Extra Clumpy, Giant Cluster Granola
This clumpy granola recipe is all about the giant clusters! Like actual clusters, not crumbs. My recipe shares the secrets to making chunky oat clusters that has a base of both steel-cut oats and rolled oats. The granola is naturally sweetened with coconut sugar and maple syrup, and happens to be vegan!
Yield: 5 cups
Ingredients
- 1 1/2 cups steel-cut oats
- 1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1/3 cup olive oil, or avocado, or grapeseed oil
- 1/4 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup coconut sugar
- 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 cup flaked almonds
- 1 cup walnuts or pecans, barely chopped
- 3 tablespoons ground flax seed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
- Place parchment paper on a large rimmed baking sheet. Add both types of oats to the pan and spread out. Bake for 7 minutes, to toast them.
- Meanwhile, combine olive oil, maple syrup, coconut sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, sea salt in a bowl, whisk together.
- Remove oats from oven and pour into a large bowl. Add nuts and flax seed. Then pour liquid mixture over the top and stir to fully coat.
- Turn oven down to 300 degrees F. Spread granola onto baking sheet, pressing down to make it stick together in compact form, as one uniform piece that is about 1/2 inch to 1 inch thick.
- Bake for 30-35 minutes, until mostly dry. DO NOT STIR. Remove from oven and let cool completely (it will harden as it sits, patience) before breaking it into big chunks.
Notes
Adapted from The First Mess Cookbook, by Laura Wright.
*I store my granola in a large glass container with a sealed top. A quart sized ziploc bag also works. Both ways keep air and moisture out, so that crisp texture is not lost.
