hazelnut chocolate granola

I love this decadent granola - it doesn’t last long in my house! It’s a little more time consuming than other granola recipes but I think it’s well worth it. This recipe comes from Oh She Glows Every Day by Angela Liddon. Brown rice syrup can be hard to find. You can substitute golden syrup (in the UK) or any other type of liquid sweetener (honey, maple syrup etc.). Every sweetener has its pros and cons and has a different flavor profile. I love the thickness of brown rice syrup. It helps bind the oats together creating nice crunchy clumps of granola when it is cooked. I would recommend tasting as you go when adding other liquid sweeteners to ensure you obtain the sweetness you desire (i.e. not too sweet or not sweet enough).

Roasted Hazelnut-Almond Granola

3/4 cup raw hazelnuts

1/2 cup raw almonds

1 1/3 cups gluten free rolled oats

1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut

1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons mini chocolate chips

1/2 cup dried cherries, finely chopped

2 tablespoons chia seeds

1/4 teaspoon plus 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt

1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil

4 1/2 tablespoons brown rice syrup

1/4 cup almond butter

1/3 cup pure maple syrup

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Creating the Magic!

1. Preheat oven to 300F (150C). Spread the hazelnuts over a small baking sheet and the almonds over another. Put both in the oven and roast for 12 to 14 minutes until the hazelnut skins have darkened, cracked and are almost falling off. Let the nuts cool on the sheet for another 5 minutes. Transfer the hazelnuts to a damp dishcloth and rub vigorously until most of the skins fall off. The goal is to remove most of them. Chop the hazelnuts and almonds and set aside.

2. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and keep the oven set to 300F (150C).

3. In a large bowl, stir together the chopped hazelnuts, almonds, oats, shredded coconut, cherries, chia seeds and salt.

4. In a small pot, melt the coconut oil over a low heat. Add the almond butter, brown rice syrup and maple syrup. Stir until everything is melted. Remove from the heat. Add the vanilla.

5. Pour the coconut oil mixture over the oat mixture. Stir well until thoroughly combined. Wait until the mixture cools a little before adding the chocolate chips (unless you want them to melt) and stir again.

6. Spread the granola mixture onto the prepared baking sheets and spread out into a thin layer no more than 1/2 inch thick. Space the granola out as much as possible so it has room to provide.

7. Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate the pan and bake for another 10 minutes. I like to flip the granola half way through cooking to make sure it is browning evenly on both sides. Every oven is a little different so keep an eye on your granola to make sure it doesn’t burn. If your granola isn’t browning, feel free increase the temperature to 325F. I recommend removing the granola from the oven when you increase the temperature so that it doesn’t burn in the process of the oven heating up.

8. Remove from oven when it is browned and let cool completely. Then break it up into clusters. Store in air tight container in fridge for 3 to 4 weeks (if it lasts this long in your house!)