This honey almond granola is perfect on parfaits, smoothie bowls, and baked fruit and requires less than 10 minutes of prep work.
It’s hard to not to love granola. Who can resist the sweet goodness of toasted oats and honey? It’s nice to purchase (especially from local sources), but lately Alex and I have had some fun trying to hone our own recipe. (And when I say hone, I mean remake every couple nights to vary each and every parameter. I feel like some kind of granola scientist!). Luckily, the granola research project came to a culmination with this honey almond granola recipe.
Notes on making this honey almond granola
Our goal for this honey almond granola was a recipe that was basic, easy, and healthy. We also only wanted to use natural sweetener – in this case, honey! When purchasing the honey for this recipe, try and find a local source for your honey if you can. Not only will the quality of the honey be better, but you’ll also be supporting local businesses, which we’re all about!
Granola is something you can easily personalize to your own taste with whatever types of nuts, seeds, dried fruits, or sweeteners you’d like. The Kitchn shared a granola formula that we found particularly handy: combine about 8 cups dry ingredients (oats, nuts, and seeds) with 1 cup wet ingredients (1 part oil to 3 parts sweetener), then add 1 to 2 cups dried fruit after baking. You can use any type of dried fruit you like here: we used raisins, but substitute in dried cherries, apricots, or blueberries.
Want more with almonds? We’ve got 15 great almond recipes for you to try.
How to store granola
If you go through granola as quickly as we do, make a double batch of this honey almond granola and freeze it for later. You can freeze granola in a zip-top bag or an airtight container for a few months. Just set it out on your counter and wait for about 10 minutes for it to come to room temperature before digging in!
There are so many ways you can enjoy granola besides in a breakfast parfait. A few of our favorite ways to munch on this honey almond granola are:
With milk—plain granola and milk is one of life’s simplest pleasures. Top with sliced fruit if you’re feeling extra hungry.
On a smoothie bowl—smoothie bowls are easy to make and are surprisingly filling. This tart cherry smoothie bowl is a good recipe to start with.
As a topping for baked or poached fruit—baked fruit is an underrated dessert. It’s the perfect treat during the winter and takes little effort to make. These poached pears with granola are incredible and look so much fancier than they actually are.
Mixed into popsicles—these açaí bowl popsicles are a simple summer treat everyone will enjoy. The granola at the bottom of the popsicle adds a unique texture to the popsicles.
In dessert parfaits—any creamy, layered treat is the perfect vehicle for crunchy granola. These healthy-ish pumpkin parfaits feature granola as a simple, yet elegant topping.
With peanut butter and sliced fruit—sliced fruit can be made more filling by dipping it in peanut butter and granola. The mix of textures and flavors hit the spot every time.
In a large bowl, mix ¼ cup vegetable oil, ¾ cup honey, 2 teaspoons vanilla extract, 1 teaspoon cinnamon, and ¼ teaspoon salt.
Add 6 cups oats, 1 cup sliced almonds, and ½ cup slivered almonds. Stir with wooden spoon to evenly coat.
Spread onto a parchment paper-lined baking sheet and bake around 45 minutes until golden, removing the pan to stir every 15 minutes.
Remove from oven and let cool completely, then add 1 ½ cup raisins to the cooled mixture. Store in air-tight container.
Notes
To make this recipe vegan, use maple syrup or agave instead of honey.
About the authors
Alex & Sonja
Hi! We’re Alex & Sonja Overhiser, authors of the acclaimed cookbooks A Couple Cooks and Pretty Simple Cooking—and a real life couple who cooks together. We founded the A Couple Cooks website in 2010 to share seasonal recipes and the joy of home cooking. Now, we’ve got over 3,000 well-tested recipes, including Mediterranean diet, vegan, vegetarian, pescatarian, smoothies, cocktails, and more!
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