Granola

Breakfasts Rich With Grains

Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times

By MARTHA ROSE SHULMAN

Published: December 7, 2009

Until recently, I’d drifted away from grainy breakfasts, even though breakfast is a great time of day for whole grains — especially if you exercise first thing in the morning, as I do. Then I rediscovered steel-cut oats and homemade granola.

Granola is a breakfast food and snack food consisting of rolled oats, nuts, honey, and sometimes rice,^{[citation needed]} that is usually baked until crispy. During the baking process the mixture is stirred to maintain a loose, breakfast cereal-type consistency. Dried fruits, such as raisins and dates, are sometimes added.

A bowl of granola.

Besides serving as food for breakfast and/or snacks, granola is also often eaten by those who are hiking, camping, or backpacking due to the fact that it is lightweight, high in calories, and easy to store; these properties make it similar to trail mix and muesli.

Granola is often eaten in combination with yogurt, honey, strawberries, bananas, milk, and/or other forms of cereal.^{[citation needed]} It can also serve as a topping for various types of pastries and/or desserts.^[1]