Make a batch of brown butter honey granola for breakfast and snacking all week long. It's made with brown butter, honey, oats, sunflower seeds, flaxseed, and a hint of cinnamon.
Heather's recipe summary
Flavor: Crunchy granola made with oats, sunflower seeds, a hint of cinnamon, and nutty brown butter. It's lightly sweetened with honey that also helps make big granola clusters.
Easy to customize: Prefer big clusters or smaller pieces? You can do both with this recipe.
Yield: About 6 heaping cups (12 servings)
Similar to: Coconut Granola and Sesame Granola
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Ingredients and substitutions
- Oats - Old fashioned oats work best for granola because they're a medium thickness and add substantial texture to the granola. Quick cook oats can work as a substitute by reducing the cooking time. They're thinner and powdery, so they'll take about half the time to bake.
- Butter - Necessary to make brown butter. Butter cannot be substituted in this recipe with other spreads or oils. Salted or unsalted butter works. If you're using salted butter, you'll want to reduce the listed salt by ¼ teaspoon.
- Mix-ins - Sunflower seeds can be substituted with any other seeds or chopped nuts. Flaxseed meal can be omitted if desired, or substituted with chia seeds or protein powder.
- Honey - Can be substituted with maple syrup or brown sugar.
- Flavor - Cinnamon, salt, and vanilla add flavor to the granola. Cinnamon could be substituted with a spice blend like pumpkin pie spice or apple pie spice.
How to make brown butter honey granola
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter.
- Butter will bubble and foam.
- Eventually you'll see the butter turning a golden brown color. Stir frequently, scraping up the bottom of the pan.
- Continue cooking until you see golden brown flecks in the bottom. Remove from heat before they turn dark.
- Add honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt, stirring to combine.
- Pour into oat mixture and stir until coated.
- Spread onto a parchment lined baking sheet and press into an even layer.
- Bake until golden brown, about 40 minutes. Stir the edges if they brown too quickly while baking.
Tips and tricks
Stir sparingly - If you'd like big granola clusters, resist the urge to stir your granola while baking. Instead, rotate the pan halfway through baking to ensure even browning.
Granola browning in the corners? - Stir the corners to prevent burning, pressing the granola back down into an even layer. Stirring breaks up the clusters from forming, but may be necessary if the edges are browning faster than the middle.
Allow to cool completely - Allow your granola to cool completely before breaking into clusters. This helps crisp up your granola and creates big clusters.
For small pieces - Stir your granola once halfway through baking, then stir it again once removed from the oven. This breaks up any larger clumps that formed and prevents clumps from forming while cooling.
Frequently asked questions
Granola will keep for 2 weeks or more at room temperature.
Big clumps are formed from the combination of butter and honey in this recipe. If you reduce either of these ingredients, your granola is less likely to stick together and form clumps.
Brown butter is butter that has been melted and cooked until the milk solids caramelize and turn brown. This process adds a nutty, caramelized flavor to the butter.
Recommended
📖 Recipe
Brown Butter Honey Granola
Ingredients
- 4 cups (360 g) old fashioned oats
- 1 cup (140 g) sunflower seeds, or chopped nuts
- ¼ cup (25 g) ground flaxseed
- ½ cup (113 g) unsalted butter
- ½ cup (168) honey
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300℉. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
- In a large bowl, add old fashioned oats, sunflower seeds, and ground flaxseed. Stir to combine and set aside.
- In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter, stirring frequently. Butter will begin to foam and boil. After 4 to 5 minutes you will see brown flecks appear in the bottom of the pan.
- Continue to stir until butter is golden and flecks are a medium brown color. Watch closely, butter will brown quickly. The entire process takes about 5 to 7 minutes.
- Remove butter from heat and add honey, vanilla, cinnamon, and salt. Stir to combine.
- Drizzle butter mixture over oats and toss until evenly coated. Pour mixture onto prepared baking sheet and spread into a single layer.
- Bake for about 35-45 minutes, rotating pan once halfway through, or until granola looks golden brown across the top. If edges are browning too quickly, give your oats a quick toss and press back into an even layer.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool completely on baking sheet. Granola will harden as it cools. Store in an airtight container at room temperature.
Equipment Recommendations
Notes
- Storage: Cooked granola will keep for 2 weeks or more in a tightly sealed container at room temperature.
- Sweetener substitutes: Honey can be substituted with maple syrup, brown sugar, or granulated sugar.
- How to make clumpy granola: The honey and butter create a glue that helps the granola stick together when baked. Make sure you don't reduce or omit either ingredient, and don't stir your granola while it's baking or cooling (unless it looks like it will burn around the edges). Allow the granola to cool completely before breaking into pieces and storing.
- Using quick-cook oats: Quick-cook oats are thin and cook faster than old fashioned oats, so you'll want to reduce the cooking time to 15-20 minutes.
I had so much fun creating this recipe! I hope you give it a try and love it as much as I do. If you have a question, check out the post above, which is packed with information about the recipe. Tried the recipe? I'd love to hear your thoughts — leave a comment and a star rating to share your feedback!