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Homemade Granola Clusters

April 13, 2020 by thedomesticrebel | 4 Comments

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granola clusters in white bowlIf you ever wanted to learn how to make your own cost-efficient granola, now’s the time! My Homemade Granola Clusters are surprisingly simple to make, more cost-effective than those overpriced grocery bags of granola and it tastes AMAZING. Plus, you can control the ingredients!

I am a granola person.

Well, yes and no. In that I love granola, yes. In that I live in a yurt with crystals, no.

When I was a kid, I disliked granola and trail mix and things like that because they always had ingredients in them I couldn’t stand, like dried fruit. Dried fruit is my arch-nemesis. I can’t stand the stuff, be it raisins (gross on their own accord), pineapple, or apricots. Hate it ALL. Also, the ratio of dried fruit to chocolate candies was WAY off. Who wants more fruit than chocolate? Not I.

But nowadays there are as many different types of granola as there are religions in this world – literally one for each and every person and their unique preferences. Don’t like nuts? Get a fruity granola. But don’t like strawberries? Get one with blueberries. The possibilities and options are endless.

It may be hard to believe, but I’m pretty traditional when it comes to my food. Sure, if I’m out at a blog event I’ll try Top Chef-level avant garde dishes, but when it comes down to it, I like the classics. I may wear tutus, sparkles, glitter and rainbows on a daily basis, but when it comes to my food I’m no frills and kinda conservative. I know, what a let-down right? So when it comes to granola, I like things plain and simple. But don’t think “plain” means flavorless or boring. It just means I like really delicious food done right that doesn’t need bells and whistles to jazz it up or detract from its simplicity.

closeup of granola clusters in white bowlHowever major my granola obsession, I always hate buying it at the store. It’s ridiculously overpriced when you can make a GINORMOUS batch of it at home to use throughout the week. The biggest “cost” for Homemade Granola Clusters is up front purchasing all the bulk ingredients. But once you have your oats, honey, and mix-ins, you can make this recipe over and over again. The best part is, this recipe makes clusters which are those addictive chunks of granola, aka the BEST part.

granola clusters in white bowl on wood

closeup of granola clustersWhile MY particular recipe here uses slivered almonds as its add-in, feel free to try any of these other options:

  • Dried fruits, such as: apricots, pineapple tidbits, raisins, cranberries, blueberries, strawberries, banana chips, coconut chips or shredded coconut, mangoes
  • Nuts, such as: slivered almonds, shelled pistachios, walnut halves, pecan halves, chopped peanuts
  • Seeds, such as: shelled sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, flax seeds
  • After baking additions, such as: chocolate chips, miniature M&M’s, miniature peanut butter cups, freeze-dried fruits

Enjoy!

granola clusters on baking sheet

These Super Easy Granola Clusters are a great, cost-effective way to make artisan granola at home AND control the ingredients! Flavored with brown sugar, vanilla and honey, it's the perfect base recipe for all your favorite mix-ins!
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5 from 2 votes

Homemade Granola Clusters

These Homemade Granola Clusters are addictive, large chunks of granola made entirely at home! Never again will you buy overpriced granola at the store when you can make a huge, fresh batch at home controlling your ingredients!
Prep Time10 mins
Cook Time30 mins
Total Time40 mins
Course: Treats
Servings: 10 -15
Author: Hayley Parker, The Domestic Rebel

Ingredients

  • 3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1/4 cup brown sugar
  • 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon can scale back the cinnamon to 1/2 teaspoon
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/4 cup canola or vegetable oil
  • 1/3 cup honey
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 & 1/2 cups slivered almonds or another mix-in of your choice. Nuts and dried fruits can bake with the granola, but chocolate products need to be added later

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with foil or parchment paper; set aside.
  • In a large bowl, gently whisk together the oats, brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt; set aside. In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, honey and vanilla extract until combined and smooth. Pour the oil mixture over the oat mixture, then toss in the slivered almonds or mix-ins of your choice. Mix the whole bowl together, tossing to coat until all of the granola is coated in the oil mixture.
  • Spread the mixture into an even layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the granola is very light golden brown and fragrant. Cool COMPLETELY before breaking into clusters with your fingers. (If using a chocolate product, I would sprinkle the still-warm granola with the chocolate chips (for example) before it cooled completely before breaking into clusters). Store airtight in a container at room temperature for about 1 week.

author holding a granola cluster

I love how sweet and simple these homemade granola clusters are to make!

Want more for breakfast? Check out these recipes!

no-yeast cinnamon rolls on blue fabricNo-Yeast Cinnamon Rolls

almond croissants on wire rackEasy Almond Croissants

blueberry banana bread on wire rack with blueberriesBest Ever Blueberry Banana Bread

super easy granola clusters collage

Have a great week!

xo, Hayley

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Comments

  1. Hotmail login account says

    April 17, 2020 at 2:54 am

    5 stars
    Gotta try this recipe when I finish my granola, thank you for sharing!

    Reply
  2. Vicki Morrison Goble says

    December 2, 2020 at 7:12 am

    Will this work without the brown sugar?

    Reply
    • thedomesticrebel says

      December 2, 2020 at 8:45 am

      Hi Vicki, the brown sugar adds some sweetness but you could omit it or substitute with a sugar sub like coconut sugar or a brown sugar Splenda if you’d like.

      Reply
  3. Melanie says

    January 25, 2023 at 4:28 pm

    5 stars
    This is so good. The only change I made was adding 2 tablespoons of butter to the oil bc mine appeared to be a little dry. Turned out great! Made it three more times.

    Reply

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About me

Welcome to The Domestic Rebel! My name is Hayley and I am the 31-year old writer, photographer, recipe developer, taste-tester and creator of this blog. I’m so glad you’ve stopped by my little slice of sprinkly, butter-laden heaven on the interwebs. If it wasn’t apparent, I like to bake… a lot. Read More…

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