I just can’t believe how easy it can be to make crunchy granola.

I’ve always made granola that involved a bajillion ingredients and never turned out crunchy. And I don’t like soggy granola. Really, I don’t like anything soggy. Except for oreos. I let those babies soak in my {almond} milk until they’re totally soaked through. Ooooh yes, my mouth is watering. Milk-soaked oreos are just about my favorite thing ever.

So off topic, but it makes me think oreos might be good in granola. Stick with me, I’ll need to try that.

This granola has opened the granola doors (err??) for me. It’s so easy, like two steps easy, and uses minimal ingredients. One of my favorite spots in the grocery store (anyone else have a favorite spot, or is that weird?) is the bulk section, and it may very well be the best location for scouting granola ingredients. Just peruse the bins and grab what looks good. Combine with sweetener, bake and eat. Easy as pie. Or granola…because pie isn’t that easy.

Since making your own granola ends up being a fraction of the cost of store-bought AND it can be much healthier, I think I’ll be making a lot more of it. If you have any ideas or tried-and-true flavors and combinations, please share!

mocha cherry granola

2 cups old fashioned oats
1/2 cup dried cherries (I roughly chopped mine to get the most bang for my buck)
1/3 cup flaked coconut
1/4 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup Jif Mocha Cappuccino flavored Hazelnut Spread (or I’m sure Nutella would be great, too!)
1/3 cup honey, brown rice syrup or maple syrup
1/4 tsp salt

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and line a baking sheet with parchment or a Silpat.

Combine oats, cherries, coconut and almond in a bowl.

In a saucepan over low to medium heat, melt hazelnut spread and sweeteners with salt.

Pour heated mixture into oat mixture and combine until all the oats are coated. If you just can’t possibly get everything covered, don’t panic! Just stick it into your preheating oven for a minute or two to let it warm up again and mix. I found that using my hands for all the mixing worked best. Just avoid touching the hot pan .

Bake for 25 minutes, mixing every 8 minutes. It won’t be crispy when it’s done; it takes about 20-30 minutes after baking to become crunchy.

Store in an air-tight container in the refrigerator and it should last a couple weeks. But I think you’ll eat it all by then…

Loosely adapted from Sally’s Baking Addiction Dark Chocolate Cherry Nutella Granola