Homemade Maple Almond Granola

Posted on February 19, 2015

Hi Everyone! As the freezing temperatures outside continue, I’m on my fourth cup of tea, just trying to stay warm and thaw my hands out after coming in from the cold. I always seem to forget just how cold winter gets. As much as I like the snow, I’m impatiently counting down until the first day of spring … 28 more days to go! And until then, I’m filling my kitchen with extra warmth and sweetness to get through the rest of the winter. Besides being delicious, this Maple Almond Granola will fill your home with the warmest and sweetest aroma of the maple syrup, almonds and oats all baking together into a perfectly delicious breakfast treat or snack!

Homemade Granola 1

YOU WILL NEED

4 cups rolled oats

1 to 1 1/2 cups almonds, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup maple syrup

1/2 cup vegetable oil

3 tsp pure vanilla extract

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1 to 1 1/2 cups dried cranberries

Homemade Granola 3

DIRECTIONS

Preheat your oven to 325 deg F and line a baking pan with parchment paper (I use a 9×13 inch baking pan). Next, in a large bowl, whisk together the maple syrup, vegetable oil, vanilla extract and ground cinnamon, until you have a smooth mixture. Add in your oats and chopped almonds, and toss everything together until everything is well combined and fully coated in the maple syrup mixture. Pour everything into your baking pan and spread it out into an even layer using a spatula (pack it together pretty well). Bake for about 30 – 35 minutes, or until the oats begin to turn just slightly golden brown. Let cool, then break off into chunks, and add the dried cranberries, or any other dried fruit (or even chocolate chips! Dark chocolate chips would be delicious with the almonds and cranberries!) and store in an airtight container. Serve over yogurt or milk with fresh fruit or eat as a snack!

(*Recipe notes: Towards the last ten minutes or so of baking time, watch the granola very carefully, as it can go from not done yet to burnt VERY quickly. Bake it until it’s just slightly golden brown so you get a nice chunky texture, but don’t have a burnt flavor. Baking time will depend on your oven, you may need to bake it for longer/shorter. As for the ingredients, I didn’t use any additional sugar other than the maple syrup, so this granola isn’t very sweet. If you prefer a sweeter granola, you can add in a couple tablespoons of brown sugar, or honey, or substitute honey for the maple syrup all together and even increase its amount. You could also add other ingredients besides almonds and dried cranberries, like other chopped nuts or dried fruit (I like to add the dried fruit once the granola is done baking, not before), chocolate chips, coconut and various seeds. Add in as much or as little of the nuts/dried fruit/etc as you like!)

Homemade Granola 2

Happy Baking, Everyone! Stay warm and have a wonderful rest of your week!

I will be linking to these awesome blogs!

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  • Christine February 19, 2015 at 5:54 pm

    Hi Maria! Your granola looks so healthy and yummy! I’ve been looking for a home made granola recipe, my kids love granola! Thanks for the visit and for sharing your recipe! Christine@ Cherishing a Sweet Life

    • ahomemadeliving February 19, 2015 at 7:33 pm

      Thanks so much, Christine! I used to love granola as a kid too, in fact every time I make it, I remember how I loved when my mom made it! Thanks so much for stopping by, I hope you have a wonderful rest of your week! 🙂

  • Jennie @ The Diary of a Real Housewife February 19, 2015 at 9:34 pm

    Yumm! I love granola!
    I would love if you would share on my Friday Favorites linkup!

    • ahomemadeliving February 19, 2015 at 9:54 pm

      It’s one of my favorite things too 🙂 And I linked up! Have a great rest of your week, thanks so much for stopping by today, Jennie!

  • Amanda February 19, 2015 at 9:45 pm

    That looks so tasty!! I bet it’d be an amazing energy boosting snack 😀

    • ahomemadeliving February 19, 2015 at 9:56 pm

      Thanks so much, Amanda! It really is, it’s a great way to start the day. And a better snack than my usual chocolate bar or cookie! Thanks so much for stopping by today, I hope you have a great rest of your week! 🙂

  • Ashley ~ 3 Little Greenwoods February 20, 2015 at 3:57 pm

    I love to make our own granola! Thanks so much for the recipe! Pinning!

    • ahomemadeliving February 20, 2015 at 7:04 pm

      I love making granola too, I like that you can control exactly what you put in it! Thanks so much for stopping by, Ashley! Have a great weekend!

  • angie February 21, 2015 at 7:11 pm

    love snack mixes like this not too sweet and perfect for providing lots of energy
    come see us at http://shopannies.blogspot.com

    • ahomemadeliving February 22, 2015 at 3:40 pm

      Me too, Angie! Thanks so much for stopping by, have a good rest of your weekend!

  • Laura@Baking in Pyjamas February 24, 2015 at 7:29 am

    Visiting from Treasure Box Tuesday. I’m in need of a new granola recipe to try out and I’ve most of the ingredients to hand, albeit the cranberries. I shall have to give this a go! I would love for you to stop by and share this and other recipes with us over at Sweet and Savoury Sunday. Have a great day!

    • ahomemadeliving February 24, 2015 at 8:55 am

      Thanks so much for stopping by, Laura, I hope you enjoy this too! And I will come and stop by 🙂

  • Sherry February 27, 2015 at 5:19 pm

    This looks so amazing! And healthy, too. Thanks for linking up to Funtastic Friday. Hope to see you again this week.

    • ahomemadeliving February 28, 2015 at 3:38 pm

      Thank you so much, Sherry! Hope you have a great weekend!

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