Granola, Rain, and Tunes

It is one of my favorite kinds of days. It is a late October rainstorm in New England. The skies are grey, the wind is whipping, and the rain is hitting the clapboards sideways. While my son is in school, the cats and I have the run of the house, so we're listening to some tunes and making: GRANOLA. (Sometimes this cookie monster gets her hands dirty making other stuff!)

I usually make a large batch of granola every week and split it between my partner and me. He brings it to school with him so that he can have a snack between classes, and I nosh on it throughout the day while I'm at home. If you know me, you know that my granola is probably not health food; it is admittedly a sweet treat. I am the cookie lady, after all. (Word on the street is that it tastes really good on top of your favorite ice cream!)

This granola uses some quintessential New England ingredients like fresh maple syrup and maple sugar. It feels like fall, which I love. While a lot of baking requires you to follow instructions to a T, the fun thing about making this granola is that you can ad lib a bit. Don't have walnuts? Use pecans! Don't like coconut? Skip it. Prefer white chocolate over semi-sweet? Go nuts. I also add an extra drizzle of maple syrup at the last minute if my sweet tooth is calling.

It all begins with good oats. I use Bob's Red Mill Extra Thick Whole Grain Rolled Oats because they're hearty and hold up well to the added ingredients and bake time*. Don't use quick-cooking oats here. You want a substantial oatmeal.

Next, your oats need a good bath in your maple syrup mixture. Ingredients matter here too. I use maple syrup from a farm near my mom in upstate New York, but you can find 100% pure maple syrup at the grocery store, no problem. Something like Golden Blossom works well*. Combine maple syrup, brown sugar, butter, and a pinch of salt over low to medium heat, stirring frequently until it is all incorporated.

Once you have measured out 3 cups of oats and added your chosen nuts, chocolate chips, and/or coconut flakes, pour the maple syrup mixture over the dry ingredients and stir to combine. This is where I often throw in an extra drizzle of maple syrup, especially if it appears that there are still some dry oats. Everything should be coated. In this batch, I used cashews, walnuts, sliced almonds, flaxseed, and coconut. I also separated out half of the batch and added chocolate chips so that I have a couple of different variations.

Finally, spread a thin layer of the uncooked granola mixture onto a parchment-covered baking pan, and bake at 300 degrees for about 33-35 minutes. Let it cool on wire racks until it comes to room temperature, then break it into pieces and store.

*I do receive a commission if you purchase the linked products from Amazon.

The Best Granola

• 3 cups rolled oats

• 1/3 cup maple syrup

• 1/3 cup brown sugar, packed

• 1/2 cup butter

• 1 pinch salt

• 2 teaspoons cinnamon

• 1 teaspoon vanilla

• maple sugar

Add-ins

• flaxseed

• coconut flakes

• misc. nuts

• chocolate chips

Melt the maple syrup, butter, brown sugar, and salt together over low to medium heat, about 5 minutes.

Add cinnamon and vanilla to the melted maple-butter mixture.

In a separate (big) bowl, combine oats with whatever add-ins you're using.

Pour maple-butter mixture over the oats and stir to combine. You may want to add another drizzle of maple syrup at this point.

Distribute mixture evenly onto parchment-lined cookie sheets. Sprinkle with maple sugar, if using.

Bake for 33-35 minutes at 300 degrees.