Ellyn’s Classic Crunchy Baked Granola
Granola is one of my go-to’s when it comes to breakfast options and light snacking. This is my absolute favorite granola recipe that I’ve perfected throughout the years, after a long search and not being able to find a grocery store version that checked all my boxes. I make a large batch every couple of weeks, and enjoy this daily over a fruit bowl for breakfast, and always keep a large jar in the fridge to snack on throughout the day. If you love your granola sweet with crunchy and nutty flavors, then you may just love this recipe.
Classic Crunchy Baked Granola
How to make homemade granola from scratch.
Equipment
- Large rimmed baking sheet, lined with parchment or aluminum foil prepped with cooking spray.
- Medium sized saucepan
Ingredients
- 3 cups old fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup wheat germ
- 1/3 cup flax seed
- 1/3 cup brown sugar
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup molasses
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1 tbsp water
- 1 tbsp vanilla extract
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/2 cups mixed nuts, chopped & lightly roasted
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°. In a large bowl, mix the oats with the wheat germ, salt, and flax seed. Set aside.
- In a medium sized saucepan, add brown sugar, maple syrup, honey, molasses, vanilla extract, vegetable oil and water, and heat on a medium flame until it comes to a light simmer (approx. 5 minutes). Remove from stove, and pour over the oat mixture. Mix well, and then begin folding in the chopped & lightly roasted nuts.
- Spread the mixture evenly on prepared baking sheet and bake for 40-45 minutes. At 10 minute intervals, remove from oven and toss the mixture around the baking sheet to ensure that the granola is browning evenly throughout. In the last 10 minutes of baking, add in the dried cranberries.
- Once the granola has perfectly browned, removed from oven and let the mixture rest for a few minutes. Store in mason jar, reusable ziplocks, or airtight container. Can also be refrigerated.