Granola is a staple breakfast at our house and a frequent ice cream topping. This puffed grain granola is my most requested recipe and the recipe I’ve most gifted or made for others. I’ve once again made a few changes since I last posted it on the site. I always make the recipes I post at least twice before I post them, using the second time as a recipe test of sorts. Somehow the moment I post it signals the time for another change because the recipe I end up making time and time again is almost always a slightly revised version of the one I post. This is the latest version of my favorite granola.

My favorite granola started out as crunchy clusters with almond slices, a recipe adapted from Deb Perelman‘s Smitten Kitchen Cookbook. I then added puffed grains and other ingredients from Kashi’s GoLean Honey Almond Flax Crunch cereal. I then replaced the almond slices with pecans and the puffed wheat with kamut and started baking it in porcelain dishes to give me more room to stir the ingredients while the granola was baking. In this latest version, I added puffed millet and took out the flax seeds.

One hack I’ve learned is to “grease” the tablespoon before measuring out the honey. I measure out the first tablespoon of butter or oil, then measure out the honey so it slides right out, then repeat. Of course, you’d need to be able to pour the honey into the tablespoon to be able to measure it out in this way. I wouldn’t want you to contaminate your honey with a dirty tablespoon if you’re planning on scooping the honey out of a jar.

To best beat the heat, I double the recipe and I make it either in the early morning, before my apartment turns into an oven all on its own, or in the evening. That way, I only have to suffer once in the added oven heat for two batches of granola. Still seems to run out quicker than I would hope.

Favorite low-sodium granola with puffed grains, pecans, maple syrup, and honey

Makes about 4 cups (940ml) granola

Ingredients

• 3 cups (53g) puffed kamut, no salt added
• 1 cup (18g) puffed rice, no salt added
• 1 cup (15g) puffed millet, no salt added
• 1 cup (83g) old fashioned oats
• 1 cup (105g) raw pecans, chopped
• 1/4 cup (25g) wheat germ (optional)
• 2 tablespoons (18g) sesame seeds
• 1/4 cup (80g) maple syrup or other sweetener
• 2 tablespoons (22g) melted butter or olive oil
• 2 tablespoons (35g) honey
• 1 teaspoon (5mL) vanilla
• 1 egg white from an extra large egg or 2 egg whites from smaller eggs

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, combine together the dry ingredients (puffed kamut, puffed rice, puffed millet, oats, pecan pieces, sesame seeds, and wheat germ, if using). Set the bowl aside to whisk the egg white.
3. Whisk the egg white until frothy in a medium-sized bowl.
4. Returning to the dry ingredient bowl, stir in the maple syrup, butter or olive oil, honey, and vanilla until combined. Then gently stir in the whisked egg white until the mixture is evenly coated.
5. Transfer the mixture to a porcelain or glass dish. The size of the porcelain dish I use is 9″x13″ (22.5cm x 33cm). Spread out the mixture, concentrating slightly more of the granola mixture near the edges, where it cooks more quickly.
6. Bake the granola, stirring every 10 minutes, until the pecans are browned and the mixture starts to look dry when stirred, about 45-50 minutes. The puffed grains will not be crunchy right out of the oven but they should become crunchy as the granola cools.
7. Cool completely. Once cooled, store the granola into an airtight container. I store mine in the 1 liter (33 3/4 oz) Bormioli Rocco Fido jar.
8. The granola keeps at room temperature for about two weeks.

Tips

Sources of sodium

• Egg whites

Approximate sodium intake per serving size of 2/3 cup (158ml/53g/1.9oz): 9mg

• all from the egg white, which has approximately 55mg sodium

Serving suggestion

• My favorite way to eat it is over plain yogurt sweetened with a little bit of maple syrup or honey and topped with fresh fruit. Check the nutritional label if you consume store-bought yogurt. Yogurt has a fairly large amount of sodium. Choosing original style rather than lower-fat yogurt helps.

Where to buy puffed grains

• You’re looking for puffed cereals whose only ingredient is the grain (kamut, rice, or millet) and no salt added. You might find them in your grocery store in the cereal isle. My regular grocery store doesn’t carry puffed grains so I’ve been buying mine from jet.com when they’re reasonably priced (under $3) and I can reach the free shipping threshold. Amazon also has them, and you’ll probably find the best price on Prime Pantry if you have a membership. I’ve also bought them in store at Whole Foods and Sprouts and at grocery stores that carry a larger selection of health food, whatever that means. If you’re based in the US, you can use the “find a store” option on Arrowhead Mills and Nature’s Path to see where you can find puffed grains near you.

Modifications

• Variations

  Add in all of your favorite granola toppings, skip all of the toppings you don’t like. If you want to add dried fruit, add it before transferring the cooled granola to an airtight container.

• Make it vegan

  Choose the olive oil over the butter, skip the egg whites, and replace the honey with another sweetener. I’ve never tried to make a vegan version myself, but I suspect that it will still be very tasty though maybe not as crunch as the non-vegan version.

Did you make this?

• If you recreate this recipe, I’d love to know! Leave a comment here and tag @alickofsalt on social media.