Homemade Granola

It’s so easy to make your own homemade granola cereal at home, I don’t know why more people don’t do it. It’s pricey to buy already made and the homemade stuff tastes so much better. And not only can you adjust the ingredients to your liking, you can customize it to create any flavor you want!

Can I Use Quick Or Instant Oats For Homemade Granola?

You could, but it is not recommended. I have made this granola using quick oats (not instant) and it still turned out great. It was crunchy and the flavor wasn’t affected at all. However the texture wasn’t quite the same. The large flake traditional oats gave a more substantial, longer lasting chew that was just better. (Read more about different types of oats on the Quaker Oats website.) The cereal also looks more appetizing because you can see the little flattened oat grains. For these reasons, it goes without saying that the texture from using rolled oats in homemade granola is superior to quick oats.

Can I Reduce The Honey, Sugar And Oil?

You definitely can, but cutting back on either of these ingredients comes with a caveat. The texture will be significantly less crunchy and if you like chunky granola, it won’t happen as easily. Not only do the honey and sugar add sweetness to the granola, it also is instrumental in making it crunchy. The oil also helps greatly with this. So if you want a less sweet cereal, reduce the honey and sugar but be prepared to settle for a slightly less crunchy granola.

How Can I Customize This Homemade Granola?

This homemade granola recipe is a blank canvas that is easy to customize into any flavor you like. It’s very much like Overnight Oats–you can make it however you want! Add some vanilla and almonds for a classy flavor combo. Or swap out some of the oil for peanut butter for a hearty, nutty granola. If you heat the oil slightly in a small saucepan and add come unsweetened cocoa powder, stirring it into the oat mixture give you the best chocolatey granola. Experiment with different spices, dried fruits and other mix ins for the granola of your dreams!

How Can I Add Nuts?

You can easily add nuts to your granola for a little added crunch and nutrition. If you are going to add nuts that are already toasted, stir them in at the very end after the granola has cooled. If using untoasted nuts, sprinkle them over the granola after the first bake. They toast perfectly in the last 10 minutes of baking and you can then stir them in.

How Can I Add Dried Fruit Or Chocolate Chips?

Mix raisins, dried cranberries, dates or other dried fruit after the granola has baked and cooled. Adding these before baking will dry them out and they will be very difficult to chew. If you would like to add even more decadence by mixing in chocolate chips or marshmallows, wait until the granola has cooled completely or you will end up with granola bars–but would that be a bad thing?

Can I Double The Recipe?

Yes you absolutely can double, triple or even quadruple this granola recipe. Just be sure to rotate the pans around when baking to ensure evening cooking. This includes switching levels on the racks as the bottom ones will cook faster on the bottoms and those on the upper rack will toasted faster on the tops.

I hope you will give this amazing granola recipe a try. And if you customize it into your very own masterpiece with cool flavors and mix ins, I triple hope you will let me know how it turned out for you!

Homemade Granola

Super crunchy and sweetened with a kiss of honey. Perfect with milk for breakfast or with yogurt as a snack. Or just munch on it as is!

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 25 minutes mins

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine American

Servings 4

Ingredients

  

• 3 cups rolled oats not quick cooking
• ½ cup natural bran or wheat germ
• 6 tablespoons brown sugar
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon optional
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 6 tablespoons vegetable oil or any neutral oil
• ¼ cup honey

Instructions

 

• Preheat oven to 325°F/163°C. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl combine the rolled oats, natural bran or wheat germ, brown sugar, cinnamon (if using) and salt. Mix to incorporate well.
• Add the vegetable oil and honey. Massage the mixture very well with your hands so that every flake of oats gets coated with the oil and honey. Spread evenly onto the prepared baking sheet. For a chunky granola, pat the mixture down firmly. Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from oven and stir well. For chunky granola, pat the mixture down firmly again. Return to the oven and bake for an additional 10 minutes or until the edges are a very light golden brown.
• Stir the granola very well and pat it down once more. Allow it to cool completely then break it apart into little pieces. Store in an airtight container for up to 1 month.

Keyword cereal, granola, oats