There are lots of great store-bought granolas, but one of my favorite simple pleasures in life is warm granola. Fresh from the oven and filling the room with a smell I can only describe as “warm comfort,” making granola at home is an experience that store-bought versions just can’t offer. It’s one of my favorite things to make for students in our morning cooking classes because it fills the kitchen with that amazing toasty smell. It’s good and good for you!
Making homemade granola is simple. First, you’ll need to choose a base, something sweet to stick it all together, then some goodies to have running through it. This granola “template” will let you use what you have on hand, rather than shopping around for little odds and ends that you may only use once. First things first…
The Base
Besides flavor, different grains offer different textures for your granola. Puffed rice will make for a crispy and light granola, while oats are chewy. Adding in flax meal or seeds will make for a nutty and nutrient dense mix. These are some options that I love, but the possibilities are endless, you’re only limited by your imagination and the ingredients you can get your hands on. I recommend working in small batches to ensure freshness, and give you more freedom to make a few mistakes here and there. Maybe you give the puffed quinoa a try and decide it’s not for you, at least now you know and you won’t have a gallon of granola you won’t want to finish.
The Goodies
Walk through the bulk section of your grocery store and almost anything that you see in front of you makes for a crunchy, chewy and complex granola. Most of these ingredients should be introduced in the last 5-10 minutes of baking, especially if they are already toasted. Chocolate chips or anything else that can melt can be folded in once the mixture is already cooled.
The Sticky
Start with your oats in a bowl. Add enough of any of these sweeteners to make your oats coated in a thin layer. A little canola oil will help your oats toast up nicely. Spread your oats or any other raw base ingredients onto a parchment or Silpat lined sheet tray and let toast for about 10 minutes at 375F until fragrant and slightly toasty. Any ingredient that you’re adding that is already toasted or dehydrated will be added in the last few minutes to ensure that you don’t over bake.
My Favorite Blend
My current favorite granola is a mix of oats, honey, cinnamon, dried raisins, cherries, pepitas, and toasted coconut. That basic mixture will switch up depending on what I have on hand, which allows me to use up anything before it ends up forgotten in the back of my pantry. While we always hand out recipe packets for our students in class, we often encourage students to go “off-book” rather than feeling as though they are a slave to a recipe. Making granola is great way for a beginning cook to experiment with different flavor combinations to find a blend that you enjoy.
If you feel inspired to make your own homemade granola from this post, please post yours to your social media channel of choice: Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest or LinkedIn and tag The Chopping Block.
