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The recipe title you see up there, while that is the short version.
Yeah, the short one.
The original recipe name also included, pumpkin, pumpkin seeds and honeycrisp apples, but I realized that was just way too ridiculously long. Like come on, I cannot have a title that is three-lines long (well I could, but I shouldn’t). That is just too crazy, even for me. So autumn harvest granola came into play and it stuck. I like it better anyway. Did I ever tell you that harvest, is one of my very favorite words and autumn is probably my second? Because they totally are, hence the whole Half Baked Harvest thing.
Have I also ever told you that I despise the “Half Baked” part of Half Baked Harvest? Because I do, and if I could I would delete the Half Baked and just be Harvest, but at this stage of the game it’s not worth the confusion. Really though, I hate it and for reasons that were clearly not obvious to me as a young and naive sixteen year-old.
And I say sixteen because I actually bought and registered my domain name a full year and half before even writing my first post. It took me all that time to build up the courage. Pretty glad I finally did though!
Also, time stinking flies. I know we all say this all the time (especially me), but whoa!! It just flies.
Which is why this year, I am SO not ready for the snow or Thanksgiving and not even Christmas. I mean I am beyond excited for both because they are my two favorite holidays, but this year I really just want to enjoy Halloween… without snow and before all the holiday talk. It’ll be kind hard though because snow is predicted for this week and with snow, I begin to think all things red, green and candy canes. Not gonna lie, one hour of my Sunday was spent looking at the most adorable Christmas bedding at Pottery Barn. SO CUTE. I want it.
Um ok, but back to all things fall. It’s the last day of September and I am so excited for October. I love Halloween. It’s my third favorite holiday (can you tell I love all end of the year holidays?). I am pretty excited to create some fun treats this year and um, dig into a lot of candy. Hey, what is October without a complete sugar high? Actually, I take that back, what is October, November and December without a complete sugar high? Isn’t that what January was made for? I think so.
Before we start that sugar rush though, how about some pretty top-notch, healthy granola? Promise, it tastes so good. Maybe not like a Reese, but good in its own awesome way.
This is my first time adding quinoa to granola and I think it will be a regular from now on. I like the extra chew you get and it adds a ton of protein too, which will be good since we need our strength to lug those bags of candy around. You know, the ones you are going to be stealing from your kids at the end of October… yeah, those.
Obviously, now is the time to start building up people. I call it power planning.
The only fall ingredient that’s missing in this granola is pomegranate arils. I am not a fan of baked pomegranate arils because I love them so much raw, so I added them on top with some yogurt or milk. Delicious.
I used a few honeycrisp apples, some pumpkin, pumpkin seeds and lots of pecans. This granola definitely fits the “autumn harvest” category.
Brown Butter Pecan + Maple Quinoa Autumn Harvest Granola.
Servings: 7 Cups
Calories Per Serving: 710 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
- 3 cups old fashioned oats
- 1 cup cooked quinoa
- 1 cup raw pecans
- 1 cup raw pumpkin seeds pepitas
- 1 1/4 cup dried cranberries
- 3 small-medium honeycrisp apples chopped
- 3 tablespoons butter
- 1 cup pure maple syrup
- 1/2 cup pumpkin puree homemade if possible
- 1 tablespoon coconut oil or 1 more tablespoon butter
- 2 teaspoons cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1/2 teaspoon ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
- 4 tablespoons honey
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- In a large bowl combine the oats, cooked quinoa, pecans, pumpkin seeds, cranberries and chopped apples. Toss well.
- In a skillet or small sauce pot melt the butter over medium heat until just browned. The butter will melt, foam and froth, then begin to brown along the bottom. Whisk browned bits off of the bottom of the pan. Once the butter is browned quickly remove from the heat and slowly stir in the maple syrup, pumpkin and coconut oil. Add the cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and salt. Stir in the vanilla.
- Pour the warm mixture over the dry oat mixture and stir to fully combine. I normally stir for a good 3 to 5 minutes.
- Spread the granola out onto two parchment lined baking sheet with sides and drizzle with 2 tablespoons honey. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes stirring every 15 minutes so the granola will get evenly toasted. The last time you stir the granola, drizzle it with the remaining 2 tablespoons honey. Remove from the oven and let cool completely before storing. Store up to one week or longer if kept in the fridge.*
Notes
*Because of the apples used in this recipe, I recommend eating this granola within one week of baking. I have kept mine a solid two weeks and it is still delicious, but I live at 9,000 feet, so food stays fresher for longer up here. *Adapted from my [Brown Butter Pumpkin Seed and Expresso Glazed Big Cluster Granola | https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/brown-butter-pumpkin-seed-espresso-glazed-big-cluster-granola/].
Good till the last bite. PS. fresh apples in granola is SO awesome.
I make this granola all that time!
I leave it in the fridge once cooked and is wonderfully crunchy! 😊
Hey Ava,
Happy Sunday!!⛄️ I truly appreciate you making this recipe so often and sharing your feedback, so glad to hear it is always enjoyed! xxT
Thank you for this lovely recipe!
I’ve made it today with just a few alterations:
I didn’t drizzle honey over it because maple syrup is usually sweet enough for us. I didn’t have any dried cranberries, so I swapped them out for dried figs (which worked wonderfully!)
And for a more shelf stable granola I used homemade dehydrated apple chips that I mixed into the granola when it had completely cooled.
Next time I make this, I’ll (at minimum :D) double the recipe.
Greetings from Germany 🙂
– Anna-Lena
Hey Anna-Lena,
Happy Monday!! 🍁 Love to hear that this recipe turned out well for you, thanks a bunch for making it! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you! xT
Could you use mashed sweet potato instead of the pumpkin purée?
Hi Crystal,
Sure, that should work well for you! Please let me know if you give the recipe a try, I hope you love it! xx
I LOVED this flavor. However, after reading the reviews about not getting crisp, I kept mine in the oven for 70 minutes. It felt almost crisp when I took it out. I let it sit out for a couple of hours before I put it in a glass jar. This morning it was soft….:(. What can I do to prevent this next time?
I wonder if perhaps I drizzled a bit more honey than the recipe called for…..? Would that do it?
Hey Cindy,
Thanks for giving this recipe a try, so sorry to hear you had some issues! It definitely can get soft after a day or two just because there are no preservatives in the recipe. I hope this makes sense:) xx
Hey, Tieghan! Can this be baked in a convection oven? If so, would there be any temperature difference? Can’t wait to try this!!
-Macy
Hi Macy,
Yes, that would be just fine to do, I don’t use convection so I’m not sure of the temperature difference if any! Let me know how it turns out! xT
Hey, Tieghan!
It was soooo good! My family went through a double batch in two days! Thanks!
-Macy
Hi Macy,
Wonderful! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed and appreciate you giving it a try! Have a great weekend!🍁
I followed the recipe but increase the baking time by 20 minutes and increased the temperature by 25° and it turned out perfect. Nice and crunchy
Hi Kathy,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try! xx
Hello.
This recipe is Deliscious! I just took it out of the oven. Is it meant to be crispy?
Hey Patti,
Fantastic!! I am so glad that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a lot for giving it a try. Yes, it should be crispy. Have the best week! xTieghan
Really enjoyed this recipe!
I made some adjustments to the amount of sugar m, used just a little over 1/2 cup of maple syrup and only drizzled honey after I stirred the granola from the first 15 min of toasting. I did use the 1 cup of cooked quinoa and after the baking time of 30 min at 325 and letting it dry cool for almost 30 min (as I cooked in batches) it came out crunchy enough for me 🙂
I didn’t use apples but I did use golden and regular raisins and leftover dried cranberries. Looking forward to making this again with the addition of hemp seeds and ground flax.
The flavors of this granola is all things fall, seriously the brown butter *kiss* delightful! Thank you for this recipe!
Hey Angie,
Awesome!! I love to hear that this recipe was enjoyed, thanks a bunch for giving it a try! Thanks for sharing what worked well for you. xTieghan
I’m seeing a lot of comments from people with the same problem as me. The granola isn’t crunchy despite the AMAZING flavors. It’s still good just a little bummed it’s not crunchy and I did 3 separate sheets so I didn’t crowd the sheet.
I cooked 2 cups of quinoa (2 cups once it’s cooked really grows into more so wondering if this is the problem area?) I almost didn’t add all of the quinoa because it seemed like too much. It basically doubles in size once it’s cooked. I will make this again and add way less quinoa because I really think this is where the issue is for me but the flavors are amazing, it’s pretty and simple to make!
Hey Megan!! Oh no, you are right! I should only be 1/2 cup of quinoa. Recipe is all fixed now. I am so sorry!! Hope this helps get you a crunchy granola! and Let me know if you have other questions! xxTIeghan
Wait the recipe now says 1 cup of quinoa. Which is it?
1 cup! Sorry for the confusion 🙂 xTieghan
My granola never crisped in the oven – suggestions:??
Hey Abby,
So sorry about this! Did you adjust the recipe at all? Try a different cooking method? Let me know how I can help! xTieghan
I absolutely adore this recipe. <3 Thank you so much for sharing it. It is just so good.
Thank you so much Tressa! xTieghan
I love the flavors in this granola but it’s soft and not crunchy I’m wondering if I’m doing something wrong! I double check my measurements on everything I even turn the oven temperature up 10° it’s still very soft is it supposed to be that way because some people were commenting on chewy and crunchy and mine is neither sad fa I love the flavors in this granola but it’s soft and not crunchy I’m wondering if I’m doing something wrong! I double check my measurements on everything I even turn the oven temperature up 10° it’s still very soft is it supposed to be that way because some people were commenting on chewy and crunchy in mine is neither ?. But like I said I love the flavors!
Hi Brenda! Is your pan crowded with granola? I am wondering if you just have too much on the pan and the granola is not able to crisp and is instead steaming. Try dividing the granola between 2 baking sheets and baking this way. Fingers crossed this works well for you! Please let me know if you have any other questions. I hope you love this recipe! Thank you! xTieghan
It sounds strange but I’ve always added dry, uncooked quinoa to my granola. It has a great crunch instead of being chewy.
I may have to see how that is. Thank you for sharing Rese! xTieghan
I made this granola and it was not at all crunchy – does that sound correct?? Not sure where I may have gone wrong if it is supposed to be a crunchy granola? It’s quite soft. Still tasty though!
HI! Thsi should be crunchy. Did you change anything about the recipe at all?
Soo delicious!! I was eating it before it even baked.
Haha!! YES!! Thank you!!