Maple Pecan Granola

The thing about this granola is it smells fantastic as it bakes, like a batch of oatmeal cookies, and everyone in your home will wander into the kitchen, with hungry, inquiring eyes. Or at least that’s what happened in the test kitchen. And can we blame them? Between the toasty oats, the nutty pepitas, the crunchy sunflower seeds, the maple-coated pecans, and all the spices — cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger — it’s simply irresistible.

Our favorite part of this granola might be the level of salt; it’s just right. Or it might be that it isn’t overly sweet. OR it might be the dried tart cherries. Okay … it might be that it has the perfect combination of crunchy and chewy bits, none of which clump up into big chunks. (We like our granola distributed evenly throughout our bowl, thankyouverymuch!)

We know — so gushy. But we could genuinely eat this granola for breakfast every day. It’s amazing splashed with oat or cow milk (we love how the spices swirl through the milk à la Cinnamon Toast Crunch), or piled on yogurt. Also good: eating it by the handful on a sunrise hike. And it’s a real stick-to-your-ribs granola that keeps you full well into the day. No mid-morning tummy grumbles here!

Our tip: this is a great recipe to make with the kiddos in your life; it’s super easy, and there’s so much dumping and stirring.

Yield: 9 cups

Ingredients

3 ⅔ cups old-fashioned rolled oats

¾ cup raw pepitas

¾ cup raw sunflower seeds

2 Tbsp granulated sugar

¾ tsp flake salt

¼ tsp Gelson’s ground cinnamon

⅛ tsp Gelson’s ground nutmeg

⅛ tsp Gelson’s ground ginger

½ cup unrefined coconut oil, melted

½ cup maple syrup, divided

1 ½ cups raw pecans, chopped rough

1 cup dried tart cherries, chopped rough

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 375° and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a medium bowl, toss together the old-fashioned rolled oats, raw pepitas, raw sunflower seeds, granulated sugar, flake salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, coconut oil, and ¼ cup maple syrup.

3. Transfer the oat mixture to the prepared baking sheet and bake for 7 to 10 minutes, or until the edges are starting to brown. Remove the pan from the oven, toss the granola, and continue baking for 7 to 10 minutes more, or until all of the granola is light golden brown.

4. In a small bowl, stir together the raw pecans with the remaining ¼ cup maple syrup. Toss the pecan mixture into the granola and bake for 7 to 10 minutes, or until evenly golden brown.

5. Remove the granola from the oven, stir in the dried tart cherries, and let cool completely. The granola can be stored in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Recipe adapted from: The New York Times

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