Blueberry Pistachio Granola
Blueberry Pistachio Granola- Sweet and savory homemade granola with a hint of lemon makes the perfect addition to your breakfast routine.
July 15, 2021 by Nicole Collins
So…
It’s officially happened.
The time has come to reenter the world.
And honestly, your girl is a little panicked about that.
I knew this day was coming. My work told us about a month and a half ago that they wanted to phase us back into the office after Independence Day.
But here’s the thing…out of sight, out of mind. I knew that eventually things would have to go back to “normal”, but it snuck up on me way faster than I ever expected.
Packing my bags and gathering my things to get ready for my first day back to the office felt like getting ready for the first day of school. There was a mix of excitement and fear and dread and butterflies all mixed up into one. And for as many thoughts and feelings that I had in preparation for my first day back, what kind of snacks I was going to bring with me was at the top of my list.
Well, today’s recipe was on the list of items that got me through my first day. And, boy is it a good one.
Today, we’re making Blueberry Pistachio Granola!
Granola is one of those things that’s great for breakfast and great for snacking, because it’s a blank canvas when it comes to flavor. Today’s granola is a little sweet and a little savory with a little hint of citrus. And, it’s absolutely delicious!
It’s ridiculously simple to make granola, and that’s what so great about this recipe. Pick your dry ingredients, toss them with some wet ingredients, give them some flavor, and pop it all in the oven. That’s it!
For the base of our granola, we’ll start with some oats. There are a couple different varieties of oats on the market. But from a texture standpoint, I prefer to use old fashioned (or rolled) oats. We’ll toss the oats with some lightly salted shelled pistachios, and it’s time to work on the flavorings.
To flavor our granola, we’re going to use a little bit of lemon zest and a subtle touch of cinnamon. Then, we’ll mix that into the oat/nut mixture along with some melted coconut oil and maple syrup. And, that’s all we need to assemble our granola.
Now, let’s talk about coconut oil for a second. You typically see 2 kinds of coconut oil: refined and unrefined. Unrefined coconut oil has more of a coconut flavor to it. I love coconut, but I didn’t want that to be one of the flavor profiles in this granola. So, we’re going to use refined coconut oil. If you’re totally coconut obsessed, feel free to use unrefined.
Once our granola mix is together, to the oven it goes to dry out and lightly toast. We're going to toast it at a low temperature so that it gets nice and crunchy without burning. Then as soon as the granola comes out of the oven, we get to mix in our final ingredient...dried blueberries! The dried fruit is was really adds a pleasant sweetness to this granola, but it's important to wait until after the granola finishes in the oven before we add the fruit. If we toss our blueberries into the mix before it goes in the oven, they'll become dry, tough, and rubbery. And, nobody wants that!
The finished product is a harmonious blend of sweet and savory. The blueberries, lemon, and cinnamon add a lovely sweetness to our granola. But, those salted pistachios perfectly balance out the sweetness. If Goldilocks was looking for a jar of granola that wasn't too sweet or too salty, this would be it!
This granola flavor is sure to be on permanent rotation in my house from here on out, and I'm sure it will be in yours too!
I hope you guys love this one as much as I do, enjoy, and let's eat!
Blueberry Pistachio Granola
Serves: about 2 cups Print
Ingredients:
1 cup old fashioned oats
½ cup lightly salted pistachios, shelled
1 tsp lemon zest (about 1 lemon)
1/8 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp salt
2 tbsp refined coconut oil, melted
2 tbsp honey
½ cup dried blueberries
Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
In a mixing bowl, combine oats, pistachios, lemon zest, cinnamon, salt, coconut oil, and honey. Toss well to fully combine. Spread in an even layer on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 mins. Remove from oven, toss the granola, and return to the oven for another 10 minutes until the granola is lightly golden.
Allow granola to cool for about 5 minutes. Gently stir in dried blueberries. Allow granola to cool completely. Enjoy!
Recipe notes:
*Unrefined coconut oil has a stronger coconut flavor than refined. I didn't want the coconut flavor in this granola, so that's why I chose refined. If you want that coconut flavor, feel free to use unrefined.
*This granola can be stored in an airtight container for about 2 weeks.
*This granola is delicious as a snack on its own, on top of some yogurt, or even as a crunchy topping for ice cream.
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