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OK I’ll definitely have to try this, it never occurred to me to make my own granola. This is a great idea and thanks for posting it Melissa.
Benny
Thanks, Benny. I really like making my own granola because:
Love the idea of using different grains. I can’t wait to try it! I make granola every week, too. I have found that storing it in the freezer in a sealed container keeps it nice and fresh. I don’t add any dried fruit until it’s out of the oven. I bake at 300, stirring every 10 mins or so, usually 30-40 mins. Finally, instead of yogurt or milk, I use kefir, which serves as a kind of hybrid of the two! Will try your frozen fruit idea. Thanks!
If you measure the oil first and then the sweetener, it will roll right out. I’ve been making my granola for 40 years. I love the variety and knowing the ingredients are all organic.
@rosremer Thanks for the freezer tip, and good point about kefir milk. It’s so delicious with granola.
@Diana_Johnson yes! Oil first so the syrup or honey doesn’t stick to the measuring cup.
I picked this up from Sir Alton Brown: put the oil, maple syrup and salt in a bowl, whisk together to combine. Then add to the dry ingredients, it will evenly distribute and coat everything.
The other thing I got from him was to bake the granola at a lower temp for a longer time and stir frequently to make a loose granola with nothing stuck together, like a breakfast cereal granola. This is not a technique to use if you are after granola lumps. Bake at 250°F / 120°C, stir every 15-mins until the color you want, usually around 1 ¼ hrs to 1 ½ hrs.
Nice! I’ll give that a try some day. Do you put nuts in from the beginning or add them later?
Raw nuts, put them in with the rest of the dry ingredients, sans the fruit, and bake it all together. I use only raw nuts because they get toasted along with the rest of the dry ingredients. Cooking the granola longer at a lower temp, I have never had an issue with any nuts getting too browned, even pistachios are ok. Skinny shreds of coconut do ok, too, tho the wider, shaved coconut is preferred. (Folks at the local Asian market keep telling me to make my own shaved coconut, apparently it is used in SE Asian cooking.)
I experimented with raisins and currents. By far, Thompson golden raisins were favored, being big, soft and sweet. It is real easy to use too many and make the granola too sweet. Personally, I lean toward chopped apricots and dates. Fruit is added immediately when the granola comes out out the oven, and mixed in while everything is still hot. Stirring in the fruit while the granola is hot seems to make the fruit an integral part of the granola. Adding the fruit after everything has cooled down is more like the fruit is an afterthought.
Also experimented with using honey but it just didn’t work for me, so I stick with maple syrup … and maple syrup sticks to me. 
Many thanks for sharing! I love making my granola because I can be sure that all the ingredients are fresh and high-quality. I also like controlling how much of each ingredient goes into the granola, and I can experiment with different flavor combinations. Plus, it indeed generates less packaging waste overall. However, until now, I used to buy organic granola from guys at https://michelesgranola.com. It seemed much easier, but it’s always better to make it with your own hands, and I feel happy when I receive positive reviews from relatives. All the best!
