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Dulce de Leche and Almond Granola Shards

I ate these for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

And as a snack.

For about 3 days straight.

I’ll tell you that these need to cool and harden before devouring. But I’d be lying if I told you I heeded my own advice. I ate these blisteringly hot straight from the oven, blowing on each of my fingers as I scarfed each nugget down.

They were that good.

You may remember me using dulce de leche before, like when I made my grandfathers’ alfajores or the panettone bread pudding with dulce de leche sauce.

This caramel is super rich and creamy dreamy. I love it.

It pretty much completes your life.

Making granola is a cinch and totally customizable. Mix some dry ingredients (rolled oats, flax seed, wheat bran, cereal) with dried fruits and nuts (cherries, cranberries, blueberries, raisins, almonds, walnuts, macadamia) and drizzle in some wet ingredients (honey, maple syrup, agave nectar, peanut butter). After that you can decide to add different spices like cinnamon and cardamom or extracts such as vanilla or almond.

Toss everything together, throw it on a baking sheet and cook at a low temperature. You can make loose granola for cereals and snacks, sticky ones for bars and shards, or you can even roll them up into balls or place in mini muffin tins for tiny individual servings.

It’s totally up to you.

Here, I’ve mixed some of my most favorite ingredients into one granola recipe. I love dulce de leche for it’s caramel-y, smoky flavor and the almonds because of it’s buttery good-for-you crunch. The pepitas give it a cool green kick of color.

Give this one a try or create your own crazy-good granola eats.

Dulce de Leche and Almond Granola Shards

Print this Recipe

Serves 4-6; prep and cook 30 minutes

1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats

½ cup pepitas (roasted pumpkin seeds)

½ cup chopped almonds

1/3 cup light brown sugar

½ cup dulce de leche*

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons canola oil

*Dulce de leche is a milk caramel sauce popular in Latin American cuisine. You can find it canned in your local grocers’ international foods aisle or at Latin markets. You can also substitute with regular caramel sauce, honey, or peanut butter. The possibilities are endless…

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Set aside a standard-sized baking sheet and line it with either a silicone mat or greased parchment paper.

In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients until fully combined and sticky.

Put the granola mixture onto the baking sheet and flatten out with your hands; it doesn’t have to be a uniform shape so long as it’s flat. Sometimes it helps to wet the palms of your hands slightly so it doesn’t stick to the granola.

Place in the oven and bake for approximately 20 minutes or until hardened slightly.

Let cool on the counter and then break into shards. Granola keeps well in an air-tight container in the fridge for a couple weeks.

XO,

Steph

13 comments
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  • Lemons and AnchoviesJune 1, 2011 - 9:58 am

    I made granola for the first time a few months ago and I couldn’t wait for it to cool down either. Great use of dulce de leche (I used regular caramel) but then again, is there anything that dulce de leche wouldn’t be good in? 🙂 Love!ReplyCancel

    • StephanieJune 1, 2011 - 10:24 am

      Hey Jean! I know, I think I entered the homemade granola scene late too only just started making them a few months ago. And now I can’t stop! My husband won’t let me either. 🙂 He loves the stuff. Especially with peanut butter.ReplyCancel

  • JessicaJune 1, 2011 - 11:56 am

    I think you got me at “i ate these for breakfast, lunch, and dinner”. Saved the recipe and can’t wait to try it. I love granola on pretty much anything and everything. Yum!ReplyCancel

    • StephanieJune 1, 2011 - 11:58 am

      Jess, I always forget how much I truly do enjoy eating granola. It’s such a yummy thing to snack on throughout the day! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • ArtizoneJune 1, 2011 - 2:24 pm

    This looks delicious. The pepitas and dulce de leche is a nice departure from regular granola. We bet this would taste great with fresh peaches and milk… soft and hot out of the oven or cooled and hardened. Yum!ReplyCancel

  • lil @ sweetsbysillianahJune 2, 2011 - 11:16 pm

    girl, rarely does my mouth water over granola… but wow, i’ve gotta try this with the assortment of nuts i have in the fridge waiting to be used! wish i had some dulce de leche right now… might just have to “settle” for honey & pb! =)

    oh and a belated CONGRATS on the Honest Cooking gig! (sorry, got back from vaca the other day and catching up on my blog reading) kudos to you, chica – it was only a matter of time…. your writing deserves to be published in magazines!ReplyCancel

    • StephanieJune 3, 2011 - 8:27 am

      Hey Lil! Welcome back, I was missing you these past couple weeks. 🙂 Did you have a wonderful time?? Thanks for the gratz, I’m super stoked! 🙂ReplyCancel

  • KimberleyJune 5, 2011 - 6:31 pm

    This sounds ridiculously good!ReplyCancel

  • Christina @ Sweet Pea's KitchenJune 6, 2011 - 9:33 pm

    Dulce de leche makes everything taste a million time better!! Yummy! My family loves granola and we make it often. I can’t wait to try this version! 🙂ReplyCancel

    • StephanieJune 7, 2011 - 7:40 am

      I know it! I always make sure to have a few cans of it stashes in my pantry just in case. 🙂ReplyCancel

  • AdrianaJune 14, 2011 - 6:27 am

    I cannot believe my eyes – granola and dulce de leche seem like fierce competitors in my book in terms of virtuosity or defiant lack thereof. These shards look irresistible!ReplyCancel

  • aria @cookingmesoftlyJuly 19, 2011 - 1:01 pm

    really interesting recipe…..

    aria from italyReplyCancel

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