If you’ve been looking for a granola recipe that’s not loaded with sugar and tastes amazing, this is it! So very easy to make, and so much healthier than most store-bought granola.
When I was growing up, all of the fun, super-sugary, brightly food-colored cereals were not allowed at our house. But occasionally Mom strayed from the Cheerios and Grape Nuts and splurged on a box of good ole Quaker Granola (you know, the ‘healthier’ sweet option), and thus a lifelong love of granola began.
While granola always seems like a healthy cereal choice, MANY of the store-bought granolas are loaded with a ton of sugar and bad fats. And it doesn’t have to have either of those to be tasty! So for many years I made a ton of my own granola using various recipes. Gradually manufacturers got smarter and you could find a decent granola on the shelf that had a good balance of ingredients (and one less thing on the to-do list when the kids were young), so I went back to buying it. But it’s so dang expensive, and never has exactly the combo of ingredients I’d like to have.
Flash forward to my sister-in-law recently coming across this recipe for Eleven Madison Park’s granola, and I was once again all about making my own ‘nola. I loved the saltiness of it (though I will say it’s a bit too salty for me, so I took it down a notch in my version), so different! Also love that they use olive oil, but also kicking myself for not ever thinking of it myself (?!)…it really gives it more depth. This is grown-up granola, people! And while their recipe uses maple syrup and it’s fabulous that way, you’ll see that I use honey in mine…love me some honey and I try and incorporate local, raw honey into my diet wherever I can.
Making healthy homemade granola
It really is super simple. Prep time is just a few minutes. Then it’s a low and slow bake for 2-3 hours. You’ll notice that the Eleven Madison Park recipe bakes it at a higher temp for shorter time, but I’ve always found that lower and slower gives a much better texture and flavor to granola, AND it keeps it’s crunch longer (as long as you store it in an airtight container).
So let’s get to it! After mixing your oats, nuts, coconut, seeds and salt together, you’re going to set that aside and get your sauce ready. Over low heat, whisk the sugar, honey and olive oil together until the sugar has dissolved. Hot tip: measure out the olive oil before you measure out your honey…that way the honey slides right out of your measuring cup. Also, I am a big fan of using coconut sugar – it gives the same lovely caramel flavor as dark brown sugar, though a bit less sweet and lower glycemic index – but feel free to use standard brown sugar here.
Once the sugar is dissolved, pour the mixture over the dry ingredients, and mix, mix, mix. You want to make sure that all of the oats are completely coated. Don’t worry, the olive oil in the liquid mixture keeps things from being too sticky, but I do recommend a silicone spatula for this part if you’ve got one. Once everything is mixed, let it sit for at least 30 minutes before moving on to the baking, to make sure the liquid is fully absorbed into the oats.
At this point the ‘hard’ part is done! Now just evenly spread the mixture over a parchment- or silicon mat-covered baking sheet and pop it into the oven! You’ll be stirring it every 30 minutes until it’s done, which is somewhere between 2-3 hours. Timing is a bit up to you…some like it a bit darker and crunchier, some lighter and chewier. Just don’t let it go too long…remember, caramelized sugar can go from yum to burnt really quickly.
Do you like your oatmeal lumpy?
Just kidding, we’re talking about granola here (but 10 points to anyone that knows the song!)! Though if you do like your granola to have clusters/chunks, I can walk you through how to achieve that kind of texture.
After the first 30 minutes, rather than giving it a stir and popping it back in for another 30, you’re going to stir it but then use a spatula to firmly press the granola down evenly across the pan (put some muscle into it!). Return to the oven to bake for one hour. Don’t worry, at 225 nothing is going to get too toasty. After the hour, gently break up and stir carefully, then press down again, and continue this process every 30 minutes until done.
After removing the granola from the oven, add in the dried cherries and give it a good stir. Feel free to swap the cherries for another fruit (or 2)! This is great with dried cranberries…I just dig the contrast of the tart with the sweet and salty. And you might be able to see in this jar I added some dried bananas as well, and I wholeheartedly recommend trying it; they provide even more of a lovely crunch without overpowering the other flavors.
Once it’s cooled to room temperature, you can store your kick-ass granola in an airtight container (I dig my giant glass mason jar, but a plastic container works great too).
I love mine over plain yogurt, or to simply munch on as a snack on it’s own. I hope you enjoy it, and make sure to comment below if you have any questions…I’d also love to hear about any fruit/nut combos you try and love, it’s fun to experiment with different flavors!
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Best Damn (Healthy) Granola
Ingredients
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup shelled pistachios (amazing, but use any nut you love!)
- 1 cup unsweetened coconut chips (or shreds)
- ⅓ to 1 cup pumpkin seeds (to taste...pumpkin/sunflower combo great too)
- 1 tsp sea salt
- ¼ tsp ground Cardamom (optional, can also sub another spice)
- ¼ cup coconut sugar (or brown sugar)
- ¼ cup honey (or maple syrup)
- ⅓ cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1 cup dried sour cherries (unsweetened)
Instructions
- Heat oven to 225℉. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, pistachios, coconut, pumpkin seeds, cardamom and salt.
- In a small saucepan combine the sugar, honey and olive oil. Whisk over low heat until the sugar has just dissolved, then remove from heat.
- Pour the sugar mixture into the bowl of dry ingredients, and mix thoroughly using a wooden or silicon spatula. Make sure to coat the dry ingredients well, then allow it to sit for 30 minutes to fully absorb the liquid.
- Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, and spread the mixture evenly over it. Place it in the oven, stirring every 30 minutes for 2-3 hours (see notes below if you like your granola clustered).
- Bake until dry (it will still appear shiny) and lightly golden/caramelized.
- Remove the granola from oven, and stir in the cherries (and/or any other add-ins). Allow to cool to room temperature before transferring to a storage container. Makes about 8 cups.
Notes
FOR CLUSTERED/CHUNKY GRANOLA
After the first 30 minutes, remove the granola and stir, then use a spatula and firmly press the granola down evenly across the pan. Return to the oven to bake for one hour. After the hour, gently break up and stir, press down again, and continue this process every 30 minutes until done.
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Tracey is the founder and writer of Life in the Happy Medium. She’s also a freelance graphic designer, Mom to 2 college kids, Wife, and Friend to a tribe she holds dear, who’s prone to some fairly serious car singing and dancing much to her family’s chagrin (old school R&B is where it’s at!).
From cleaner beauty to healthy-ish eating, she’s blogging here to share favorite finds that keep her happy in the middle.
