Save money and enjoy a great breakfast with this homemade vanilla almond granola recipe. It’s quick and easy to make a bulk batch. It brightens up any morning, whether served with milk or tossed into a parfait with berries and greek yogurt.
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The plainest of plain breakfast cereals is currently $6/box at your local grocer and the boxes seem to be shrinking by the day. But whaddya gonna do? Skip breakfast?
I think not. Instead, you can enjoy a crunchy bowl of cereal and milk, one that does your wallet good – make homemade granola instead of buying boxed cereal! It’s easy to stir up with rolled oats, brown sugar, vanilla, and almonds, making for a delicious breakfast favorite that costs just a fraction of what you can buy at the store.
Why Make This Vanilla Almond Granola
It’s easy to make. This homemade granola recipe takes just a couple minutes to measure the ingredients, stir it all up, and get it baking in the oven. Most of the time is passive time spent in the oven, no stirring every five minutes or any of that nonsense.
It’s got clusters! I remember the first time I was able to achieve crunchy clusters in my homemade granola. I felt like I had achieved greatness. That lack of stirring I mentioned? That’s part of the beauty. Lazy cook for the win!
It makes a great gift. I love to package this easy granola in mason jars and pack it with other breakfast items for a fun Breakfast Gift Basket.
It’s higher in protein. I have a special ingredient that I add to this vanilla almond granola to boost the protein. The optional quinoa flakes bring fiber, protein, and antioxidants to this morning meal as well as a texture that you’re going to love.
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make this easy homemade granola:
brown sugar – I love the flavor, sweetness, and texture that brown sugar brings to homemade granola. You can use honey or maple syrup if that’s what you prefer. Remember you can make brown sugar yourself for less.
hot water – The water helps the brown sugar dissolve easily without a lot of fuss. No extra pan to wash. If you use honey or maple syrup, you can omit the water.
neutral oil – Adding some kind of oil to your granola helps create a crispy texture. I use avocado oil but you can use your favorite neutral cooking oil.
vanilla bean paste or vanilla extract – I love using the whole vanilla bean in the form of paste in this recipe. Shopping at Costco, I buy it in bulk for cheap. It gives it that signature French vanilla flavor. You can use vanilla extract if you prefer or even almond extract if you want to magnify the almond flavor.
rolled oats – Be sure you do not use quick oats as they are not hearty enough for granola recipes. Instead make sure your package says, “rolled oats” or “old fashioned oats”. If you need this to be free from gluten, be sure yours is labeled gluten-free to avoid cross contamination in processing.
quinoa flakes – I usually order quinoa flakes from Amazon, Vitacost, or Walmart, though you may be able to find them at a local health foods store. Quinoa flakes are different than quinoa. I love them for use in granola, turkey burgers, and baked goods. You can omit them if you like. If you do omit them, you can swap in wheat germ, wheat bran, or flaked coconut to help achieve a similar texture.
whole almonds – Some folks like to add sliced almonds to their granola, but I prefer the whole almonds. The crunchy texture is more pleasing to me. Use what you like.
salt – Don’t forget the salt as it enhances the flavors and pulls everything together.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s how to make homemade granola:
- Preheat the oven to 300 ° Line a rimmed, half sheet baking pan with a silpat mat or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, hot water, oil, and vanilla bean paste or extract until blended and the sugar is dissolved.
- Add the oats, quinoa flakes, almonds, and salt. Stir to coat.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking sheet and spread evenly, pressing the mixture firmly into the pan.
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown.
- Break into clusters and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before packaging in an airtight container.
- Store in an airtight container. Freeze for longer shelf life.
This Vanilla Almond Granola with its crunchy granola clusters is delicious as a topping for breakfast parfaits, served with milk or yogurt, and also as a dessert topping for ice cream.
Pair this granola with homemade vanilla ice cream and raspberry sauce or lemon sauce for an amazing homemade granola vanilla sundae.
Budget Breakfast Ideas
Vanilla Almond Granola
Ingredients
- 1 cup brown sugar or maple syrup
- ½ cup hot water
- ½ cup neutral oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
- 5 cup rolled oats do not use quick oats
- 2 cup quinoa flakes
- 1 cup whole almonds
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 ° Line a rimmed, half sheet baking pan with a silpat mat or parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the brown sugar, hot water, oil, vanilla extract until blended and the sugar is dissolved.
- Add the oats, quinoa flakes, almonds, and salt. Stir to coat.
- Transfer the mixture to the prepared baking sheet and spread evenly, pressing the mixture firmly.
- Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, or until golden brown. Break into clusters and bake for an additional 5 to 10 minutes. Allow to cool completely before packaging in an airtight container.
- Store in an airtight container. Freeze for longer shelf life.
Notes
Nutrition
This post was originally published on May 9, 2012. It has been updated for content and clarity.
Ruth
I love this granola! It has really good flavor and crunch, and I like the added quinoa and almonds. This is really good on yogurt or with milk for breakfast, a snack, or even for dessert (especially if you add a small handful of chocolate chips!)
Jonathan
LOVE this! Makes most store bought stuff taste like sugary cardboard in comparison lol
Jessica Fisher
True! lol Thanks for taking the time to leave a review!
Erin
Best granola recipe I have ever made or eaten! The way it clumps up as it cools is so awesome! I can’t make this stuff often enough, we seem to fly through it! Our favorite way to eat it is as a cereal with some sliced almonds and dried cranberries – also equally awesome on yogurt parfaits. I got rid of my other granola recipes, this is the only one I use now – so perfect – thank you!!
Jessica Fisher
Woohoo! Thanks for such great feedback. It’s top on my list, too.
Dana
A Friend shared this with me in 2012, and it has been one of my fave recipes.
Jessica Fisher
Always great to hear!
Amy S
I stumbled upon this recipe while researching some ideas for the January 2019 Pantry Challenge. I tweaked it based on what I had on hand, but this is a pantry challenge afterall, so I encourage others to not feel restricted by a recipe and use what they have.
Wheat germ and oat germ were not available, so I used a mixture of chia seeds, flaxmeal, dry spent grains (my husband is a homebrewer), buckheat groats and something else, I think. These “add-ons” are flexible, but don’t use more than a total of two cups. I wish I had had some coconut flakes.
I had more butter in the freezer (holiday sales!) than oil, so I used half of each. I am rationing the oil.
I had a few bags of walnuts, but no almonds, so I used them instead. I reserved roughly a couple tablespoons of the liquid mixture and coated a cup of coarsely broken walnut pieces with it. I baked the oat mixture for 40 minutes and then I stirred in the coated walnuts and baked for about 10 more minutes. My goal was to toast the walnuts and give them some flavor, but not burn them. Plain walnuts are not my thing.
We enjoyed the granola as modified. Some time I will have to try it as Jessica wrote it. But not today during my pantry challenge.
Jessica Fisher
Your adaptations sound great. Thanks for sharing!
Julia
I made this delicious granola today! I omitted the almonds, but may add some in later. I like mine a little less chunky, so I just made sure the stir and break everything apart. The taste is superbly simple and I really love the vanilla and maple flavours! I had a previous go-to granola recipe, but this might be my new favorite!
Danielle
Thank you, Thank you! I’ve been trying (unsuccessfully) to make a “chunky” granola forever. This method finally worked! Plus the recipe was delicious and simple.
Take Care!
Jamey
We have to go gluten free. Am I understanding your instructions correctly just to substitute more oats in place of leaving out the “germs” ?
Jessica
Yes, if you use gluten-free oats, you can leave out those other ingredients. Often I don’t have them on hand, so I go without. Last time I subbed in some coconut chips and it was amazing.
Tina Monji
I am making this now, can’t wait! We are just about out of the last granola. I also appreciate the simplicity of this recipe. I used ground flax to substitute the oat bran. Coconut oil for the other. (it’s all I use) and more honey than maple syrup, because I was almost out of syrup. fingers crossed!
Deesselisa
Yum! I finally made it go the health food store to get the germ etc. to make this. Wonderful. thank you. I was a little skeptical because I am actually kinda picky about my granola. There are only a few store bought ones I like. But this was wonderful. And my even pickier son, actually loved it. He chose it over Trix. I know, can you even believe I had that in my house. I had coupons that made it $0.80 for the box, so I let them get it. Just vile looking. I am so glad that he actually prefers the healthy cereal. Anyway, we’ll be making this a lot now. Thank you.
Jill
De-lurking here, love your website, and definitely bookmarked this recipe. Was just looking at it again, and is it just me, or are the almonds missing out of the instructions? 🙂
Jessica
It is, but it isn’t. In the headnotes, I mention that I add the nuts per serving since we are accommodating a nut allergy. Forgot that the rest of you aren’t. LOL. Good catch. It’s fixed now. Since they are roasted almonds, you don’t need to bake them with the granola.
Kirsten
I have a granola recipe that I make regularly with honey, but I decided to try this to change things up a bit. I made it in the morning and we promptly ate it for lunch. I love the mild taste of the syrup with the vanilla. While it is fun to add more ingredients I LOVE the simplicity of this recipe! Thanks for sharing.
Brenda
Could I use honey instead of maple syrup? I know that changes the name but we don’t eat maple syrup at our house.
This looks like the healthiest and yummiest granola recipe I have seen. Thanks.
Jessica
Yes, I have other versions that use honey.
Brenda
@Jessica, Thanks!!
Renah Violet Woods
I seen a post of a vegetable soup, but when I click it only goes to the Maple Granola recipe.
Jessica
Can you tell me which post that was?
karen
We use coconut oil and add a handfull of flax seeds to our granola. Remember that if you add dried fruit, don’t add it until after cooking—-just ask my kids about the granola with ‘raisin rocks’
sarah k @ the pajama chef
we love homemade granola. this sounds like a combo of two of my favorite trader joe’s cereals…awesome!
Jennie
What could I use instead of oat bran? I have everything else in my pantry.
Jessica
@Jennie, I’m thinking you could omit it and it should be fine. Let me know.
Martha Artyomenko
@Jessica, When you omit a dry ingredient in granola, just replace it with more of another one, like oats etc.
You need to keep the dry to liquid ratio the same though!
Jessica
@Martha Artyomenko, theoretically, yes. But, I know that I’ve run out of bran or germ and made it without and it worked out fine. 😉
Sue R
Yay! I was so hoping that you would post this recipe! I am making yogurt today, while that is processing, I will be baking this. Thank you!
Carrie
I’ve always wanted to make my own granola, but can never seem to find the “healthy” things like wheat germ and oat bran. Where in your stores do you find them??
Jessica
They are usually in the cereal or baking aisles.
Tiffany @ DontWastetheCrumbs
@Carrie,
I’ve found wheat germ in the bulk isle at Safeway too.