How to Make Granola (or super insanely easy customizable homemade granola), with vegan & gluten free options

By Irvin Lin

I wasn’t planning on blogging about my granola, as recipes can be found all over the web for making granola. What the food blogosphere does NOT need is another granola recipe, regardless of how easy or great mine is. But ever since I’ve made it, AJ has eaten it for breakfast pretty much every single day, slowly weaning himself off of prepackaged cereal. Partly it’s because he’s been trying to eat less processed food, partly he’s found that the breakfast cereals out there (including the pre-packaged granola that we’ve found) is too sweet. I guess our tastes have shifted a bit as we’ve aged, and hence our self-deprecating nickname for it – old person cereal. “You have to blog about it!” he’s said to me numerous times, and what I love about his insistence is that he’s right. I do. Because this is probably the easiest recipe for granola that I’ve seen out there short of just buying it at the store. In fact, it’s probably the ONLY recipe for granola you’ll ever need.

That’s because it’s totally customizable to what your tastes are. I make this recipe with less sugar than regular granola, but if you like it sweeter, just add more sugar of either the dry sweetener or wet sweetener. If you love coconut in your granola, just add it in with the fruit at the end. Hate pistachios? Use chopped cashews or another nut of your preference. No cardamom in your cupboard? Use more nutmeg instead. Don’t like maple syrup? Try honey or agave nectar instead. Gluten sensitive? Use gluten free certified oats instead of the multigrain rolled cereal I use. Vegan or allergic to eggs? Leave out the egg whites (which are used to bind the granola to make it chunky) or substitute in 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseeds mixed with two tablespoons of water to make as slurry. I’ve added suggestions on what I use in the recipe, but do what you want. This granola is YOUR granola. Make it how you like it.

Ingredients
3 cups (350 g) rolled cereal – I use a five-grain mix of rolled oats, rolled rye, rolled barley and rolled triticale
2 cups (125 g) nuts – I use half slivered almonds, half chopped pistachios
1 1/3 cups (200 g) seeds – I use 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds, 1/2 cup flax seeds, 1/3 cup raw pumpkin seeds
2 1/4 teaspoon spices – I use 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 3/4 teaspoon ground cardamom, 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 cup dry sweetener – I used coconut palm sugar or dark brown sugar
1/4 cup wet sweetener – I used Grade B Maple Syrup
1/3 cup oil or fat – I use Extra Virgin Olive Oil or melted Coconut Oil
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 large egg whites (Optional. See headnote above.)
1 1/2 cups (225 g) dried fruit – I use a mix of dried cherries and golden raisins

Special equipment
Rimmed 18 x 12 baking sheet

Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 300ËšF.

2. Place the cereal, nuts, seeds, spices and salt in a large bowl. Place the sweeteners, oil and vanilla in a small pan and heat on medium until the dry sweetener has dissolved into the wet sweetener. Pour over the cereal, nuts and spices combo, folding to coat evenly with a large spatula. Add the egg whites or egg subsitute (if using) and fold to coat evenly.

3. Pour the granola onto the rimmed baking sheet. Spread the granola out until it’s flat and evenly distributed. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes. Take out and sprinkle the dried fruit in the middle of the pan. Using a heatproof spatula, “pull” the granola from the edges of the pan to the center, creating a heaping pile over the dried fruit. Then press down and spread the granola with the fruit mixed in, over the pan again until even and flat. You may need to pack the granola in tightly with the spatula. Bake for an additional 15 minutes. Take out of the oven and let cool in the pan until absolutely at room temperature (if you start picking it apart, the granola won’t stay chunky). Store in an airproof jar.

Makes 7 to 8 cups of granola, give or take.