I’m sad to report that ever since I posted about these fabulous granolas, I haven’t made granola since.
I blame it all on my dad.
You see, he’s kind of a granola, in an old-fashioned, outdoorsy kind of way. He’s into hiking, gorp, scaling the highest peak in every state, four-wheeling and that kind of stuff. And he loves him some granola.
He and my mom (who is not granola in any sense of the word) came to visit us recently since we made our cross-country move to the depths of Wisconsin. I knew in honor of their visit I needed to make my granola dad some granola.
Enter my Aunt Marilyn (who happens to be my dad’s sister but who is not a granola). She sent me a recipe for granola weeks ago and insisted I must try it. But of course I hadn’t because I only make granola when my dad comes to town.
I made it the day before my dad arrived. And there was barely enough left when his plane landed because…
…who knew that my non-granola husband loved granola? Not I.
Three devoured batches later, we are officially in love with this granola. (And so was my granola dad.)
Coconut and Cashew Granola
Printable Version
Printable Version with Picture
*Makes about 7 cups of granola
INGREDIENTS:
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashews
3/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons pure maple syrup
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins
DIRECTIONS:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees. In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut and brown sugar. In a separate bowl or liquid measuring cup, combine maple syrup, oil and salt. Combine both mixtures by slowly pouring the liquid over the oatmeal mixture and stirring well. Divide in half and pour onto two 11X17-inch rimmed baking sheets, spreading out into an even layer on each sheet. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, until golden. Remove from the oven and transfer into a large bowl, slightly breaking up the clumps. Add the raisins and gently mix until even distributed.
Recipe Source: from Aunt Marilyn
{ 42 comments… read them below or add one }
I love granola!! I always make it homemade and I have it for breakfast every morning.I am definitely going to try this one out!!Thanks for sharing the recipe!!
This is VERY similar to Alton Brown’s granola recipe. We love his, so I know exactly what you mean when you say even the non-granola lovers will love it! Tastes great with yogurt too.
This looks like a fabulous recipe ~ I’m going to try it soon!
coconut, maple, and almonds, for me at least, equals magic. the cashews are a nice bonus (but i’d pick out the raisins).
I love when I haven’t been on the computer for a few day and get three MKC posts at once! This granola looks fabulous and your post was hilarious! I made the corn chowder last night…BIG hit!! Fabulous. So are your bread bowls. Do you hate it when I comment about food that isn’t granola on your granola post? Sometimes (all the time) I’m just a little behind!
I LOVE love love your blog. I have made so many of your recipes – can’t wait to try this one! Keep them coming…I send so many friends and family members to your site because of your delish food! Thanks!!
Looks awesome!
This is exactly like Alton Brown’s granola recipe. WE LOVE IT. It’s seriously the best ever. My husband made it about a month ago and has made it twice since doubling the batch. We eat it with yogurt, vanilla ice cream, and with milk. We didn’t like the cashews in it though, and we both love cashews…something with the flavors not blending right. We doubled the almonds the next two times instead and we add crasins. So delicious!
Cammee – you are so nice! And no, I don’t care if you comment about non-granola things on the granola post.
I’m glad you liked the chowder and bread bowls!
Britney – thanks for your comment! I’m glad you’ve liked some of the recipes and thanks for sending people my way!
i bet the cashews were the nuggets of gold in this recipe. mmmm they are the BEST nuts out there.
Mmmmm-looks delicious!! Another must try from you!!
BTW-I made your chicken and corn chowder Monday night and it was such a huge success with my family. Absolutely divine! I’ll be posting it soon and will be giving you huge “shout outs” for the amazing recipe.
Granola is an all time favorite, but I have never found a recipe that didn’t taste . . .well . . homemade. I can’t wait to give this one a try!
I am NOT a granola, but think I might become one if I made your recipe!
Looks great!
I love it.
Yum!! I too am not a garanola–but LOVE granola! I forget to make it–but I will now! Thanks for the reminder! And Happy Halloween Mel!
Oh, I love cashews and coconut! Yummy!
This was so yummy! My parents were in town visiting and really liked it as well.
Thanks!
Katy – thanks for letting me know!
This is Alton Brown’s recipe from Good Eats. His stuff is always great! I like to use pecans instead of cashews.
Super yummy! I had two bowls with yogurt, before i even got the raisins into the mix. This will be a staple in my house. Thanks!
mini-mcgoo – I’m really glad you liked this! It is a staple around our house, too. Thanks for letting me know.
Mmmm…I love granola!
You’ll have to try this Nutty Craisin Chew on my blog…it’s so addicting!
http://www.oneshetwoshe.com/2009/12/nutty-craisin-chew-perfect-for-holidays.html
Mariel
http://www.oneshetwoshe.com
I came across your blog recently and love it! I made your chocolate truffles and this granola for some family members who were going out of town. They loved them! My mom and sister kept saying how divine the truffles were, and I agree!
Needless to say, ALL your recipes look divine and I can’t wait to try them out on my guy who is quite the food snob.
Thank you!
Krista – thanks for your comment! I’m so glad you were able to wow your family with the truffles and granola. I hope your significant other is wowed over, too!
Hi Melanie,
How long does this keep (assuming room temp)?
Lori – my best guess (since we eat it pretty quickly) is that it will easily last at room temperature for 1 1/2 to 2 weeks.
WOW! Just made this and it’s a HUGE hit! My husband is as non-granola as they come and he is eating it up! He loves it
Thanks again for a seriously awesome recipe!!
Melissa – wow, that’s huge praise if your non-granola husband loved the granola. Yay!
So as I made this for the umpteenth time today I thought, “I should probably tell Mel how much we love this!” So I’m telling you….we LOVE this! I usually make quadruple batches and always give some away (when I take dinner in to a family I usually add this so they can have something for breakfast too), the hubby takes it to work for snacks and I throw it on top of yogurt, ice cream or just straight in my mouth. Like so many of your recipes, it provides such a great framework to change it up. I do almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, craisins, pepitas–or whatever I have on hand. It’s fantastic every time. I see a lot of granola recipes out there, but I can’t possibly believe they’d be any more delicious than this.
Reyna – love your reviews. Have I mentioned that? I agree with you…I can’t bring myself to try any other granola recipes now that I have this one. Love all the additions you’ve tried.
Thank you to Melanie who is my fabulous neighbor that brought us some of this great granola and we are not granola people but we are now. I plan on making a batch x four for an upcoming road trip. With a little fresh milk this is better than chocolate cake.
THANK YOU so much for this recipe, it is truly the BEST granola recipe I have ever had…to any who haven’t tried it, I guarantee you will LOVE it! It is also delightful with honey roasted cashews. Also, the second time I tried it I used regular maple syrup with excellent results. Thank you thank you!!!!
Kristen – what a nice comment. Thank you!
Melanie — first of all, I just have to say that I LOVE your blog. My mom and I live across the country from each other and we always talk recipes. We talk about you like you’re our friend! It’s always: “Where did you get that recipe?” “From Mel’s blog of course!” he he
Second — I am throwing a baby shower this weekend and we’re having a yogurt parfait bar as part of the brunch (so fun, right?). I made this granola to go on the “tropical parfait”, which will have chopped fresh pineapple, kiwi, mandarin oranges and bananas, along with vanilla yogurt. This will go perfectly…if I can stop eating it! Thanks so much for all of the wonderful recipes!
Hey Mel – Just wanted to let you know that the Yogurt Parfait Bar was a big hit…thanks to this yummy recipe! If you ever do a parfait bar for a shower, check out my post for more ideas! http://triedandtriedagain.blogspot.com/2011/01/yogurt-parfait-bar.html
Thanks again for the fabulous recipes!
My husband tasted the granola when he walked in from work. These were his comments: “Can I just eat this by the handful?!” and “I know why I married YOU!” Thanks for another great recipe!
I just wanted to say a friend recommended your blog about a month ago and it has QUICKLY become my most favorite of my list of favorites! Thank you for your efforts. I am the busy mom of three little boys who love home-cooked meals and treats and your blog is always a go-to when I need a new idea! This granola is our new favorite snack!
Melanie,
It was great to see you last week, you looked great! I’m trying to get ready for school mornings and made your granola today. It is FABULOUS! It made my house smell amazing too.
I used pumpkin seeds instead of cashews, because I love them in granola, but I loved your recipe and will use it again often! Thank you, thank you! Oh, and I love your oatmeal pancake mix too…..use it all the time! 
You are an amazing woman!
I just made this yesterday and will have to make another batch tomorrow. This is the best granola I’ve made. The only change was to put dried tart cherries instead of the raisins. Thank you for the deliciousness!
OK, so we are on batch #2 of this wonderful, awesome, granola in less than a week
My son doesn’t want any more “store bought granola” for now on. We have been making fruit/yogurt/granola parfaits all week and I even baked peaches with the granola on time for a tasty dessert. Thanks, again, Mel for all of the wonderful recipes!
Just made it and it’s so delicious. Why did I ever buy store bought granola at a premium price?! Never again. It’s too easy to just make your own and by shopping at Aldi we were able to make it fairly inexpensively – they usually have good deals on nuts and oatmeal. Thanks Mel for another great recipe!
Love this recipe! I’ve made it countless times (especially for road trips) and it NEVER lasts long! I’m throwing it up on my blog tomorrow (with a few changes to adhere to my calorie-watching friends). Thanks a ton!
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