Stove-top Granola

If you only want to make a limited amount of granola, or if it's summer time and you don't want to labor over a hot oven, try the stove-top way instead.

Consider the following ingredients to be very flexible. You can vary what oil you use — butter vs. olive oil vs. coconut oil. Then oats vs. groats vs. buckwheat groats, brown sugar vs. maple syrup vs. honey, different nuts, fruit and spices. Any combination pretty much is fine.

Author: Lauren Joseph

Equipment

Cast-iron skillet, non-stick pan, or stainless steel pan. Must be sufficiently wide so things can get caramelized and crispy.

Ingredients

2 cups rolled oats
½ cup nuts
1 cup seeds
1 cup dried fruit
½ cup butter
¼ cup brown sugar
¼ cup maple syrup, honey to taste
turmeric, cardamom, ginger, other spices to taste
vanilla extract to taste

Instructions

Pour nuts and seeds into a dry skillet over medium heat, and let them toast for 3 to 5 minutes, watching carefully, and stirring until they become fragrant. Pour toasted nuts and seeds into a bowl for now.
With the flame still at medium, add the butter. Get a good foam and a light brown color before you add in your sugar, maple syrup, honey, then give it a good stir. If you're adding spice and/or vanilla, add them now, and stir.
Next, add in your oats, stirring frequently so they get coated in the butter, and take on a bit of color — about 5 minutes; you want the oats to be still a bit soft and a light golden brown.
Remove the pan from heat, and stir in the dried fruit.
Let cool completely in the pan — it will continue to crisp up a bit as it cools.
Store in a wide-mouth jar for up to two weeks.

Notes

Some Flavor Combinations to Try

Oats, plus …

Butter, maple syrup, roughly chopped hazelnuts, cocoa nibs, coconut flakes, and crystallized ginger.
Olive oil, honey, walnuts, pistachios, pumpkin seeds, dried apricots, and mulberries.
Olive oil, honey, date syrup, almonds, cinnamon, and dried currants.
Butter, honey, pecans, almonds, coconut flakes, and freeze dried strawberries or raspberries.