Today is a “Snow Day” due to the ice on the roads this morning! Modot, the news, everyone is asked to stay off the roads. So, instead of going to work I made sourdough granola. It is probably my new favorite. Lots of big chunks, incredibly versatile with different add-ins, low in sugar and oil, quick and delicious – what more could you ask? 🙂

In regards to books, I’m currently reading:

Arnold Schwarzenegger’s book “Be Useful” — I learned about this book from the podcast “People I (Mostly) Admire”. The podcast covers the book well. Arnold has some great stories about how he came from Austria to the USA, became a world-class body building, started acting, and became governor of California.

Gregory Zuckerman’s book “A Shot to Save the World: The Inside Story of the Life-or-Death Race for a COVID-19 Vaccine” — This is the story of the companies that created the mRNA vaccine for Covid-19. A lot of twists and turns in the invention of the methods to create the vaccine as well as background on the people running the companies. The scientists involved are illustrated as well, and I like how the author illustrates the “out of the box” thinking that led to the invention. Originally, Moderna was going to use mRNA to create proteins. But, the mRNA disappeared too fast which looked and sounded like a huge problem. Until a light bulb moment went off that made a scientist realize that this could be a good thing – because you want vaccines to trigger a response and disappear. Great example of one of the four cornerstones of Creativity: Flexibility or in other words… “Put to Another Use”.

Recipe Notes

This recipe uses sourdough starter! I know crazy. Sourdough granola uses sourdough starter 🙂 You have two options:
1. Use unfed, discard sourdough starter — this will lead to a more tangy taste (which I like)

2. Use fed starter — this will lead to a less tangy taste

Syrup: I use a combination sometimes of syrup and that is really up to you. You can use real maple syrup, pancake syrup, sugar-free pancake syrup or honey. I’ve used them all and they all taste great. It is up to you and how you want your final product to taste.

Nuts, Seeds and Dried Fruit: I don’t care for seeds in my granola most of the time. I like pepitas… but that’s about it. I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy seeds for this recipe. But, if you like them — add them! Any kind of nut will work. My favorites are walnuts and pecans.
For dried fruits, if you use dried apricots, I would chop them smaller. But raisins, small dried fruits, etc. can just be added AFTER the bake.

Double or Triple: I love this recipe so much that I normally make a quadruple batch. But I am leaving the original measurements as is in the recipe. Below are the 4x measurements:
304 g sourdough discard
1c maple syrup
4T oil
4t cinnamon
1t salt
356 g old-fashioned oats
48 g crisp rice cereal
2 c nuts
2 c seeds, optional
2 c dried fruit

How to Serve Sourdough Granola

I love this granola as is. Just plain old out-of-the-box granola. But it is also good on yogurt or in our favorite cereal bowl! This makes big chunks, so it wouldn’t be the best granola for making granola muffins with the granola baked in. I think this would be good on baked apples, too!

Print Recipe

Ingredients

76 grams sourdough, fed or discard 1/3 cup
4 Tb maple syrup
1 Tb oil vegetable, grapeseed, or olive oil
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp salt
89 grams old-fashioned oats 1 cup
12 grams crisp rice cereal 3/4 cup
1/2 cup nuts walnuts, pecans, etc.
1/2 cup seeds optional
1/2 cup dried fruit raisins, dried apricots, etc.

Instructions

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Prep a rimmed cookie sheet with parchment paper or silicone liner.
In a medium bowl, add the sourdough starter, syrup, oil, cinnamon and salt. Stir with a fork until combined.
In a large bowl, add the oats, crisp cereal, nuts, and seeds. Pour wet ingredients over the dry ingredients. Stir to coat.
Pour granola onto the prepped cookie sheet. Spread out in small or big chunks. Bake 25 minutes.
Put the cookie sheet of granola on a cooling rack. Break up your pieces into small or big chunks. Cool completely. Store at room temperature or in fridge in an airtight container.