Super-Chunky Granola, Cook's Illustrated style

If you have been around me long, you know that I LOVE Cook's Illustrated.  Not just I love them because they make me happy.  Nope, its the kind of love that I put my whole trust in, the whole shebang.  Honestly, I should just marry them...

But seriously, they have the best recipes.  They always have paragraphs and paragraphs explaining why they chose what they chose for their "best" recipe.  I love this because you learn so much with each recipe that I have been able to use when I branch out and try my own combinations.  Like for this granola, they made a huge (and scientific!) point about why some fat is required for really good granola.  This way I know that any recipe I try later needs to have some oil in it, or I will have dry, dusty oats.

Oh, I could go on and on.

Below is the recipe for those interested.  But really, you should all go out and buy a book or two (I love the books the magazine publishes at the end of every year with the whole year's worth of recipes, or the "Best" series).  These cookbooks read like real books, which I of course love.

Published March 1, 2012. From Cook's Illustrated.

We’ve had it with the overpriced (and underwhelming) store-bought stuff. For homemade granola with real bite, what you need is some bark.

The Problem

The slow baking and frequent stirring that most do-it-yourself granola recipes recommend often result in a loose, granular texture—not the distinct clusters we were after.

The Goal

Our ideal granola would be markedly crisp yet tender enough to shatter easily when bitten.

The Solution

Our preliminary tests proved that whole rolled oats were essential for a hearty, crisp texture, and that any variety of chopped nuts contributed toasty flavor that developed as the cereal roasted in the oven. We wanted to keep our sweeteners and add-ins simple, so we opted for maple syrup, light brown sugar, and a variety of pantry staples. For the fat component, we went with neutral-tasting vegetable oil. This gave us a super-crisp—but not greasy—texture.
For the big clumps that we were after, we used a spatula to press the granola firmly into the pan before baking. When we pulled the cereal from the oven, it remained in a single sheet as it cooled, during which time the syrup made by our sweeteners and oil bound the solids together. This gave us granola “bark,” which was ideal, since now we could break it into clumps of any size.
All our chunky granola needed was sweet bits of dried fruit. After a few tests, it became clear that the best way to incorporate the fruit was to keep it away from the heat altogether, only stirring it in once the granola was cool.
Finally, we developed a few twists on our basic formula by switching up the fruit-and-nut pairings and accenting them with flavor boosters like coconut, citrus zest, and warm spices.

Almond Granola with Dried Fruit
Makes about 9 cups

1/3 cup maple syrup
1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
4 tsp vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup vegetable oil
5 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
2 cups (10oz) raw almonds, chopped coarse
2 cups raisins or other dried fruit (if other, chopped)

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees.  Line rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Whisk maple syrup, brown sugar, vanilla, and salt in large bowl.  Whisk in oil.  Fold in oats and nuts until thoroughly coated.

3. Transfer oat mixture to prepared baking sheet and spread across sheet into thin, even layer (about 3/8 thick).  Using stiff metal spatula, compress oat mixture until very compact.  Bake until lightly browned, about 40 minutes, rotating the pan once halfway through baking.  Remove granola from oven and cool on wire rack to room temperature, about 1 hour.  Break cooled granola into pieces of desired size. 

Granola can be stored in airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Twist on the above recipe:

Pecan-Orange Granola with Dried Cranberries
Add 2 tablespoons finely grated orange zest and 2 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon to maple syrup mixture in step 2.  Substitute coarsely chopped pecans for almonds.  After granola is broken into pieces, stir in 2 cups dried cranberries.