Sourdough Granola

Recipe by Charlotte Rutledge
57 Reviews 5.0 out of 5 stars

This subtly sweet granola is made with an ingredient you may not have considered incorporating into your mix before: sourdough starter. Make your life easy by using either fed or discard starter. Because the starter binds the oats, nuts, and seeds, you can cut back on the amount of sugar, honey, or syrup, which otherwise functions as the edible “glue” that holds the granola together. As an added bonus, the inclusion of sourdough starter ensures light and crispy clusters in every bite.

Prep
15 mins
Bake
25 to 30 mins
Total
40 mins
Yield
4 1/2 cups
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Sourdough Granola - select to zoom
Sourdough Granola - select to zoom
Sourdough Granola - select to zoom

Instructions

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  1. Preheat the oven to 325°F. Lightly grease a large rimmed baking sheet; or line it with parchment. 

  2. In a small bowl, stir together the sourdough starter, maple syrup, vegetable oil, salt, and cinnamon until smooth. 

  3. In a separate large bowl, combine the oats, puffed rice, pecans, seeds, and coconut. 

  4. Pour the sourdough mixture into the bowl with the dry ingredients and stir until evenly moistened.  

  5. Spread the granola out onto the prepared baking sheet, clustering and pressing it together as much as you’d like. (See “tips,” below.) 

  6. Bake the granola for 25 to 30 minutes, until it smells roasted and nutty and has turned golden.

  7. Remove the granola from the oven and allow it to cool completely before stirring in the dried fruit. 

  8. Serve granola plain or with milk or yogurt for breakfast or as a snack. Store the granola in an airtight container or tightly-sealed jar for a month or more.

Tips from our Bakers

  • For granola that has a subtle sourdough flavor, use starter that's been recently fed. Discard starter will add more tanginess. 

  • If you prefer a slightly sweeter granola, or if your sourdough starter hasn't been fed in more than a week, consider increasing the maple syrup to 6 tablespoons (117g), which will help balance the tangy flavor.

  • Substitute an equal amount, by volume, of King Arthur Rolled Oats for the oats in this recipe. They'll add slightly more chew and heartiness (and also more protein!). 

  • The size of your granola clusters is a matter of personal preference. Spreading the granola out in a relatively even layer across the pan will allow for a variety of cluster sizes, which you can break up once the granola has cooled. 

  • Don’t have any starter? Here’s a recipe for homemade sourdough starter. If you're making it from scratch, you'll need to feed it for 5 to 7 days before it’s ready for baking. Want a head start? Purchase our classic fresh sourdough starter — it’ll be ready for baking soon after it arrives at your door. Looking for tips, techniques, and all kinds of great information about sourdough baking? Find what you need in our sourdough baking guide.

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