Almond Cherry Granola

This Almond Cherry Granola is a crunchy, sweet and hearty start to your morning when paired with some greek yogurt. Made with dried cherries, slivered almonds, shredded coconut and oats, it is an easy meal prep breakfast or snack to have on hand.

Like many people, I got through food phases. I've definitely had periods of my life when granola was my go-to snack or breakfast, but it's been a few years. That is, until this past fall when I was in culinary school and I was required to make a granola during our lesson on grains and was reminded just how amazing it is.

In class, we were instructed to make the famous granola from Eleven Madison Park that is supposedly given out to diners at the end of their meal. We were allowed to tweak the recipe in class, and when I got home I wrote the recipe down because I couldn't get enough of it.

Since then, I've made many other changes to the recipe, so much so that it barely resembles the original, but now it's much more to my taste.

I lowered the sugar from the original recipe that can be found here on The New York Times, and changed around some flavors. In addition, I did lower the salt and add in butter.

All in all, I find this adaptation of that famous one much to my liking: crunchy, sweet, tangy and with just enough nutrition to pass as a good-enough easy breakfast.

So let's get to making it! The text below offers some tips for making it, or you can scroll down to the bottom for the complete recipe.

Ingredients Needed and Substitutions

Here is a brief overview of the ingredients needed for this recipe. The full recipe with quantities is listed below this text in the recipe card. If substitutions are available for this recipe, they'll be listed here. If you don't see a substitution you are looking for, please leave a comment below.

• rolled oats
• slivered almonds
• unsweetened coconut flakes (buy the big kind if you can, as opposed to the finely shredded version)
• granulated sugar
• maple syrup
• almond extract + vanilla extract
• coarse kosher salt
• light olive oil (one that doesn't have too strong of a flavor is ideal)
• unsalted butter
• dried cherries (I recommend either dried sweet cherries or sweetened tart cherries)

Crisp Granola vs. Granola Clusters

This recipe has a higher-than-typical amount of fat added to the granola in the form of both butter and olive oil. Adding that extra bit of fat not only improves the flavor, but it also helps crisp up the oats.

Many people are often after the granola clusters you can pick up, but I find myself drawn to the separated crisp granola instead.

Luckily, with this recipe you can do either and I'll share how.

If you want separated crisp granola: you'll want to make sure to stir the granola several times while baking, and once or twice as it cools.

If you want crunchy granola clusters: don't stir the granola while it's in the oven or as it cools.

The only downside to this is that you have to be careful not to burn the granola as it cooks if you are not stirring it. Stirring it promotes more even cooking, but it is possible to cook it properly without it so long as you play close enough attention to the granola as it nears the end of the called for amount of cook time.

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How to Tell When the Granola is Done

Nobody wants burnt granola. It's important to keep a close eye on the granola towards the end of the cook time to ensures it's lightly toasted, but not dark brown. Setting a timer obviously is the best way to ensure you are watching over the granola.

In addition, your sense of smell will be a good guide as to when it's done. As the oats, nuts and coconuts get toasty, they will start to exude their fragrant aroma. When you smell the toasty granola, you'll know it's done, or nearly done.

Serving + Storing

This granola will last at least a week, but likely a lot longer. I usually use mine up within a few weeks and it's always stayed just as good as the day I've made it. But do keep in mind it has no preservatives in it so you can't leave it for quite as long as you would store-bought granola.

If you made a big batch and you want to preserve the granola very fresh for a longer period, it can be frozen for about 6 months.

Mason jars with tight-fitting lids are a great way to store granola.

Making the recipe? Be sure to leave a comment with a star review on your experience! Have a question? Leave a comment below and I'll get back to you as quickly as I can!

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