Apricot Granola (With Big Clusters)

Apricot granola has all you expect from the spring season: it’s warm, smells sweet and will grant you the energy you need to start your mornings.

Don’t wait another minute and grab all the ingredients for this easy breakfast granola!

Why you should make your own granola

Granola with yogurt and berries: the easiest breakfast ever, right? I love it, and for many years I only had store-bought granola mix.

Yeah, there are a lot of options on the shelves, and some are really amazing.

But sometimes the one you’re looking for is out of stock. Sometimes you need to control the amount of sugar in your morning granola. Sometimes the granola mix you fell in love with is a limited edition, and then you just have to learn how to copy it the best way you can.

All of these situations happened to me, but the last one is the responsible for my homemade granola passion.

How to make it

Making your own granola is super easy! After your first homemade granola, you won’t want to buy it anymore.

When making homemade, you can add the sweetness you want, your favorite oat brand, as many nuts as you crave and so on.

For this granola, I use both rolled and quick oats, almonds, sunflower seeds, apricots, and ginger powder. The honey makes everything sweet, and using almond oil instead of canola oil makes the recipe healthier.

Start by mixing the dry ingredients. Stir it well so they’re well distributed (1).

Mix honey and almond oil, then pour it into the dry ingredients (2).

Stir until all the dry ingredients are well combined and hydrated (3).

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. That’s important so the bottom of your granola doesn’t brown more than its top.

Distribute the mix evenly through the sheet, making a thin but packed layer so you can get those delicious granola clusters (4).

Preheat the oven before start baking this granola, and don’t bake for longer than 30 minutes. After this time, my granola is always dry enough to be crunchy after cooled.

Add the dry apricot slices after the granola is baked and cooled. Crunch the granola into the desired size, and store it in an airtight container so it stays crunchy and fresh for longer (5).

Granola tips

For everything to work out the way it should, let me tell you a few secrets for this granola recipe.

Don’t stir it if you want big chunks

Big granola chunks, that’s the dream, right? If that’s true for you, don’t stir your granola while baking, or after taking it out of the oven. Wait until it cools to break it up in the size you want.

Spread well the granola

It needs to be in an even layer on the baking sheet. Don’t leave much space between the pieces, but also don’t overcrowd it. The first one will give you fewer chunks, the last will make your granola don’t toast evenly and you’ll probably get a softer granola.

Add the dried apricots only after the granola is baked

Adding them before will cause the dried apricots to dry out too much, and they’ll become awkwardly chewy.

You can substitute ginger powder for crystalized ginger cubes

Just make sure you add them only after baking your granola.

Make it vegan

If you need to make it vegan: instead of real honey, use my vegan honey or switch it for maple syrup.

Careful to not overbake

You don’t want it golden brown, you want it light golden. If you overbake, you’ll risk getting a burnt-taste granola and no chunks at all.

Bake it slow

Don’t try to rush it and keep the heat to 300°F at the most. Slow and low is the law to a great granola!

And now you’ll probably never buy granola again.

Try also these granola flavors

Triple Coconut Granola
Cereal Milk Granola
Pumpkin Spice Granola
Banana Bread Granola