All you need for delicious. homemade chunky granola is plain oats, a bit of maple syrup, and about 15 minutes in the oven! Say goodbye to the overpriced store-bought granola varieties.
Why is granola one of those grocery items that are super overpriced? I love granola. You can eat it like cereal, pour it on top of yogurt or smoothie bowls, or even bring a bag with you during a hike for energy. But my pockets got so tired of buying those tiny pre-packaged bags of granola for like $5. So I thought to myself: it can’t be that hard to make a base recipe. A couple of minutes in the kitchen, and voila! This homemade chunky granola recipe was born!
Ingredients
- Oats – I prefer to use the 1-Minute Oats, but I’ve tested this recipe with “Old Fashioned” as well with great results!
- Maple Syrup & Honey – For sweeteners, grab a 1:1 ratio of maple syrup and honey or agave.
- Vegetable Oil – A bit of veggie oil (or coconut oil if you have it!) helps with the granola texture after we bake everything up.
- Salt – Just a pinch of salt helps balance the sweetness in this recipe.
- Mix-Ins – This is up to you! Try almonds/pecans, or mini chocolate chips, or dried fruit like cranberries or strawberries.
How To Make Homemade Granola
Making homemade granola is super simple. We’re going to take our wet ingredients + salt and whisk them together really well, then add in your favorite type of plain oats. Once the oats are moistened, add the mixture to a parchment paper and use the back of a spoon to create an even layer of oats (this helps with baking.) Finally, the key to getting those perfect chunks that you love in granola is to let the baked oats disc cool for at least 20 minutes. Use your hands to break it up, then store it in a sealed container!
This is my base granola recipe. Of course, there are so many ways to customize granola (dried fruit, chocolate/candies, nuts) that it helps to have a standard recipe you can tweak for your tastes. This granola doesn’t have too much sweetness (especially because most add-ins have extra sugar!) and uses maple syrup instead of white sugar. Not to mention, the maple vanilla flavor is divine. It smells so good when it’s baking, y’all!
I won’t judge you if you just eat as is, but try a sprinkle of this homemade chunky granola in a smoothie bowl, as a healthy cereal option, or on top of a fruit and yogurt parfait. You’ll definitely keep a container of this on hand once you see how easy it is to make! I won’t admit how many batches I’ve made over the past couple of weeks…
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Cajun Shrimp & Grits with a Creamy Tomato Sauce
Maple-Vanilla Chunky Granola
Ingredients
- ¼ cup vegetable oil
- ⅛ cup honey
- ⅛ cup maple syrup
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- ½ tsp. salt
- 2 cups oats
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper sprayed with non-stick spray.
- Add all ingredients except for oats to a large bowl. Whisk thoroughly until your vegetable oil is combined well with the rest of the ingredients.
- Pour in oats and stir until combined. Oats should be evenly moistened.
- Bake for 17 minutes. There's going to be a heavenly maple-vanilla scent coming from your oven, but try to resist and keep the oven closed so the oats bake evenly!
- Remove pan and let granola cool for at least 20 minutes.
- Using your hands and/or a spoon, break up granola into clumps. Stir in your toppings at this step (chocolate chunks, nuts, shredded coconut, dried fruit, etc.)
- Store in a Ziploc bag or mason jar. Enjoy!
Notes
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The Coined Breakdown
- Total Cost per serving: $0.22
- Total Cost (about 10 servings): $2.21
- Those Other Guys: $1.30 per serving ($12.99 total)
