Homemade 3-Way Granola
Homemade Granola Cereal, Trail Mix and Granola Bars: If you love to eat all kinds of granola, then this recipe is for you! Made with healthy ingredients, this large batch recipe is a staple you will love. Because it can be changed up in so many different ways, you won’t get tired of it and you will be eating a much healthier (and fresher) granola than you can buy at the store.
Homemade Granola from the Experts
When I talk about “experts”, in this case I am talking aoub the homeschool mamas from the 1970s who ground their own wheat and made everything from scratch. Don’t worry, I’m not going to ask you to grind any wheat, although we would all be better off if we did. But, this homemade 3-Way Granola recipe has been passed down through the homeschool community for a VERY long time.
When I first learned the recipe, I was sitting around a table of moms for a Bible study and someone asked across the table for the homemade granola recipe. One of the moms started rattling it off from memory and I started writing as fast as I could. This was 2002 and I have to admit I had never even heard of flaxseed and certainly didn’t know how to grind it! Luckily, it wasn’t too long until we could start buying ground flaxseed at the grocery store. Most of the mom’s at the table were grinding their own whole wheat flour for all their breads and other recipes. I was definitely the newbie around the table. I never did start grinding wheat, but I still think it would be fun to try sometime.
One Bowl with Many Variations
The basic granola recipe is simple and easy to make. Everything is mixed up by hand and spread onto a couple of cookie sheets to bake at a low temperature until they are crispy, with larger chunks still a bit chewy in the middle. This granola is perfect on it’s own for a bowl of cereal or yogurt topping, but you can add in berries or bananas (or chopped dark chocolate) to take it to the next level.
Using this same baked batch of homemade granola, you can stir in lots of fun ingredients for trail mix once it has cooled. Depending on what you add, it can remain a healthy treat, or an all out indulgence.
Stir It Up!
- peanuts
- almonds
- walnuts
- macadamia nuts
- cashews
- dried cranberries
- raisins
- dried mango
- banana chips
- dried apricot
- cacao nibs
- chopped dark chocolate bar
- shaved coconut
- M&Ms
- chocolate chips
- white chocolate chips
- mini Reese Cups
- Reese Pieces
- butterscotch chips
- chocolate covered coffee beans
By simply adding two eggs, you can press this same mixture into a 9×13 cake pan and you’ve got some tasy, not overly sweet, granola bars. I like to stir in chocolate chips before baking them, and drizzle with a little almond butter or peanut butter once they have cooled. Craisins are another nice addition to the homemade granola bars. When my kids were young, we would pack the granola bars for camping. it was one of our favorites because they tasted great and you could carry them anywhere. Here are a few more favorite camping treats.
Simple Tips for Homemade Granola
- Line your pans with parchment paper for the loose granola and for baking the bars. It makes for easy cleanup!
- You can measure all your liquid in one large measuring cup. See the recipe for details. It’s easier to srit it if you use a 3 cup or larger measuring cup, but a 2 cup will work just fine.
- Add in anything you really like to the granola bars before baking them. More nuts, Craisins, chocolate chips, or a cup of almond butter are a few favorites.
- Let the bars cool before you cut them if you like a nice, clean cut. They are very filling so don’t cute them too big.
- Store the granola cereal, trail mix or bars in the refrigerator for up to a month.
- Store on the counter or pantry in an airtight container for a week.
- Store in the freezer up to 3 months.
- I typically divide up the batch and store some in the freezer to pull out later. This makes a large batch of granola.
- Use metal pans.
- If you are taking the trail mix outdoors, avoid adding items that will melt easily or it gets messy really fast! (speaking from experience . . .)
Nutritious Ingredients and Inexpensive to Make
One of the things I love about this granola is that it’s not super sweet and it’s made with whole ingredients, nothing processed. You can find boxed granola that offers the same lower grams of sugar, but you will pay a LOT for a very small box. This recipe makes around 24 half-cup servings. There are a few really good brands out there, but most will have ingredients you can’t pronounce. Many will have more sugar, more fat and more calories. If you are a macro-nutrient counter, this will be a bit high in carbs, but you can adjust another meal to compensate!
Ingredients that make this granola a healthy option is the whole wheat flour, oats, and flaxseed. If you want to lower the fat a bit, leave out the pecans. We all need to eat some good “fats” in our diet so I prefer to leave them in.
I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as our family does. My absolute favorite way to eat this homemade granola is to put a 1/3 cup on top of Oikos Triple Zero Vanilla Yogurt. It’s a great quick breakfast, high in protein and healthy carbs. Be sure and leave a comment and let me know what you think.
You are precious in His sight,
Homemade Healthy Granola
Ingredients
- ¾ C olive oil
- ¾ C honey
- ½ C water
- 2 tsp pure vanilla
- 6 C rolled oats (old-fashioned, not quick-cooking)
- 2 C whole wheat flour
- 1 C pecans, chopped (or other favorite nuts)
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ C flax seed
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 250℉.
- Line two jelly roll pans or cookie sheets that have lip around the edge with parchment paper. (Pan approximately 15 x 10.5 inches works well, or larger)
- Using a 2 cups measuring cup or larger, add all the liquid ingredients and gently stir to combine. *Pour olive oil to ¾ cup line, add honey to 1½ cup line, add water to 2 cup line, then add the vanilla.
- Combine all dry ingredients, except chocolate chips, in a LARGE mixing bowl.
- Pour liquid ingredients over dry ingredients.
- Stir until really well combined. You don't want any pockets of batter with flour not stirred in.
- Spread the mixture evenly between the two cookie sheets, leaving the batter loosely spread out in clumps
- Bake for 30 minutes, then pull out of oven and stir.
- Bake for another 30 minutes.
- Place pans on a wire rack to cool.
- Once completely cool. Store in an airtight containers. It makes a lot so you will need several containers to store it.
- Granola is good for a week unrefrigerated.Refrigerated, the granola will be good for up to a month.Store extra in the freezer for up to 3 months.
- For cereal, stir in some fresh blueberries or sliced bananas.
- For yogurt, use as a topping for a simple breakfast or snack.(This is my favorite way to eat it!)
ADD IN YOUR FAVORITE INGREDIENTS FOR CEREAL or TRAIL MIX
- For Cereal: Top with fresh fruit.For Trial Mix: Add in 1 cup of any of these ingredients after the mix is completely cooled. This granola is good just as it is, but feel free to add in nuts, dried fruit, or shaved coconut. A chopped dark chocolate bar and craisins are especially good!Obviously, the items you add will affect how healthy the mix is. A healthy option is Lilly's Dark Chocolate Baking Chips with no sugar added.
TO MAKE GRANOLA BARS
- Add two eggs to the liquid ingredients and 1 cup of chocolate chips to the dry ingredients. Feel free to add in other ingredients such as dried fruit or coconut.
- Stir well to combine
- Spray a 9 x 13 metal pan with olive oil, or line with parchment paper.
- Press the batter evenly into the pan. Use your hands to press the mixture down firmly. This will prevent less crumbling when you cut and eat them.
- Bake at 350° for 30 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting.
- I like to cut them into bars or squares and drizzle with melted peanut butter.
