Do you like your Granola loose or clumpy? Either way, you’ll love this – the ultimate healthy Homemade Granola guide! Mix and match, build your own granola by using the ingredients you like and have on hand.
Easy Homemade Granola
I’m going to be honest with you – I didn’t start making making granola because it’s healthier than store bought. I started because it’s cheaper and and I can control how sweet it is (store bought is so sweet!!!). Then it evolved into a bit of a game, trying to come up with cute flavour combinations. Berry Burst, Apple Pie, Apricot Sunrise, Blueberry Pie, Apple Crumble, Peach ‘n Cream, Maple Crunch, Oatmeal Raisin Cookie.
You get the picture. Basically, desserts in breakfast form!
I make Homemade Granola – or Muesli as some Aussies know it – using a formula. I could talk you through it, but it’s much easier just to show you. ↓↓↓
This is actually a recipe that I posted yonks and yonks ago, but it’s been tweaked and improved, and plus it seems that back in those days I wasn’t much of a talker because the post had zero chatter in it.
The two main changes made to the recipe are to stir the dried fruit in at the end for the loose granola (because some bits can border on burning) and adding a way to make CLUMPY granola without adding loads and loads of honey / sugar / butter simply by stirring through egg whites. Egg is the ultimate food glue, for everything from cakes to cookies, omelettes to meatballs. And it holds true for granola. 🙂
So the same base “formula” applies to both types of granola, except the steps and cooking method are a little different.
Loose granola is as simple as it gets: Combine Dry ingredients, combine Wet ingredients, combine Wet & Dry, spread on tray, bake, add fruit at end.
Simple, yes?
As for clumpy granola, the order of the steps is a little different. The fruit has to be added in at the beginning because you can’t stir it in at the end. Egg white is added to bind the granola together to form clusters, it’s baked at a lower temperature (which helps to ensure the fruit doesn’t burn) then left to cool in the turned off oven which allows it to finish crisping and for the clusters to set..
Ahh, and the one little strange thing I do because you can’t stir the granola as it bakes (because otherwise you’ll break up the clusters!!) is to spread the granola on the tray with a hole in the middle because even when I’m using a fan forced/convection oven, I can never get the middle to go golden and crispy without the edges burning. 🙂
Looks weird I know. But trust me, it makes all the difference!!
And see? Look how it clusters up!
And have you ever thought about gifting granola?? Thoughtful, GREAT VALUE and totally customisable gift!!
OK, so I have to confess I have never ever gifted Granola before. It’s now officially on my list for Christmas gifts this year….
Homemade Granola has gotten all trendy in the past few years, and you’d have to search hard to find a bistro without granola on the weekend brunch menu. And they charge a small fortune for it too.
And that, my friends, is the beauty of this Homemade Granola “formula” – it’s so cheap to make using leftover bits and bobs. Dig into that pantry of yours and scratch together whatever nuts, seeds and dried fruit you can find. Get creative with the spices, go wild with flavourings!
And share your Granola flavouring ideas in the comments below to inspire other readers! I have some suggestions in the notes of the recipe – but I bet you can come up with better ones! – Nagi x
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
Healthy Homemade Granola recipe video!
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Build Your Own Homemade Granola (Muesli)
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients:
- 4 cups / 360 g rolled oats (not steel cut or quick cooking)
- 1 cup coconut flakes (or more nuts or oats)
- 1 cup raw nuts (eg. sliced almonds, chopped pecans, sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds)
- 1/2 cup dried fruit (eg. chopped apricots, apple, pineapple, raisins)
- 1 tsp your favourite spice (eg. cinnamon, pumpkin spice, gingerbread mix)
- 1 pinch salt
Wet Ingredients:
- 1/3 cup sweetener (eg. honey, maple syrup, agave, see note 2 for Brown Sugar)
- 1/3 cup fat (eg. melted butter, canola oil or coconut oil)
- 1 1/2 tsp flavouring (eg. vanilla, almond essence, orange blossom)
CLUMPY Granola:
- 2 egg whites
Instructions
LOOSE Granola:
- Preheat oven to 150C/300F.
- Combine Dry ingredients, excluding dried fruit.
- Combine Wet ingredients.
- Combine Wet and Dry ingredients. Do a taste test. Adjust to taste – more sweet, more fat etc.
- Spread on baking tray and bake until golden, approximately 35 – 40 minutes, tossing twice.
- Stir through dried fruit. Cool. Store in an airtight container.
CLUMPY Granola:
- Preheat oven to 140C/280F. Line a large baking tray with baking paper.
- Combine Wet excluding egg whites.
- Combine Dry including dried fruit.
- Whisk egg whites with fork until foamy.
- Mix Wet and Dry in a large bowl, then mix through egg whites.
- Spread granola on the tray, making a hole in the centre, like a doughnut (see photo in post).
- Bake for 45 minutes – DO NOT STIR – until golden. Check at 35 minutes.
- Then turn the oven off, leave the granola in the oven, and open the oven door open a bit. Leave the granola to cool. The colour will deepen and it will firm up.
- Once cool, break into clusters. Store in an airtight container.
Recipe Notes:
* Apple Pie: As above but use only almonds and dried apples.
* Oatmeal Raisin Cookie: Butter, honey, raisins, vanilla and cinnamon, pinch of All Spice.
* Blueberry Pie: Apple Pie recipe but use dried blueberries instead and skip the cinnamon powder and add a dash of lemon essence.
* Super Berries: Try using dried goji berries!
* Orange Almond: Almonds and orange blossom
* Maple Pecan Pie! Use Pecans, vanilla, butter, maple 2. Brown Sugar: Add this into the Dry Ingredients. 3. Originally published in May 2014, updated with video and improved recipe. Changes include: adding a method to make clumpy granola without adding more sweetener or fat, for the loose granola, adding the dried fruit at the end which ensures none of it burns (sometimes, some fruit on the surface can get a little too brown). All photos were replaced and words were rewritten. 4. Nutrition per serving, assuming 10 servings (about 2/3 cup per serving).
Nutrition Information:
LIFE OF DOZER
He fully understands that he is only permitted on the sheet covered part of the couch.
I think the amounts are way off on this. I made one today and needed to almost double the amount of fat and honey to moisten the oats, nuts, etc. enough for baking. Not sure what happened there or if the ratios were just off. Either way, this is super helpful and such a great idea!
Hi Korilynn – what kind of oats did you use? Ordinary rolled oats? I know different brands of oats vary in how much liquid they absorb. Also did you use desiccated or flaked coconut? I find that desiccated coconut does absorb more liquid. There is no doubt that using more fat and honey to make it stickier is yummier and chunkier, this is a “healthy” version so I’ve used the minimum amounts I think are required to make them just stick together.
Thanks for your comment though! Always great to get feedback.