We wrote up a recipe…but you really don’t need one for this homemade granola. Who doesn’t love to make something delicious that requires no recipe? One of the many things I love about homemade granola is how it can help you clean out your pantry. Leftover apricots from a fruit and cheese plate? Extra walnuts from your chocolate chip cookie recipe? Why not use them in a homemade granola?
Store-bought granola isn’t just pricey, but it can be hard to find a mixture that isn’t loaded with sugar or fat. You could easily drop $7 and be displeased with an artificially tasting product. Homemade granola will not disappoint, and our ratio of dry to wet ingredients gives you the sweet, nutty flavor with lots of good nutrition.
Here are the steps to make homemade granola with no recipe needed.
Remember the 6:1 part ratio. 6 parts dry to 1 part wet ingredients. A 6:1 ratio ensures you have the perfect mixture to evenly coat your homemade granola with small amounts of fat and sugar. Your part could be any amount, 1 cup, 1/2 cup, 1 container, etc. In this recipe 1 part = 1/2 cup.
- Dry: 2 cups oats + 1 cup nuts/seeds = 3 cups or 6 (1/2 cups)
- Wet: 1/4 cup oil + 1/4 cup honey = 1/2 cup or 1 (1/2 cup)
Mix up your dry ingredients. While the star of any granola show is oats, you should add in a couple of other dry ingredients. Aim for 3-4 different options. We went with pumpkin seeds, walnuts, and chia seeds for a healthy dose of fats.
Whisk up the wet ingredients. The wet ingredients give the homemade granola its golden brown hue, nutty taste, and occasional clump of yum. We added an egg white to help bump up the clump factor.
Add seasonings. We didn’t get too fancy with a bit of salt and cinnamon in this recipe but feel free to get adventurous! Ground ginger, turmeric, red chili powder could be easy ways to add a spicy health kick.
Bake until golden brown Baking low and slow give the homemade granola its crunch and allows the flavors to fully develop. Remember to give your homemade granola several stirs during cooking, and if your homemade granola doesn’t evenly spread out in one layer, bust out two cooking sheets.
Add dried fruit at the end. Adding the dried fruit at the end, keeps it, well, not so dried out. We’ve all had store-bought granola that almost caused us to lose a tooth. Not in your homemade version!
We had dried apricots, figs and walnuts on hand, but you can use any combination of nuts, seeds and dried fruit. Try your hand at this recipe a couple times, and you will become a granola pro. NO recipe needed!
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homemade granola with dried apricots and walnuts
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 45
- Total Time: 1 hour
- Yield: 20 (1/4 cup) 1x
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats (quick, 1 minute)
- 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds, raw
- 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
- 1/4 coconut oil, melted
- 1/4 cup honey
- 1 egg white
- 1/2 t. salt
- 1 t. cinnamon
- 1/2 cup dried apricots, coarsely chopped
- 1/2 cup dried figs, coarsely, chopped
Instructions
- Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees.
- In a large bowl, combine dry ingredients (minus fruit).
- In a medium-sized bowl, combine wet ingredients.
- Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients. Stir thoroughly until all ingredients well mixed.
- Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and spread granola evenly on pan.
- Bake at 300 degrees for 40-45 minutes until granola is golden brown. Stir every 15 minutes.
- When you bring granola out of the oven, stir in the apricots and figs.
- Let cool before you transfer to a storage container.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1/4 cup
- Calories: 115
- Sugar: 5.3 g
- Sodium: 30.1 mg
- Fat: 5.3 g
- Carbohydrates: 13.8 g
- Protein: 2.2 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg