Homemade granola is so much cheaper than store bought and tastier too. Besides, it is so easy and customizable. This toasted maple cinnamon granola is our absolute favorite!

small bowl filled with yogurt, pieces of fresh peach and granola.

This is the best homemade granola recipe out there. I am just sure of it! It is crunchy, sweet and flavorful just like you would want it to be.

Plus it doesn’t take more than a few minutes to put together. There is some oven time, but almost no work!

If you like maple syrup and cinnamon, you are going to love it. Use this as the base recipe and then add your favorite extras like nuts or dried fruit.

Little Dude loves yogurt. He loves smoothies, cups of yogurt and especially fruit and yogurt parfaits.

He thinks it is fun to dump some granola on top and crunch on the little bits of sweet goodness. But granola can be expensive, and who knows what they put in it?

So I never keep it on hand. I do always have oatmeal though.

large jar of granola tipped over and spilling out.

jars filled with apple pie filling, vanilla yogurt and topped with granola.

I also always have some form of sugar and oil. So, I am always just a bit of time and hardly any effort away from homemade granola.

There are many variations you can make, but this is our favorite so far!

Update: This granola is MiMi’s new favorite! She stumbled back on it recently, more than a year after I posted it and decided to give it a try.

Now she is hooked. She loves that it stays crunchy in spite of our humidity!

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Carlee’s Tips For Crunchy Granola

Finishing the granola in the oven is the part where it gets its crunch. Make sure to bake it low and slow so that the sugars don’t burn before it gets good and crispy.

Stirring the granola half way through makes sure it heats evenly and that there is good air flow to all of the pieces. Don’t skip that step.

Make sure your granola is completely cooled before you put it in an airtight container. If it is still warm, the steam will cause the granola to loose its crunch.

sheet pan of clumps of maple cinnamon granola fresh from the oven.

bowl of yogurt with maple cinnamon granola and peaches on top

Keep it out of the humidity as much as you can. Store it in an airtight container and try to keep as much moisture out as you can.

Stored correctly, this granola will be good for several weeks at room temperature. However we tend to go through it quicker than that.

Because it is so easy to make, it’s good to make it in small batches and make it more frequently. That way you don’t have to worry about it losing its quality over time.

Ideas for mix-ins you could add to this recipe:

Dried fruits such as raisins, craisins, banana chips, dried cherries and more! (Mix these in after the granola is baked and cooled)

Nuts are a great add in too, chopped pecans, slivered almonds, even pepitas or sunflower seeds would be great. (You can add these in when you add the oatmeal and bake them right in!)

Add some shredded coconut if you’d like. (I would stir this in half way through the baking process)

If you want a vanilla twist, add a teaspoon or two of vanilla extract to the liquid mixture before you toss in the oatmeal.

5 from 15 ratings

Maple Cinnamon Granola

Author: Carlee

Servings: Servings

Homemade granola is so much cheaper than store bought and tastier too! Besides it is so easy and customizable. This version is our absolute favorite!

Prep: 5

Cook: 1 15

Total: 1 20

Ingredients

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350°F.
Spread 2 cups oats on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for 10-15 minutes. They should start to emit a toasty aroma and take on a little color. (You can skip this step, but it adds a little extra depth of flavor to your granola.)
Meanwhile, melt the 2 Tablespoons coconut oil or butter and stir in the ¼ cup light brown sugar, ¼ cup maple syrup, 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1 pinch salt and Optional: pecans or almonds.
Once the oats are toasted, remove from oven and turn the oven down to 250°F.
Stir oats into syrup mixture and spread over the baking sheet again.
Bake for one hour, stirring half way through.
Remove from oven and spread over wax paper to cool. Break into bite sized pieces and store in an air tight container until ready to use!

Notes

If you don’t have brown sugar, granulated sugar works as well.