9 Simple Ways To Take Plain Granola To The Next Level

When it comes to breakfast, granola is a staple. At its most basic, it's made from oats, oil, and a liquid sweetener like honey or maple syrup, baked until crisp. This simplicity might work for some, but for others, it gets old fast, so you might want to know some simple ways to take plain granola to the next level. If you're making that plain granola yourself, it's easy enough to make additions before you put it in the oven. But, you should watch out for the mistakes everyone makes with homemade granola. If you already have some plain granola, you'll have to think more carefully about when and how to make these adjustments.

Plain granola can be seen as dull. We don't blame people for thinking that way when there aren't any flavorful additions or it's always served with the same old milk or yogurt. But there are so many ways to level up plain granola. Sometimes, it's about adding extra flavor, such as spices or extracts, but you can also change the way that you serve it or use it.

If you're sick of the same old breakfast food, you're in the right place. We have some great ideas for how to upgrade plain granola. Never again will you have to dutifully crunch your way through it — you'll be excited for your next bowl.

Plain granola might be crunchy and sweet, but that's about it. Adding spices makes it taste better. It's that simple. There are all kinds of spiced granola recipes out there, such as this apple and cinnamon granola, that prove spices go hand-in-hand with this breakfast classic.

But, of course, we're not talking about spices such as chili, coriander, or smoked paprika, we mean sweet spices. These are the kinds that you'd put in an apple crisp or that you'd find in a pumpkin spice blend. Options include cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, allspice, and nutmeg. They all have a sweetness to them and pair beautifully with granola. You can choose to highlight a single spice or make your own blend. It's worth noting that you have to be more conservative with some spices than others. For instance, granola will taste great with a hefty dose of cinnamon, but cloves should be used sparingly or else they can taste medicinal and overpowering.

But how, exactly, do you add spices to plain granola? If you're making plain granola from scratch, you can add the spices before baking, when you mix the dry ingredients with the liquid ingredients. This helps get an even coating and means the spices will be evenly distributed. If you have ready-made granola, you'll just have to add the spices to the granola and toss them together to get an even distribution. The spices won't adhere as well, but the flavor will still come through.

Another way to make your granola more tasty is by using extracts. We're talking vanilla, almond, orange — anything that you might use in cakes or other baked goods. It's a simple way to add a punch of flavor with minimal effort. And, the great part is, you probably already have at least one bottle of extract lurking in the back of your pantry.

As with spices, you get better results using extracts when making your own granola. You can mix them with the other wet granola ingredients — oil and honey or syrup — and then add the wet to the dry. This coats your granola with flavor, so you get a hit of the extract in every bite.

Mixing extracts into plain granola that's ready made doesn't work so well. Liquid extracts can make the granola soggy and any that contain alcohol can taste overly strong before being cooked. Instead, look out for vanilla powder or paste and mix these through your store-bought granola. Of course, you might need to learn the difference between vanilla powder and vanilla paste first. You could also try mixing the extract through the yogurt or milk you serve with your granola, giving you the flavor without making the crunchy pieces soggy.

When it comes to picking an extract, vanilla is a classic choice that pairs well with other potential granola mix-ins. Almond or hazelnut extracts are great if you like extra nuttiness, while orange or lemon extracts bring some acidic brightness.

Toasted nuts can level-up plain granola, bringing a toasty depth of flavor. Many granola recipes contain nuts, and a homemade granola can be made in just 15 minutes with nuts. When nuts are added to a granola recipe before it's baked, they toast in the oven with the other ingredients, so there's no need to toast them first. So, this is a simple solution for anyone who's making their plain granola from scratch. However, if you're starting with store-bought granola, you should toast nuts before adding them. Sure, you could add raw nuts, but the flavor and texture just isn't the same.

This might leave you wondering how to toast nuts. It's simple and you can do it in the oven or on the stovetop. The oven method takes a little longer, but you don't have to keep constant watch over them. The stovetop method is speedier and means you don't have to turn on the oven, which is a bonus on a hot day. However, you will need to keep your eye on them as they toast.

For the oven method, preheat your oven to 350 F. Spread your choice of nuts on a baking sheet in a single layer. Put them in the oven for 5 to 8 minutes, until golden brown and fragrant. You need to toss them once every couple of minutes. To toast nuts on the stovetop, add a single layer in a skillet and set them over a medium-low heat. Stir them often for 3 to 5 minutes, until toasted all over.

Whether you bought it at the store or made it yourself, if your plain granola is lacking, a straightforward way to make it more interesting is by topping it with fresh fruit. You can make yourself a breakfast bowl, starting with Greek yogurt or thick, creamy coconut yogurt, sprinkling over some plain granola, and then topping it all off with fresh fruit. Not only does it add flavor, but fruit also brings a wealth of vitamins and minerals.

It might not seem that interesting, but you can experiment with various fruit combinations, which is part of what takes this to the next level. Sure, basics like berries or bananas are nice enough, but what about making a tropical granola topped with fruits like mango, passionfruit, and pineapple? Or, you could embrace the best of late summer stone fruits with peaches and plums. If you opt for plums, they pair beautifully with cinnamon, so it's worth bearing in mind should you also decide to spice your granola. Adding fresh mint or a squeeze of lime juice to whatever fruit you use elevates it further.

Plus, it doesn't just have to be fresh fruit that you use, cooked fruit is an option, as well. If you want to embrace fall flavors, you could stew apples with spices and use that to top your granola. A simple fruit compote only takes a few minutes to whip up but can liven up lackluster granola even more than you'd imagine.

If prepping fresh fruit seems like way more effort than you're willing to put into upgrading your granola, there's an even simpler solution — use dried fruit. You can buy all kinds of dried fruits at the store and any one of them can level up a basic mixture of oats and sweetener.

When making granola from scratch, dried fruit should always be added once it's out of the oven. This is because when you cook dried fruit, it's likely to burn. As such, this technique is just as easy to achieve using store-bought plain granola. You just mix through your choice of fruit and you're ready to roll.

And, if you're tired of granola packed full of raisins, there are so many other options. Other dried fruits you might use in your granola include dried apricots, apples, mango, and pineapple. You can also try freeze-dried fruits, such as strawberries and raspberries. It can be way more exciting than the most basic dried fruit options would lead you to believe. Since it's a simple upgrade, it's one that's great to pair with others on this list.

Want to add a nutty flavor to your granola without using whole nuts? Then try stirring some nut butter through it. This is an easy way to make plain granola more delicious and add more nutrients to make a breakfast that will keep you going until lunch.

If you're thinking that nut butter always equals peanut butter, you might be surprised to learn about the many types of nut butter. Yes, peanut butter tastes great and is packed with protein, but you can branch out to introduce other flavors. There are nut butters that have become staples, like almond butter and cashew butter. Or, you could try some lesser-used versions, such as hazelnut butter or macadamia nut butter. Alternatively, there are nut-free options, such as sunflower seed butter or tahini, which is made from sesame seeds.

For those making granola from scratch, you can melt nut butter with the other wet ingredients, stir the mixture through the dry ingredients, and bake as usual. This makes the nut butter even more toasty and delicious, plus it distributes it evenly. Anyone starting with store-bought plain granola will need to accept that using nut butter will give their granola a soft coating. You'll need to melt the nut butter, since it's too thick to coat anything when it's at room temperature. Once it's melted, mix through the granola to get an even covering, and only coat the amount of granola that you'll eat in one sitting.

Plain coconut is nice enough, but once toasted, it takes on a deeper, nuttier flavor that goes brilliantly with granola. It's also great combined with toasted nuts or even a handful of chocolate chips. You can use either shredded coconut or flaked coconut, depending on what kind of texture you want. Shredded coconut will bring flavor but will blend into the background texture-wise, leaving crunchy oats as the star of the show. Coconut flakes are bigger and end up with a crispy texture that brings more of a bite to the finished dish.

Once you've decided on the type of coconut you just need to toast it. Generally, when making granola from scratch, you'll just mix it in with the other ingredients before baking. This way it will toast in the oven. But, if you want to mix coconut into granola that's already been made, you'll have to toast it separately.

In this case, you can toast it in the oven or on the stove. To toast it in the oven, preheat it to 325 F and lay your shredded or flaked coconut in a single layer on a baking sheet. Put it in the oven for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring twice during the process to get even browning. To toast coconut in a pan, put your coconut in a skillet or frying pan over a medium-low heat. Stir often for 10 to 12 minutes until it's golden brown and fragrant.

Taking plain granola to the next level isn't necessarily about adding anything to it but changing how you serve it. If you usually eat granola with yogurt or milk, try sprinkling it over a smoothie bowl. This brings a delicious fruity element and means that your breakfast will be even more nutritious.

But, first, you might be looking for a smoothie bowl recipe. Smoothie bowls are great for granola because they're much thicker than a smoothie that you drink, so it's spoonable. This is usually achieved by using frozen fruits, which give a thicker consistency than fresh ones. Many recipes also use less liquid than you'd find added to a standard smoothie.

What's great about smoothie bowls is that you can use any combination of fruits to get the flavor you want. If you love berries, you might blitz together frozen strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries. But, you can also go for more unusual combinations. For instance, combining frozen banana with brewed coffee for a tasty morning pick-me-up. Whatever ingredients you decide on, once they're blended up, pour them into a bowl and top with granola. You can also choose to add more toppings, such as cacao nibs, chia seeds, or fresh fruit.

It might sound strange, but you can use plain granola as a salad garnish. A great salad should have a range of textures, and granola could give it the crunch that it needs. You could use granola as part of a breakfast salad if you aren't ready to give up its morning time connotations. But, there's no hard-and-fast rule about what a breakfast salad is. It might include popular breakfast ingredients, such as egg or avocado, or fruit as a sweet element. Peaches, strawberries, and blueberries all go nicely in salad. That said, some consider a breakfast salad any salad eaten as part of a morning meal.

However, granola doesn't just have to be used in breakfast salads. You can use granola in salads that are eaten for lunch or dinner. The rest of the salad can be totally savory, with the granola bringing its crunch and sweetness to balance out the dish.

Home cooks who want a granola that appeals more to a lunch or dinner salad can reduce the amount of sugar, add some extra salt, and perhaps even add herbs for a savory finish. However, this works with sweet store-bought granola, as well. It's especially good for anyone who likes the combination of sweet and savory.