I love watching old Alton Brown cooking shows on TV. Not only are the recipes good, but he breaks it down on a food science level mixed with a little slap stick, comedy. No fake southern hospitality lard here 😂

I searched “Alton Brown granola recipe” and found this recipe here. What’s great about this recipe is the flavor. It tastes great, easy to make and granola recipes in itself are very versatile. I bumped up the nutritional factor by adding some Chia seeds amongst other things. I also switched out cashews for sunflower seeds and doubled up to 2 cups of sliced almonds because it’s what I had on hand and cashews/pecans/walnuts are pricey, added cinnamon & vanilla for flavor and added honey for extra sweetness. This is a great snack on its own, on top of yogurt, ice cream, or just with some milk as cereal.

INGREDIENTS

3 cups rolled oats
2 cups sliced almonds
3 tbsp Chia seeds
1/3 cup shelled sunflower seeds
3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp honey
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 teaspoon salt

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

2. In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, Chia seeds, sunflower seeds, coconut, brown sugar and cinnamon.

3. In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil, honey, vanilla and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.

4. Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl.

5. If you are adding dried fruit, I. E. raisins (see variation section below), add to baked granola m8xture in bowl and mix until evenly distributed.

VARIATIONS

Additions or substitution suggestions. If you add, you may have to increase your liquid to cover the extra.

raisins
craisins
Dried blueberries
Shelled pumpkin seeds
Nuts – peanut, peacan, walnut, almond slivered, (can leave whole, or chop up in food processor)
1/3 cup flax meal
1/4-1/3 cup wheat germ
Mini dark chocolate chips after its cooled
Instead of olive oil I might melt Coconut oil for some added flavor. If you want a more neutral flavor use canola oil instead of olive oila

NOTES

Since the sunflower seeds were salted, I’ll try using less salt. Maybe only 1/2 tsp instead of the full 3/4 tsp
Cut the sugar content a little – Since I added honey, I’ll try using unsweetened coconut
Next time try with no honey
It’s not that sweet already since this makes a lot