Several years ago, while spending the summer in Japan, my mother got my family hooked on this Japanese brand granola called Furugura (フルグラ, Fruit Granola). Today we’re making a copycat version of it, but with healthy ingredients ONLY! Because it is homemade with the freshest tasting rolled oats and all the good stuff, the flavor of this Easy Homemade Granola is unbeatable. Once you nail down the formula I share below, you can mix and match, or give it your own spins. It is a perfect way to start your morning!
What’s inside the Furugura?
When we came back to the U.S. after that summer, we started to buy Furugura from the Japanese grocery store. The problem was that it cost almost double the price in Japan ($17 for 800 g)! I started to wonder if I should make my own… In the first step, I needed to find out what’s inside the Furugura. Here are items found on the package and what’s actually in the bag of Furugura. Not in this picture: Sugar, maltodextrin, vegetable oil, glycerine, modified starch, ferric sodium citrate, soy lecithin, citric acid, V.E., niacin, calcium pantothenate, sodium casein, vitamin B1 B6, A, D & B12, folic acid. After some quick research, I found out this granola is actually not as healthy as I thought. It’s sweeter than other brands of granola and the other ingredients are totally unnecessary. No wonder everyone was addicted. Granola doesn’t mean it’s all healthy!
It’s Time to Make Homemade Fruit Granola
So I decided to make my own Furugura at home. It turns out to be really easy to make homemade granola if you haven’t made it before. My Easy Homemade Granola is healthy as it’s made with whole grains, unrefined oil, natural sweetener, and delicious dried fruits and nuts! Are you ready to make it? If you put in a mason jar, it makes a great edible gift for your friends and family too!
Gather 6 Basic Ingredients
I make this recipe based on Furugura-style granola that we love, but with this basic granola recipe, you can play around with the ingredients and the mix-ins to make your favorite granola.
1. Oats
I always use Bob’s Red Mill®’s Organic Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats (Whole Grain) to make my granola. Rolled oats are made from oats that are steamed until they are soft and then pressed to flatten. Since the main ingredient is made of rolled oats, the freshness determines the flavor of your granola.
2. Oil
Since Furugura has a strong coconut fragrance, I use coconut oil in my granola recipe and I love it. Even Mr. JOC who is not into coconut enjoys the flavor the oil lends to the granola. But if you prefer, feel free to use another kind of oil suggested below:
Coconut oil Extra-virgin olive oil Grapeseed oil
3. Sweetener
I always use maple syrup in my granola. Honey works great too, although I find the flavor a bit more pronounced. These natural sweeteners help to bind the mixture more effectively than just sugar alone. A few spoonfuls of brown sugar or coconut sugar is welcome for some textural crunch, but be sure to pair it with either maple syrup or honey.
Maple syrup Honey
4. Salt
I use kosher salt. The purpose of salt is not just to make the food salty, but to bring out the flavors of the food and to intensify the flavor without adding more seasonings.
Kosher salt Sea salt Table salt (use half amount)
5. Nuts and Seeds
For this recipe, I used sliced almonds, pecans, and pumpkin seeds. There are other nuts and seeds you can incorporate, so have fun changing up the variety.
Almonds Cashews Hazelnuts Macadamia nuts Peanuts Pecans Pistachios Pumpkin seeds/Pepitas (I used Bob’s Red Mill’s Organic Pumpkin Seeds) Sunflower seeds Walnuts
6. Dried Fruits
Dried fruits provide little sweet bites and chewy texture in the granola so I suggest including a few kinds at least. For this recipe, I included raisins, dried apricot, dried peach, freeze-dried apple, freeze-dried strawberries, and coconut flakes. Other options include:
Dried fruits (apricots, bananas, blueberries, cherries, craisins, cranberries, currants, mango, peaches, pineapples, raisins, etc), chopped into smaller pieces if necessary Freeze-dried fruits (apples, bananas, strawberries, etc) Coconut flakes (raw or roasted, sweeten or unsweetened)
Remember, dried fruits are mixed into the granola AFTER it is completely cooled. Raw coconut flakes should be added to the granola at the last 10 minutes of baking time.
Optional Ingredients
Vanilla extract: Many granola recipes call for it, but I don’t include in this recipe as Furugura doesn’t include vanilla. Chocolate: You can add semi-sweet or white chocolate chips AFTER the granola has completely cooled. Spices: You can use ground cinnamon, cardamom, pumpkin spice (especially fall), or zest from citrus fruit like an orange.
My Favorite: Organic Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats (Whole Grain) from Bob’s Red Mill®
To achieve the perfect texture and flavor of granola, I used Bob’s Red Mill®’s Organic Old-Fashioned Rolled Oats (Whole Grain). These certified organic oats are a great choice for homemade granola. They have an outstanding flavor and are fresh-tasting no matter how you use them. It is the only brand of rolled oats I use in all my breakfast and baking recipes.
5 Tips to make Homemade Fruit Granola
Here are my tips for achieving the best homemade granola:
Sweetener and oil ratio should be one to one: The coating for your granola should be one part sweetener and one part oil. Use parchment paper: It will help the sweetener sticks to your oats and make it easy to transfer the granola once it’s done. To get big clumpy chunky granola: you will need to 1) put the oats a little crowded in the pan so they can stick together, 2) press the granola down into an even layer with a spatula before putting into the oven, and 3) stir it only once halfway through cooking. Do not overbake: Although you want your granola to be nicely toasted, take it out of the oven when it looks LIGHTLY toasted/golden on top and smells nice. Granola will dry and get crunchy as it cools. Let the granola cool completely: Do not touch or break it up until then.
Toss in some fresh berries and enjoy the granola with milk, yogurt, or as it is! Try making your version of granola at home and let me know how you like it! Sign up for the free Just One Cookbook newsletter delivered to your inbox! And stay in touch with me on Facebook, Pinterest, YouTube, and Instagram for all the latest updates.
