How to Make Maple Bacon Granola, Sweet and Savory Snack

Maple bacon granola, this combo might sound a little out there, but give it a shot. You will not be disappointed it is the perfect balance of sweet and salty.

Sweet and Salty, Why So Good?

What is it about this combination that works so well. Why do we love sweet and salty pairings so much.

It comes down to our bodies chemistry. Our bodies know that it requires certain nutrients whether it is the form of carbohydrates, sodium or other vitamins and mineral. So when we have these foods our bodies recognize them and craves them.

Then there is our brain response and how it is triggered by this combination. We love variety and complexity it is addictive and so we seek out these pleasure receptors. It is honestly very interesting how our bodies and brains react to certain tastes. Chefs have found this too which is why they love to layer flavours creating complex and dynamic dishes.

“The oversimplified reason why we crave these ingredients is because of how our bodies are wired” – Eater.com

What you Need for Maple Bacon Granola

Tools:

• Mixing bowl
• Frying pan, preferably non stick
• Wooden spoon
• Scissors or knife
• Measuring cups and spoons
• Lined baking sheet, line it with a silicone mat or parchment paper

Ingredients:

• Rolled oats, you shouldn’t use quick oats when you are making granola.
• Maple syrup
• Brown sugar, the recipe call for a dark brown sugar but demerara will work just as well.
• Bacon, you will need uncooked smoked streaky bacon.
• Bacon fat, this will come from the freshly cooked bacon. So, the bacon need to be cooked in a way you can catch and reserve the fat.
• Optional, you can also add raisins to the granola either at the end or midway through while it is being baked. This is a personal preference, I like to add them midway through just to cook them a little I find they are sweeter this way.

How to make Maple Bacon Granola

Begin with preheating your oven and cooking your bacon.

When cooking your bacon you need to do it in a way that you can catch and reserve the fat. I prefer to use a frying pan it is the easiest option for this recipe. Cook the bacon until it is lovely and crispy.

When the bacon is ready remove it from the pan and place it to the side to cool slightly.

While the bacon cools place all of the other ingredients into a mixing bowl. Now finely cut the bacon into small pieces. This can done with either a knife or scissors.

Place the bacon into the mixing bowl along with the warm bacon fat. Give it all a good mix to coat the oats and bacon in the syrup and bacon fat. There should not be any dry patches.

Pour the oat mixture onto the baking sheet and evenly spread it out. It should be a pretty thin layer not to deep otherwise the granola wont get a lovely crunch.

Place the tray into the oven and bake it for thirty minutes.

If you would like to add raisins while it is baking you can add them in after fifteen minutes, carefully, because it will be hot, remove the baking sheet from the oven and sprinkle over a handful of raisin, stir them into granola, making sure to spread the granola back out as you do. Place it back into the oven for another fifteen minutes.

Remove the cooked granola from the oven and let it sit until it has cooled completely. The granola when it is fresh out the oven will still be soft. As it cools then it will firm up, once it is cooled you can break it up into bit sized pieces.

Store and enjoy

Store your maple bacon granola in an air tight container in the fridge and it should store for at least a couple of weeks. That is if it lasts that long.

You can enjoy with some milk or perhaps your favourite yogurt. Or why not have it alone as an afternoon snack.

Don’t forget to check out my other granola recipes: