The Ultimate Guide to Easy, Healthy, (Cheap!) Granola

5 from 3 votes

Prep Time5

Cook Time30

Total Time35

Servings: cups

Calories: 154kcal

Author: Myra

3 cups large flake oats or whatever oats you have on hand
1-2 cups add-ins i.e. chopped walnuts, coconut, slivered almonds, sunflower seeds, hemp hearts, flax seeds, wheat germ, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, chia seeds* etc (optional)
pinch of salt
1/4 cup oil i.e. melted butter, warmed coconut oil, avocado oil, canola oil, etc
1/4 cup sweetener i.e. honey, maple syrup, agave, brown sugar etc
1-2 tsp flavouring i.e. vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, almond extract, etc
1/2 cup dried fruit i.e. raisins, dried cranberries, chopped apricots, even chocolate chips if you want (they're fruit, right?) (optional)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F.
In a large bowl, stir together oats, whatever add-ins you choose (not the fruit) and salt. Set aside.
In a small bowl, combine oil of your choosing, sweetener of your choosing and flavouring of your choosing. Microwave for 15-30 seconds, stirring well to ensure that it's completely combined.
Pour into oat mixture and stir well to combine. Spread onto cookie sheet and bake for 10 minutes.
Stir well, turning over all parts of the granola. Bake for another 5 minutes. Stir and bake in five minute intervals, being careful not to let granola burn.
When it is medium brown and toasted, remove from oven and let cool on cookie sheet. Stir in fruit (or chocolate chips) if desired. Store in an airtight jar.
Enjoy! :)

*Be careful if you choose to use chia seeds. They are a great addition to granola but they have interesting gelling properties. If you mix them with liquid (like yogurt) and leave them to sit for more than a few minutes, they will start to create a gel. For this reason I would avoid pre-mixing your granola with yogurt if you used chia seeds. Also, mushy granola. ;)

Calories: 154kcal