel cut or quick cooking)
- Nuts (cashews, almonds, and walnuts)
- Sunflower seeds
- Dried unsweetened coconut flakes, shredded
- Pure maple syrup
- Oil
- Cinnamon
HOW TO MAKE GRANOLA
- Low heat and slow baking is key. You don’t want to rush the baking here. Low heat and slow baking will give your granola a delicate golden crispy texture.
- Stirring every 10 minutes – also key. You’ll want to set your timer in 10 minute increments reminding you to stir the granola every 10-12 minutes so it bakes evenly.
- Line your cookie sheet with foil or parchment paper for easy clean up.
VARIATIONS
- Use your favorite nuts (I’ve used cashews, pecans and almonds for this recipe)
- Stir in chia seeds or hemp seeds at the very end
- Stir in raisins or other dried fruit at the very end
- Substitute coconut oil with canola oil if you don’t have or like coconut oil
- Add more cinnamon and other spices if you like
- Use honey instead of pure maple syrup as your sweetener
Serve this homemade granola for breakfast with plain yogurt and berries, or serve it as a dessert with frozen yogurt and berries. It’s delicate and crispy and completely addictive!!
MORE BREAKFAST RECIPES YOU’LL LOVE
- Heart Healthy Overnight Oats
- Hot Oatmeal Cereal with Honeyed Pears
- Banana Orange Yogurt Sauce
- Steel Cut Oatmeal
Originally 2013 – updated 5.2019
Best Granola Recipe
In my opinion, this is The Best Granola Recipe there is. Hands-down!   It's delicate and crispy and chock-full of nuts. This granola is lightly sweetened and roasted to perfection. Â
Ingredients
- 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (don't use instant oats)
- 2-1/2 cups mixed nuts, coarsely chopped (I use cashews, almonds, and pecans)
- 1 cup raw sunflower seeds
- 1/2 cup dried unsweetened coconut flakes, shredded (I like the larger flakes)
- 3/4 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
- Use 1 tablespoon canola oil to coat a large cookie sheet.
- In a large bowl, mix the oats, nuts, sunflower seeds, coconut and mix well.
- In a separate medium size bowl, add the maple syrup, brown sugar, cinnamon and canola oil and mix well until the sugar is dissolved.
- Pour over the oats mixture and blend very well (using your fingers if necessary) so the mixture is completely moistened. Evenly spread the mixture onto the cookie sheet.
- While baking - toss and stir the granola and scrape away from the sides and bottom of the sheet every 10 minutes.
- Bake for approximately 45-50 minutes or until the granola is nice and crispy.