My very favorite easy granola recipe
If you want the best homemade granola recipe ever, this is it. I’ve tried so many and none come even CLOSE to this one. It’s crunchy and a tiny bit chewy and bursting with flavor. I’ve made it every few weeks for almost seven years now and I’ve never gotten tired of it.
There are some recipes that I make, really like, and then for whatever reason, never make again.
And there are some recipes that I make ALLLLLLL the time.
Like don’t-need-to-look-at-the-recipe-anymore kind of all the time.
This homemade granola recipe is one of them.
I have made this recipe at least 100 times and every time, I’m a little blown away again at how good it is.
This recipe is originally from Perry’s Plate and it is excellent.
I love the little kick that the ginger gives is, and I also like how fast it is to put together.
I also really love that it has no dried fruit or nuts in it, so it’s inexpensive to make and then you can add whatever extras you want in when you eat it.
I usually eat my homemade granola sprinkled on a bowl of plain yogurt and then topped with mini chocolate chips, chopped cashews or almonds and whatever fruit is in season or I have on hand (raspberries are my favorite, but strawberries, bananas, blueberries or dried cranberries are also excellent).
This granola recipe is both crunchy and a little chewy and it has so much flavor.
In the seven years that I’ve been making this easy granola recipe, it’s completely ruined all other other granolas, both homemade and store bought for me. They all taste SO BLAND and are basically like chewing a clump of toasted oats. No thank you.
I made a batch of this about a year ago and our babysitter had some for lunch with my girls and as she was leaving said, “This is the best granola I’ve ever had. Can you send me the recipe?”
She wasn’t wrong – this really is the best granola recipe ever.
It also makes a great snack for toddlers, teens and adults alike! Like I said before, it’s fabulous in parfaits, in milk for breakfast and amazing just by itself!
Easy Homemade Granola Recipe
Basic Granola
If you want the best homemade granola recipe ever, this is it. It's crunchy and a tiny bit chewy and bursting with flavor. I will never tire of it!
Ingredients
- 6 cups old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup shredded coconut sweetened or unsweetened
- 6 tablespoons brown sugar
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseed
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- Heaping 1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt
- 3/4 cup honey
- 6 tablespoons oil canola oil, coconut oil, or vegetable oil all work great
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
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Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl and mix well.
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In a small saucepan, heat honey and oil until well-combined. Remove from heat and stir in the vanilla.
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Pour the liquid over the dry ingredients and stir until the dry ingredients are evenly coated.
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Spread the granola evenly onto a baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes, stirring every ten minutes (be especially careful to get the edges since that's where it's most likely to burn).
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Let cool and store in an airtight container.
Recipe Notes
(slightly adapted from Perry's Plate)
I keep saying I'm gonna make granola, but the cost of all the nuts and stuff kills me. I might try this, I think I have everything except the flax.
Expiration dates are such a racket. I don't know if it's motivated by greed (getting you to throw away food to buy more) or by the need to cover their butts (setting the date so early so there's no possible chance it will have gone bad…and then moving it up a few more weeks to be sure), but nothing is ever bad at the expiration date. Especially yogurt.
I beg to clarify, Kimberly F. You might say "few things are ever bad at the expiration date," but "nothing" leaves out those rare times when your trust in the expiration date leaves you with a mouth full of unpleasantness. That said, companies are conservative with expiration dates in order to "cover their butts", as you eloquently suggested, and I'm not as strict about the actual expiration date as I am about smelling everything. Even yogurt. Just sayin'…
Yep, this is my very favorite granola, too (and I agree, it's best with coconut oil). We go through POUNDS of this stuff. Except I do add nuts (love how they get all toasty, although I probably only do about half), skip the flaxseed, add nutmeg and allspice, and do half maple syrup/half honey. EVEN better that way. I saw a recipe that includes quinoa recently that I might try next time.
I have been thinking of making granola lately, so I may give this a try. It would make a nice change from my regular recipe. And I totally agree with you about expiration dates. They don't mean much, but they can sometimes provide a good bargain.
I play pretty fast and loose with expiration dates. My family calls me 'the nose' because I can smell (and taste) things that no one else can. I trust my over-active olfactory receptors more than some government agency's determination for acceptable expiration/best by/use by dates. Our milk regularly lasts a week to 10 days beyond the sell by date. We don't open the fridge a lot and neither of us loves milk (I know that this is very shocking to some people). I've definitely eaten yogurt that was many many weeks past its expiry date. I purposely save eggs for a long time because they're so much easier to peel when they're older.
And finally, the granola looks DELICIOUS. I need to try it.
I'm sure you've already read American Wasteland by Jonathan Bloom. This post reminded me of that book. Our store doesn't discount almost-expired yogurt and I don't understand that! I'm someone who would throw dairy away a day BEFORE the expiration but I've changed my ways since I read Bloom's book. The granola looks so yummy…
Thank you! I was just looking for a good tried and true granola recipe as I'm trying to gear my kids away from the garbage that is store bought cereal. Do you think it would still be yummy without the shredded coconut and ginger? I'm not a fan of either of those things.
I love this granola – I've made it twice in the past week, though I left out the cinnamon, ginger, and coconut and added pecans. It tastes like pecan pie this way!
And P.S. I finally got around to trying the brownie recipe you posted and we ended up making it 3 times in one week! It's awesome. Thanks for the recipe!
It was your previous comments about buttermilk lasting past it's expiration date that emboldened me to give it a try. I waste much less now! But one time some came out in solid form, and I knew I had pressed my luck too far. Thankfully there's only been that one instance. Regular milk….I'm not there yet. Let it sit untouched a few days in the fridge and I start getting the heebie jeebies.
Mmm… homemade granola. I was on such a homemade granola kick a few months ago but have basically stopped cooking since we moved. May I add a tiny bit of almond extract to your granola?
This looks like a good one. I have a couple favorites, and this is similar but almost a bit easier. I assume it's nice and dry/crunchy? I don't like "granola" that is chewy. And expiration dates are of course just guidelines, right? I just keep stuff until it obviously smells or looks bad.
The plain yogurt by Brown Cow is my favorite ever (so yummy with no added sugar). Sometimes Whole Foods has it on sale and I buy like 15-20 at one time (I also don't care about expiration dates), which, without fail, makes me look like a crazy person.
I'm glad I'm not the only one who doesn't really care about expiration dates. I gross my husband out because I drink my lactose-free milk LONG after it expires (since he gets to still have the real stuff). I just can't stand wasting food, especially when it's expensive.
I am SO GLAD you said that about the expiration dates. I'm the same way, and my husband is forever giving me grief about it. He is so strict about them, so I just don't tell him when I'm using something that's expired. I was starting to think I was the weird one.
I, like you, am not put off by expiration dates. My husband seems to be in Bart's camp in that if he's aware it's expired he's cautious (if not downright adamant about not using/eating). I can usually slip things past him…unless he insists on sniffing. The sniff tests are as off-putting to me as using "expired" products are for him. We love a good compromise 'round these parts though so we can usually agree to either toss or consume. He's much better at compromising than I (or less stubborn). Great post!
Looks delicious!
I do not pay attention to expiration dates either, especially for something like yogurt. I just made my first batch of homemade granola last week and I love it. Never going back to store bought again. This looks like a great one to try. Mine had maple syrup but I would like to try honey or brown sugar as yours listed.
When it's canned the expiration date doesn't mean much… but if it's in the fridge, I'm a stickler. Mostly because I HATE smelling things to see if they are bad or not. And since Jeremy isn't around enough to do the honors, it get's tossed if it's questionable. This is mostly for milk. And things without expiration dates like leftovers. If it's been five days, it's out, no smelling necessary!
I about licked my screen that looks so delicious! Definitely want to try this one. I love yogurt with granola!
Just made this and LOVED it.
I just ate this at a baby shower, and it was delicious!! Emily Hamilton told me I needed to look it up here. I hadn't been to your site before, and now you're not in RR anymore? In Europe?? Looking around your site and pinning recipes!
Any idea how many servings this makes and the calorie count?
It makes about 7-8 cups of granola, so about 15-20 servings. As far as calorie count, I have no idea, but you can run it through one of those apps that calculates it for you!