Really Great Granola

Really Great Granola

Honestly, we make this granola pretty much every single week. There's something about a big batch of homemade granola that just makes the whole week feel more sorted, and this one is genuinely special. You get these brilliant clusters of toasted oats, crunchy nuts, coconut flakes, and little pockets of chocolate and raisins all bound together with maple syrup and vanilla. It's so much better than anything from a bag; once you've made it yourself you'll never go back. Get this on over the weekend and you'll be sorted for breakfasts all week long.

Cook: 45 min
Serves 4

Before You Start

  • Preheat oven to 180°C
  • Large baking tray lined with parchment
  • Large, deep pan
  • Large mixing bowl

Ingredients

  • 1 tsp vanilla essence
  • 360g jumbo oats
  • 120g coconut flakes
  • 60g Brazil nuts
  • 60g pecans chopped
  • 30g coconut sugar or brown sugar
  • 120g coconut oil
  • 80ml maple syrup
  • 60g dark chocolate chips
  • 60g raisins or any dried fruit
  • 1 splash of plant-based milk
  • chopped fresh fruit

Method

1

Make the granola

  • Melt the coconut oil in a large, deep pan
  • Turn off the heat and add the maple syrup and vanilla extract
  • Mix the oats, nuts, coconut flakes, chocolate, raisins and sugar together in a large bowl
  • Add the dry mixture to the pan and mix well until everything is combined (if the granola looks a bit dry, add some more maple syrup)
2

Bake the granola

  • Pour your granola onto baking tray and pat down with a spoon or hands until it’s as tightly packed as possible
  • Bake for 40 minutes. DON’T touch or stir the granola whilst baking, that way you get those nice, big, delicious clusters
3

Finish, store, then serve

  • Remove from oven and sprinkle over the dark chocolate and raisins
  • Leave to cool before breaking into chunks and storing in airtight jars
  • Serve with dairy-free milk and fresh fruit

Tips & Variations

  • Make it your own: We love swapping in whatever nuts and seeds we've got kicking around in the cupboard. Pecans, cashews, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds; all brilliant here. Just keep the quantities roughly the same.
  • Watch it near the end: Granola can go from perfect to burnt pretty quickly, so keep an eye on it in the last 10 minutes. Every oven is a bit different and you want it golden, not dark.
  • Store it well: Once it's completely cool, get it into an airtight jar or container. It'll stay crunchy and delicious for up to two weeks, though in our houses it never lasts that long.

Why This Works

The trick here is patting the granola down firmly onto the baking tray before it goes in the oven and then leaving it completely alone while it bakes. That's what gives you those big satisfying clusters rather than a load of loose crumbs. Melting the coconut oil first and getting everything properly coated before it hits the tray is the other bit that makes a real difference. It helps everything toast evenly and go beautifully golden.