Secret Ingredient Crispy Granola

Are you tired of pumpkin everything yet? I do pumpkin with the best of them. Pumpkin scones, pumpkin butter – even chili with pumpkin and pumpkin-filled pavlovas to name just a few. But I’m happy to step away from pumpkins and munch on granola these days. Of course, if you’re a pumpkinoholic, you’ll be glad to know there are pumpkin seeds in this Secret Ingredient Crispy Granola. But really, this post is not about pumpkin anything, it’s about building a lighter, better granola.

This recipe began with an old standby – my favorite, lightly-sweetened, easy granola. But just as I was pulling out the ingredients, I realized that I had less than the required 3 cups of rolled oats. What to do? Instead of abandoning my plan, I improvised. 

I took a few other liberties with my original recipe and looked at an Alton Brown granola for a bit more inspiration.

Why is Secret Ingredient Crispy Granola Special?

• First, there is the secret ingredient. On a whim, I grabbed a box of crisped rice breakfast cereal leftover from a rice crispy treat adventure that I haven’t yet posted. (My leftovers were not Kellogg’s brand, so they didn’t use the Kellegg-trademarked name, Rice Krispies.) I measured out the oats and found I had just 2 cups. Staying with the basic 3 cup measurement, I substituted 1 cup of the crisped rice for oats. The rice cereal lightens the granola and makes it crispier than I’ve ever achieved with “regular” granola
• Second, this version is less sweet than many recipes for granola. This recipe ditches the honey and uses a combination of sweetened and unsweetened coconut. (Or if you prefer, use my handy method for converting unsweetened into sweetened coconut.) Personally I like variety and often have opened bags of different types of coconut, so I use whatever I have on hand. 
• Third, it’s so simple. Many granola recipes, including my original one, heat the liquids before mixing them with the dry ingredients. This recipe skips the heating and just mixes the oil, maple syrup, and salt.

The steps are easy.

How to Make Secret Ingredient Crispy Granola

• First, pick your ingredients. Or if you’re like me, scour your pantry and refrigerator for bits of nuts, seeds, and coconut. I like variety. So I include several types of nuts, at least one seed, and several different types of coconut.
• Next, mix all the dry ingredients except the salt. I use a large spoon or my (clean) hands.
• Then combine the wet ingredients plus the salt and pour that liquid over the dry ingredients.
• Mix everything up well, moistening all the dry ingredients. Then spread the granola out in a thin layer on two half sheet pans.
• Bake it “slow and low,” turning it every 15 minutes or so. The turning allows the granola to cook evenly. It’s best to rotate pans (unless you have a double oven and can bake one in each oven) and turn them back to front once during the baking process. Allow the baked granola to cool in the pans before moving it to airtight containers.

Enjoy Secret Ingredient Crispy Granola on top of yogurt, with milk, or mixed with fruit or other cereals. And if you eat it by itself in a cup or by the handful, I won’t tell. 

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Secret Ingredient Crispy Granola

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Keyword brown sugar, coconut, granola, maple syrup, nuts, oats

Prep Time 30 minutes

Cook Time 1 hour 15 minutes

Total Time 1 hour 45 minutes

Servings 6 cups

Author Laura

Ingredients

• 2 cups rolled oats (not quick oats) 6.75 oz/195 g
• 1 cup crisped rice 1.75 oz/50 g
• 2 cups chopped or slivered nuts 8.75 oz/250 g See note
• 1 cup coconut, sweetened, unsweetened or a combination See note
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds 1 oz/32 g
• 1/4 cup dark brown sugar 1.75 oz/50 g See note
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil 2 oz/59 ml
• 1/4 cup maple syrup 2 oz/59 ml
• 3/4 tsp kosher salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 250°F/ 120°C. Put the racks just above and just below the middle - in other words, not too close to the top or bottom of the oven.

2. In the large bowl, combine and mix well the oats, crisped rice, nuts, coconut, brown sugar and cinnamon.

3. In a small bowl or a liquid measuring cup, combine the oil, maple syrup, and salt. Mix them well.

4. Pour the liquid into the dry ingredients and mix until all of the dry ingredients are coated. Divide the granola between the two sheet pans and smooth it out so that each pan has a thin layer of granola.

5. Bake the granola for 1 hour (60 minutes) to 1 hour and 15 minutes (75 minutes), stirring the granola approximately every 15 minutes and turning the pans front to back. About halfway through, switch the position of the pans, to put the one on top below and vice versa.

6. When the granola is golden brown, remove from the oven and let it cool in the pans. Once cooled, store in airtight container(s).

Recipe Notes

I like to use at least three types of chopped and slivered nuts, to get variety in taste and form. Cashews, almonds, and pistachios are my favorites, but feel free to experiment.