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I wrote an entire cookbook about cooking with maple syrup, so I can assure you this is not only the easiest recipe for maple granola, but it is also the best! Read on to find out my top tips for delicious granola with maple syrup, why you should never use maple extract, how long to bake it, what the best kind of syrup to use and more!

the maple granola in a bowl of yogurt with maple leaves

This recipe is featured in my cookbook, Maple: 100 Sweet and Savory Recipes Featuring Pure Maple Syrup {Quirk Books, 2015.}

Why We Love This Maple Granola Recipe

This maple syrup granola recipe is straightforward and made without competing flavors or ingredients. It has big maple flavor, crunchy oats and nuts and just a little chewy dried fruit texture. There’s no cinnamon, no hemp hearts, or flax seeds. Nor coconut or peanut butter. If you want a fancy granola recipe, this is not that! This is a recipe you can pop in the oven with only 5 minutes of effort and you’ll have a delicious breakfast ready to enjoy for weeks to come.

  • Maple is naturally hygroscopic, so a lot of maple granola can be tacky or sticky. This granola is delightfully crunchy.
  • I do love a tricked-out granola with giant clusters, and all the goodies, but this one is not that. It is simple, unadorned maple syrup and oats- with only a tiny bit of stir-ins. It is the granola for for the true maple lover!
  • You can customize it with your favorite nuts and dried fruits

Table of contents

Ingredients

  • Oats: When making granola, start with rolled oats which are sometimes called old fashioned oats. While technically quick cooking oats will work, they have finer texture and the granola will be too.
  • Maple Syrup: The main flavor and sweetener is pure maple syrup. You can use either dark robust or amber rich. Avoid imitation maple products like pancake syrup. They have artificial flavors and are made with corn syrup.
  • Nuts: To the granola I add in a cup of coarsely chopped nuts. I’ve tested it with all different kinds and they’re all great. Keep in mind you don’t want to chop them too small because they may burn. Try with walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds or another nut of your choice.
  • Oil: Use either melted coconut oil or avocado oil or organic canola oil
  • Salt: generous pinch coarse kosher salt makes the flavors pop
  • Dried Fruit: 1 cup raisins, dried cranberries or another dried fruit

How To Make Granola with Maple Syrup

The granola only takes about 5 minutes to stir together, so before you begin assembling your ingredients, preheat your oven to 325ºF.

the granola ingredients in the bowl

Step 1: Mix Granola Ingredients

Mix the rolled oats, maple syrup, chopped nuts, your oil of choice and salt in a large mixing bowl. Stir well to coat the oats with the other ingredients.

spreading the raw granola onto the pan

Step 2: Bake Granola

Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray. You can also brush it with a little extra oil if you don’t have cooking spray. Spread the oat and nut mixture out over the baking sheet in an even layer. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 30 minutes.

let it cool

Step 3: Stir and Bake Again

Stir gently and return to the oven for 10 more minutes of baking.

add the fruit after it is cool

Step 4: Cool and Add Dried Fruit

Cool the maple syrup granola on the baking sheet. Stir in cranberries or dried fruit.

the jars of maple syrup granola on a cutting board with maple leaves

Storage and Make Ahead

Keep the maple granola in a large airtight container at room temperature in a cool dry place for up to four weeks. For longer term storage keep in the freezer. Just make sure the granola is completely cooled before storing it. Warm temperatures and humid air will make the granola get tacky, so keep it in an air-tight container.

the granola in a resealable jar

Maple Syrup Granola Serving Suggestions

Granola is a great breakfast or snack or it can be incorporated into a variety of dishes.

  • Classic: Serve maple syrup granola with milk, oat milk, regular yogurt or Greek yogurt and sliced bananas, berries or another fresh fruit.
  • With Fruit Sauce: Try with yogurt and our blueberry coulis or strawberry coulis. When in season, make rhubarb compote or applesauce.
  • Parfait: Add to fruit and yogurt parfaits
  • Trail Mix: Add whole almonds, chocolate chips and a puffed cereal (like puffins) for a healthy homemade trail mix
  • Quick Fruit Crisp: Use maple granola as a quick topping for baked fruit, like apples, pears, or stone fruit. Just bake the fruit with a bit of sugar or honey and butter, and top with granola before serving.
  • Topping: Add it on top of a smoothie bowl, acai bowl or ice cream for a crunchy topping
  • Salads: Add granola to salads as a substitute for croutons, especially in salads with fruit, nuts, or a tangy vinaigrette.
  • Baked Goods: Stir into muffin batter, cookies, or bars
  • Pancake or Waffle Topping: Sprinkle this crunchy sweet maple syrup granola over pancakes or waffles with syrup for added texture.
the granola and yogurt in a bowl from a three-quarter angle

FAQs For Granola with Maple

Can I add maple extract?

Yes, but then we cannot be friends anymore. Seriously though, I do not recommend it because artificial maple extract is too strong and not quite the same as natural maple syrup. When I wrote my cookbook I researched this subject extensively and learned that there is a compound called sotolon which has the flavor we associate with maple syrup and the main flavoring of artificial maple syrup or pancake syrup. Sotolon is a compound naturally present in a lot of ingredients like nuts, curry, fenugreek and even celery. I call these ingredients maple’s BFFs. They naturally make maple syrup taste more mapley! In the case of this granola, the nuts help boost the maple flavor- so you do not need to add the artificial stuff which is overpowering. In other words, the flavor of the maple syrup really shines, and you won’t need it. And yes, we can still be friends.

What’s the best syrup to use for granola?

Since maple is a natural ingredient, its flavoring potential is limited, so adding a lot of strong flavors can overpower it. Use Grade A Dark Robust pure maple syrup for the most pronounced maple flavor. The US has adapted the new standardized grading system, no matter where you buy your pure maple syrup it should have one of the following grades: Grade A Golden, Delicate, Grade A Amber, Rich or Grade A Dark, Robust. What we used to call Grade B, is now called Grade A Dark. I personally love this change, because calling something Grade B connotes that it is inferior. But anyone who has tried Dark syrup will be able to attest for the fact there is nothing inferior about it!

Why did my granola get sticky?

Maple syrup is high in a type of sugars called “invert” sugars. These are liquid sugars (along with corn syrup and honey.) The amount of invert sugars varies from batch to batch of maple syrup depending on the part of the season it is made, the weather and harvesting conditions. In general the darker the syrup, the higher it is in invert sugars, though this is not always the case! If your granola is particularly sticky it can be from a batch of maple syrup that is higher in invert sugars. Humid conditions and not baking it long enough or cooling it completely will also contribute to sticky texture.

More Recipes To Try

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At Healthy Seasonal Recipes, we specialize in cooking with fresh veggies and creating weeknight meals. Sign up HERE to get more produce-forward dinner ideas for FREE! If you make this recipe, please come back and leave a star rating and review. I would love to hear what you thought! Happy Cooking! ~Katie

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a closeup of the maple granola in a bowl with yogurt and a spoon

Easy Maple Granola Recipe

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Description

From the pages of my maple syrup cookbook, here’s a simple Maple Granola made with only a few pantry staples. The rich maple flavor shines through with just a few handfuls of nuts and dried fruit to augment it. It couldn’t be more easy to make, because it takes 5 minutes to stir together and get into the oven.

Ingredients

Units Scale
  • 8 cups rolled oats old fashioned
  • 1 cup pure maple syrup, dark or amber
  • 1 cup coarsely chopped walnuts, pecans, pumpkin seeds or other nut
  • 2 tablespoons melted coconut oil, avocado oil or organic canola oil
  • generous pinch coarse kosher salt
  • 1 cup raisins, dried cranberries or another dried fruit

Instructions

  1. Preheat oven to 325ºF. Coat a large baking sheet with cooking spray.
  2. Mix oats, syrup, nuts, canola oil and salt in a large mixing bowl. Spread mixture out over the prepared baking sheet.
  3. Transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake 30 minutes.
  4. Stir gently and return to the oven for 10 more minutes of baking.
  5. Cool on the baking sheet. Stir in cranberries or dried fruit.

Notes

Storage: Store in an air-tight container at room temperature for up to 4 weeks.

  • Prep Time: 5 minutes
  • Cook Time: 40 minutes
  • Category: Breakfast
  • Method: Baked
  • Cuisine: American

Nutrition

  • Serving Size: 1/2 cup
  • Calories: 155
  • Sugar: 13 g
  • Sodium: 7 mg
  • Fat: 6 g
  • Saturated Fat: 1 g
  • Carbohydrates: 34 g
  • Fiber: 4 g
  • Protein: 4 g

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