This is another recipe where the effort-to-result ratio strongly favors the homemade version. All you need is 5 minutes of active time and you’ll have a granola that is better, cheaper, and healthier than the average store-bought version in every way. And like most of my recipes, it’s highly adaptable, so you can customize it exactly to your liking.
If I were to recommend one meal to switch as the first step in transitioning from a regular diet to a healthier one, it would be breakfast, specifically the popular breakfast cereals. Common breakfast cereals, including those that try to present themselves as healthy, are highly processed and full of sugars and other additives. I really recommend taking a trip to the breakfast section of the supermarket sometime and reading the information on the back of the packaging of these products. Even granola, which is presented as a great choice for health, has in its ingredient list (randomly): 4 types of sugar, artificial flavor, emulsifiers, palm oil, rice flour, corn starch.
So how do you make a homemade version? First, you will need a base, which is a mix of any flakes, seeds, nuts, and possibly dried fruit. Combine these ingredients according to what you love, or – as I often do – buy a ready-made mix of dry muesli, to which you can then add anything you like. Just keep in mind that you should always make sure that your store bought mix does not contain any unnecessary added sugars and other additives.
You can also season this mix with spices if you like; cinnamon or gingerbread spice works wonderfully. Or for a chocolate version, you can mix in good quality cocoa powder.
Then you only need two more ingredients: fat and a small amount of sweetener. I have found coconut oil to be the most effective fat, but olive oil or even butter also works. The sweetener serves not only to add a hint of sweetness but mainly to increase the “stickiness” of the mixture and thereby the crispiness of the result. The amount of sweetener per serving is really small. I like to use molasses, but maple syrup will also work beautifully.
If the fat we are using is coconut oil, it needs to be heated to melt into a liquid form first. I usually measure it out directly in a small saucepan anlong with the molasses and melt it over low heat.
Now all that is left to do is to mix the wet mix into the dry mix, so pour the melted oil into the mix of flakes. Once everything is combined, we can transfer it to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper (or its silicone alternative) and put it in the oven. The whole process takes less than 5 minutes, and baking takes about 15 minutes.
Granola
Ingredients
- 400 g Muesli mix
- 60 g Coconut oil
- 30 g Molasses
Optional
- 2 Tsp Cinnamon
- 1 Tsp Maldon seasalt flakes
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 140 degrees C.
- Set a small saucepan over a scale and add the oil and the molasses.
- Put the saucepan on a burner over low heat and leave it there until the oil has competely melted.
- In a large bowl mix the flakes with your seeds and any additions you want to use. If you are using spices, add them now as well.
- When the oil has melted, pour the contents of the saucepan into your dry ingredients and mix well. When all the flakes are coated evenly, tip the mix onto a baking tray lined with parchment paper and spread evenly.
- Place in the oven and bake for 15-20 minutes, until nice and golden.
- Pull out of the oven and let cool.
Notes
I am a mother of three with a passion for cooking and healthy lifestyle. My goal is to show all families that it’s actually really simple to cook healthy, everybody can eat great food, feel great and never stress about food.
