Nekisia Davis' Olive Oil & Maple Granola

This granola is THE BEST! It’s my go-to food for any new mom. It’s so tasty and a healthy food they can eat on its own or in yogurt for a quick breakfast or snack.

Granola is delicious but this recipe, like other granola recipes, is loaded with sugar. There is nothing healthful about sugar.

Best granola. Super tasty and healthy.
Once it is cooled just add some cranberries and viola. I dont add brown sugar just add maple syrup that also a little less than said in the video.

Update: after making this recipe 4 times and tweaking it around, I found this same recipe in Samin Nosrat’s book Salt Acid Fat Heat. As usual, Samin is a genius. She tweaked the sweeteners, and I find her ratios just perfect! Still a little sweet, but just right for a sweet treat... you could cut the brown sugar down further for a healthier treat, but keeping this amount of maple & oil keeps it well coated.

for 3 cups oats + 4.5 cups nuts/seeds
2/3 cup maple
1/2 cup evoo
1/3 cup brown sugar

I’ve tried it with macadamia nuts and extra coconut chips instead of sunflower seeds, and they’re delish. I also chop the whole nuts roughly so that the bites are more balanced.

For clusters, I pack it well into my silpat lined baking sheet, and don’t stir at all... let cool completely, then peel it off the silpat and break into clumps. Delicious!

I've made granola countless times over the last 20 years and this recipe has to be one of the best versions I've made. But not perfect.

Like many, i found the recipe too sweet and just eliminated the brown sugar altogether. It's still a little on the sweet side but I'm afraid of reducing the amount of maple syrup will prevent it from "clustering".

And, in fact, the first batch didn't so I just turned off the oven and left the tray in the oven for another 20 minutes. The granola "set" into a pretty much solid slab of granola. Now, I cook it for only 40 minutes and it comes out great.

I only recently was able to get sunflower and pumpkin seeds and have had to make do with chia and hemp seeds. The chia seeds are a little weird since they don't stick to rest of the ingredients well and stick to your teeth if you eat the granola with milk. The hemp seeds as well. I solved it by adding in a half cup of buckwheat flour which helped a lot.

I've made it several times as well, and still love it. I have cut the brown sugar a little bit as well, and although I am using the full amount of olive oil, I add an additional cup of malted wheat flakes to the oats (I had some, but could be oats), so the oil gets more diluted than my original batch. The other thing is that I am chopping up a cup or so of the grain mixture in my food processor so it is more floury--that seems to enhance the clumping without affecting the texture of the granola otherwise. I stir a couple of times during the baking process and while it is cooling, but agree that too much stirring interferes with clumping. I also bake a little longer to get it darker toasted, but that is just my preference.

I’m made it five times. Find that only 1/2 c maple syrup and 1/3 c brown sugar is sweet enough. Keep stirring every 7-10 min including after it’s done and cooling so it doesn’t clump. Unless you want that. Total bake time of 50-55 min makes it nice and toasty.

This has got to be the best granola recipe ever - at least for me. I've made it several times now, and have recently been using it as a base for a kind of chocolate bark. I spread out a nice amount of the granola on a sheet pan, then drizzle with melted dark chocolate (using two types of dark, one slightly darker than the other). Then sprinkle with some Maldon salt flakes. Put it in the fridge for a bit, then break into pieces. Elegant chocolate crunchy-ness!

Ahh... I had SUCH high expectations for this granola based on the cult following... and while it was good, there are some improvements/changes I’d make.

First, it was much too sweet for me. As someone who rarely eats much sugar, this felt like dessert and left a lingering sweetness in my throat. The bottom layer actually turned into brittle and tasted like a pepita candied brittle we made over the holidays. Next time I would definitely half (if not less) the sugar.

Second, I really wish it had clusters instead of being completely loose and “clump free”. I guess I shouldn’t have stirred, though I don’t know if it would’ve cooked evenly without the stirring. With the current texture, it’s still ok with milk or yogurt but hard to pick up and eat with your hands. I also found the whole pecans too big relative to the rest without clusters.

Finally, it did get a little greasy, especially on the bottom. I love the taste of olive oil but might put slightly less next time...

Overall a really great start to a recipe and I love how simple it is, just need to tweak to my tastes!

This granola is a game changer. Only beware you may be visiting it all day long - it's that good!

OMG, this is now a weekly occurrence in our house. I throw in whatever nuts I have on hand but like the pecans the best. It's absolutely perfect!

Hands-down this is the best granola I’ve ever eaten in my life! I typically sprinkle a little on my cottage cheese with some berries for lunch, and I have been known to have just a small handful of it for dessert in the evening. Perfect!!

This was delicious! I have never made granola before, although I don't know why not. I love maple flavored granola (maple anything, really), but in this case, I was worried that the olive oil would have a stronger flavor in the finished granola than I like. It actually it melds perfectly with the other ingredients during the baking stage. I didn't have sunflower seeds or pumpkin seeds on hand, and am not as enthusiastic about seeds as I am most nuts, so I used raw almonds and pecans (left over from holiday baking projects). I also added some dried chopped fruit (from a fruitcake blend, also a holiday remnant). Finally, I read in another recipe on Food52 that rolled oats can make a crunchier granola due to the texture, so I used my food processor to chop up a cup of the old fashioned oats I had. Don't have a comparison to offer, but the results were satisfyingly crunchy. I've been stealing tastes of it ever since, and it makes my morning yogurt/fruit bowl sublime. Based on the recipe and the comments, I may experiment with adding a cup of barley flakes or malted wheat flakes to the oats.

Perfect as is! I love this granola for a quick breakfast. Loaded with nuts and seeds, it keeps me satisfied all morning and the pecans add a luxury factor that makes it seem special even though it's a workday breakfast. Love it on top of some of my homemade Greek yogurt as well. Thank you, Nekisia and Food52 for sharing this great recipe!

I just love this granola so much. I use sliced almonds in place of the coconut because not everyone in my house likes coconut. I am guilty of picking the pecans out of the granola and eating them every time I walk by.

This is a weekly event in our house not that I have found this recipe. Thanks!

Fabulous recipe! Thank you!

This recipe is awesome! I cut the recipe down to 2/3, just because I have a tiny oven, and would not have had room for the full recipe.

This granola is fantastic and this recipe makes A LOT. I accidentally only put 1/3 cup of brown sugar in and it was still really sweet. I will likely cut back a little more on the sugar/syrup next time as well (maybe 1/4 cup brown and 1/2 cup maple)....and there will be a next time because this is a big hit at my house with adults and kids alike! My daughter who insists she does not like coconut couldn't get enough of the coconut chips. Brilliant addition.

Absolutely the best granola out there!