Granola isn’t just for breakfast anymore. Check out the grocery store and there are shelves of options. But, a lot of the choices are so full of sweet clusters that don’t even look like granola.
What do you do when you just want granola with plenty of taste and no added “stuff?” Head to the bulk bins and make your own. This recipe is easy to customize with all your favorite things. Love nuts? Double the almonds or add a cup of chopped pecans. A fan of raisins? Sub out a mixture of golden raisins and regular raisins for the dried cranberries. Want for exotic flavors? Add chopped dried mango, dried apricot or even freeze-dried raspberries to the granola. This is a basic recipe that is easy to customize according to your taste.
Basic Ratios for Granola
What you want to remember is the base of granola is rolled oats. When buying in bulk, the recipe calls for about 10 ounces or 3 cups. The two ounces of wheat germ add texture. (If you want to make this granola gluten-free, omit the wheat germ and make sure the rolled oats come are processed in a gluten-free facility.) The sweetened coconut flakes provide moisture and sweetening and help the granola clump together.
Four ounces of sliced almonds is about one cup. You can substitute chopped walnuts, chopped pecans, or even chopped hazelnuts—or any combination of the above. Doubling the nuts would be great as well. The couple ounces of sunflower kernels and sesame seeds are an inexpensive way to boost the nut factor and both contain oil that offset the dryness of the rolled oats.
Any dried fruit can be substituted. If the fruit is hard, (like dried banana chips) they should be chopped into quite small pieces. Any dried fruit that is similar in texture to dried cranberries can be swapped out without any extra preparation. If you like more fruit in your granola, feel free to double the fruit as well.
Doubling either the fruit or nuts won’t require altering any other component of the granola. The liquid ratio for granola is simple. Equal parts oil and liquid sweetener. Feel free to substitute to your hearts content. The amount of liquid keeps the granola moist and helps it clump well.
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Sunrise Granola
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 75 minutes
- Yield: 12 servings 1x
- Category: breakfast
- Method: baked
Description
A hearty and flavorful granola with plenty of nuts, seeds, and fruit.
Ingredients
- 3 cups rolled oats (~10 oz.)
- 1/2 cup wheat germ (~2 oz.)
- 1 cup slivered almonds (~4 oz.)
- 1 cup sweetened coconut flakes
- 1/2 cup sunflower kernels (~2.5 oz.)
- 1/4 cup sesame seeds (~1 oz.)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup vegetable oil
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 8 ounces dried cranberries, chopped
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300°F. Line 2 baking pans with parchment and set aside.
- In large bowl, mix rolled oats, wheat germ, almonds, coconut flakes, sunflower kernels, sesame seeds and salt; stir to combine.
- In small bowl, beat oil, maple syrup, and cinnamon with wire whisk until well blended.
- Pour liquid ingredients over dry ingredients, stirring with a large spatula until all the dry ingredients are moistened. (Make sure you get to the very bottom of the bowl.)
- Divide the unbaked granola between the 2 parchment lined baking pans. Using the back of a metal spatula, press the granola into the pan.
- Place both baking pans in oven on 2 separate oven racks, one below the other.
- Bake for 15 minutes. Swap the baking pans in the oven, rotating the pan from the top shelf to the bottom shelf; bake 15 to 20 minutes longer, until golden brown. The granola will still be moist, but will dry as it cools.
- Return the warm granola to the large bowl and stir in the dried cranberries.
- Spread the granola back onto the baking sheets and let granola cool completely.
- Gently break mixture part and store in tightly covered container for up to 4 weeks.
Notes
Don’t add the dried fruit into the granola before you bake it. The fruit could develop a burnt taste. Serve granola with milk for breakfast, as a topping for yogurt for lunch, or even as a topping for ice cream for dessert. It even makes a crunch snack on its own. It is easy to double this recipe.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 3/4 cup
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