Maple Almond Granola

Have I ever told you about my love for yogurt and granola?  No?  Well, I'm telling you now.  Love, pure love!  I love them together.   I love them separately.  I love them at any time of day, for a meal or a snack.  I love yogurt and granola! 

While I whole-heartedly believe in a diet based on balance and variety, my weekday breakfast is the one exception...it pretty much rotates between Greek yogurt & granola and oatmeal.  (The weekend however is a totally different and delicious story, that often involves eggs and biscuits and pancakes and french toast and waffles).

At any give time you're likely to find the back of my refrigerator lined and stack with Greek yogurt.  I'm not talking about the single serve containers, I'm talking about the 17+ ounce containers.  I eat a lot of yogurt....so delicious and so much protein.  The very first time I tried Greek yogurt (which coincidentally happened to be in Greece), about 10 years ago, that first thick, tart spoonful was not at all what I was expecting.  You know that feeling when you eat something, and expect to taste one thing, but actually taste something totally different?  Yea, that's what happened.  It was nothing like the Dannon Fruit on the Bottom I was accustomed to eating at home.  I was intrigued.  I found myself curiously diving back into the bowl for bite after bite, trying to determine if I liked this "foreign" yogurt. Before I knew it my bowl was empty.  I went through the same ritual for the next couple days.  By the end of my trip I was head over heals for Greek yogurt.  Imagine my delight a few years later when the dairy section of my supermarket was finally stocked with this wonderful yogurt.

As of late my kitchen could  possibly be confused with a granola factory.  It was getting a little out of hand.  Last week I finally scaled back granola production to one day a week

I've tried a lot of different granola recipes, and a lot of different variations.  There have been some delightful surprised, and some total flops.  This one, right here, tops the charts, hands down!  This granola has a great crunch-factor, some different textures, it's sweet without tasting like it's overloaded with sugar, and best of all, has an amazing flavor combination.

Print Recipe

Maple Almond Granola

(Adapted from Baked: New Frontiers in Baking)

2 cups old-fashioned oats

1/4 cup ground flax seed

1 teaspoon cinnamon

1 teaspoon ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

3 tablespoons canola oil

1/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 teaspoon almond extract

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 cup sliced almonds

1/2 cup shredded coconut

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.  Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a large bowl, add oats, ground flax seed, cinnamon, ginger and salt, and mix together.

In a medium bowl, combine oil, maple syrup, brown sugar, almond & vanilla extracts. Whisk until completely combined.

Pour the wet mixture over the oat mixture and use a spatula or your hands to combine them.  (If you like big chunks in your granola, gather up some of the mixture in each hand and make a fist.  Repeat until all of the oats are coated with the wet mixture.)

Pour the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet.  Spread it out evenly, but leave a few clumps here and there for texture.

Bake for 10 minutes, then remove from the oven and use a spatula to lift & flip the granola. Sprinkle the almonds and coconut over the granola, mix together. 

Return the baking sheet to the oven, and bake for another 10-12 minutes, or until the coconut is just golden.

Remove the pan from the oven and let cool.

Store granola in an air tight container, and it should last 7-10 days.

Other tasty add-ins: pepitas, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts, pistachios, dried cranberries, dried cherries, raisins (if you include dried fruit, be sure to add after the granola has been removed from the oven & cooled)....and the list goes on and on.

Enjoy!