Rating5(6,312)NotesRead community notesAt the end of every meal at the restaurant Eleven Madison Park, in Manhattan, guests are presented with a small gift: a jar of granola for tomorrow’s breakfast. It is classic Alpine fare, taken straight from the chef Daniel Humm’s childhood in Zurich. The rolled oats are golden with brown sugar and a hint of maple, with salt and a wisp of olive oil for depth. Coconut chips and shelled pistachios provide a hint of whimsy, pumpkin seeds a leathery crunch. Dried sour cherries peek out from here and there, bits of softness to complete the whole. Best of all, the recipe is simple and bulletproof for anyone with a rimmed baking sheet and an oven, at least if you're careful with the kosher salt. Opinions vary greatly over the amount we call for: a whole tablespoon. For some, that is many teaspoons too many. (For many others it is absolutely perfect.) Season to taste. —Sam SiftonFeatured in: Liquid Nitrogen OptionalLearn: How to Make Ice Cream2¾cups rolled oats1cup shelled pistachios1cup unsweetened coconut chips⅓cup pumpkin seeds1tablespoon kosher salt½cup light brown sugar⅓cup maple syrup⅓cup extra virgin olive oil¾cup dried sour cherriesAdd ingredients to Grocery ListIngredient Substitution GuideHeat oven to 300 degrees. In a large bowl, mix together the oats, pistachios, coconut, pumpkin seeds and salt.In a small saucepan set over low heat, warm the sugar, syrup and olive oil until the sugar has just dissolved, then remove from heat. Fold liquids into the mixture of oats, making sure to coat the dry ingredients well.Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone baking mat, and spread granola over it. Bake until dry and lightly golden, 35 to 40 minutes, stirring granola a few times along the way.Remove granola from oven, and mix into it the dried sour cherries. Allow to cool to room temperature before transferring to a storage container. Makes about 6 cups.I have made this many times and still find it to be the best granola ever! For those who think the amount of salt is too much, just be sure you are using kosher salt. A tablespoon of it is equal to about a teaspoon of regular table salt. I use Diamond Crystal Kosher Salt. I have also made it with different nuts and fruits but find that my family and friends prefer it just as written.I make this recipe often, and love it. I adapted it to make it less sweet (and caloric), and to me it is just as good. In place of pistachios, I used toasted pecans, as I prefer them. I use half the salt, use 1/4 cup light brown sugar, and then less than 1/3 cup of both maple syrup and olive oil (amount approximate - I mostly leave it about 1/2 inch below the top of the 1/3 cup measure). I personally leave out the dried fruit, as I prefer the nut and coconut taste to shine through. Yum!Sticky dried cherries. I had a lot of trouble chopping the dried cherries into small bits because they are so sticky. I solved the problem by freezing the cherries and then chopping them up in a food processor.I gotta say, no wonder it's delicious - it has a lot of sugar in relation to the quantity of oats. I've been using a recipe for granola from America's Test Kitchen that uses 5 cups of oats, 2 cups of nuts, and only 2/3 cup sugar, half of which is maple syrup. It's delicious, too.Let's clear this up once and for all. Diamond Crystal Kosher salt is less dense than Morton Kosher salt. So Diamond Crystal is less salty per unit than Morton. So to be on the safe side always use Diamond Crystal. I think most pros do already.I found this out the hard way when I almost ruined a recipe when I couldn't get Diamond Crystal and bought Morton's instead. I threw the box of Morton's right out. Too dangerous to have in the kitchen!I make this all the time. I was not a fan of purchased granolas- even the fancy stuff they sell these days. I mix the olive oil, syrup, sugar and salt (a fraction of what is called for) in a heavy glass measuring cup and pop it in the microwave rather than using saucepan on the stove.I make a granola recipe very close to this one but use coconut oil instead of olive oil and add pecans, sun flower seeds, chia seeds and ground flax seeds to the mix. Yum!I also added 1 cup medium shred coconut, which was all I had on hand. It didn't burn. Although you couldn't see the medium shredded flakes, it was definitely a subtle additional flavor. When I made the batch a second time and forgot to add coconut, it wasn't as good. The coconut is definitely needed to balance the flavors.I've ditched every other granola recipe now that I've discovered this one. The base recipe accommodates all sorts of variations. I usually use sliced or slivered almonds rather than pistachio nuts because I have them on hand. I leave out the coconut and cherries. And I cut the sugar and salt a bit. I've added cinnamon and a bit of orange juice to great success. It's a fun recipe to play around with and has become one of the more requested items for care packages for my kids.Using sugar/syrup/olive oil gave this granola perfect crunch; my usual recipe uses veg oil and honey and it turns out a lot softer, which my husband doesn't like! I added ground cardamom, which i like with the pistachio/cherry combo.I love having nutritional info available. It would be a huge help if the portion size was noted as well. For example, it's challenging to figure out the volume of 1/14th of this recipe.My favorite granola--first tasted as a gift after dinner at 11 Madison Park years ago. Have used dried apricots instead of cherries and almonds instead of pistachios but best as written. Very easy to make and it freezes well.A delicious base recipe to play around with. I don't see this granola lasting long in our house! Like most folks, I used 1/4 (!) of the sugar and syrup, and it was still plenty sweet. I also used 1 tsp of kosher salt, and will use even less next time. For the final tweak - I used shredded coconut, slivered almonds, organic raisins, and dried cranberries. So easy and fabulous - a true keeper.One granola recipe to rule them allIt looks so much better than the above photo - wonderful granolaEverything about this recipe sounded great except coconut flakes. I despise them. So I added 3/4 c. hemp seeds, upped the dried cherries to 1 cup, and left everything else as is. Perfect without that god awful coconut.I agree that the tablespoon of kosher salt is too much. I reduced it by half and the feedback from my daughter was that it was “still too much”. I use half pistachios and half walnuts, which is just as tasty. I also leave out the dried fruit and use shredded coconut instead of toasted flakes. Overall, delicious recipe with a few modifications.I have made this recipe about 5 times now, and love it!! A few things that might help someone else out; I only had sweetened coconut and it actually works quite well still. Because the sweetened coconut has a lot of sugar I reduce the sugar in the recipe (1/4 cup sugar, 1/4 cup maple.) I usually leave in the oven and rotate often as I like my granola extra crunchy, yum! I usually make this on the weekend and it's enough for my morning yogurt for about two weeks, definitely a staple recipe for meI think this is excellent granola, however there is way too much salt in the recipe. I am going to have to throw this out because it has too much salt. I will make it again with half as much salt or less in it. Thank you.
MelindaAdded flax seed, apricots, blueberries, sunflower seeds, pecans, pinch cinnamon and nutmeg.Holy moly! So yummy! Used Trees Knees spicy maple syrup which gives the sweetness a little pop. Also cut the brown sugar to 1/3 cup and made sure to use Kosher Salt. Everybody raved about it so I’m making little bags for family to take home on Thanksgiving!This is the best ever. I make a couple of modifications based on my taste. I get rave reviews and often give as gifts.Added apricots (game changer) flax seed, pecans,blueberriesUse coconut instead of olive oil. Try reducing amount each time and note changes.
Use a little more maple syrup and eliminate brown sugar. No need to heat liquids. Change up nuts and dried fruit for variety.Years ago a friend and I came up with a remarkably similar granola recipe. I use 1/3 cup honey and 1/3 cup oil for 6 cups of oats. It is plenty sweet and holds together well!Looks too sweet. My granola uses 1/4 cup maple syrup. I started making it because the commercial ones are way too sweet.My first batch-delicious! The Goldilocks of granola- perfect balance of sweet and salty. At the suggestion of others and using what I had on hand, I added dried cranberries that I froze before chopping ( genius), Rice Krispies, TJ unsalted roasted slivered almonds and sweetened coconut. Other than that, I followed the recipe. I never liked granola until now- it was always too sweet. Always learn from the comments!!!!Kathryn - You cay "The Goldilocks of granola". I love your comment! My fav of all time, this recipe, but I do cut the salt back by quite a lot.Perfectly crunchy granola! Recipe is great as is, if a little salty. I’ve altered it to fit my personal tastes: omit coconut, increase pumpkin seeds to 1 cup, reduce salt to 1 teaspoon, substitute sour cherries for cranberries, and add the zest of an orange when adding dried fruit.40 minutesPrivate notes are only visible to you.