Crunchy with a hint of sweetness, and delicious with a dollop of Greek yoghurt, there’s a single easy-to-prepare breakfast food that consistently triumphs above the rest. Forget buttered toast, bagels and gloopy porridge - we’re talking about granola.
Though we may not have pumpkin-spiced and novel matcha-infused Trader Joe’s own granolas, there are a variety of artisanal and supermarket brands to browse online – and we’ve selected the best of the best.
We reference the American supermarket chain Trader Joe’s for a reason. If you’ve ever taken a trip across the Atlantic to the US of A, you might just agree that American granola tends to be superior. Surprisingly, this is not because their granola has been imbued with oodles of added sugar and nasties such as palm oil. Rather, it’s because the United States is the birthplace of granola – specifically, New York state.
While munching on grains in the morning has been popular since the Ancient Greeks, Hilary Greenbaum and Dana Rubinstein tell us that it wasn’t until the 19th century that the idea of eating cold cereal was truly embraced. In their New York Times article titled ‘Who Made That Granola?’ they explain how holistic health specialist Dr. James Caleb Jackson began experimenting with cold cereal recipes in 1863.
From his home in Dansville, New York, Dr. Jackson created a cold breakfast cereal consisting of crumbled and baked graham flour – a coarse, ground flour with a similar texture to oats. He dubbed this creation ‘granula’ and registered a trademark for it in the late 19th century. Soon after, John Harvey Kellogg (yes, that Kellogg) developed a similar cereal which he also called granula, trading in graham flour for oats, wheat flour and cornmeal. However, Kellogg later changed the name to granola to avoid legal trouble with Dr. Jackson.
Unfortunately for Dr. Jackson, it was Kellogg’s invention that really took off. After a few decades of dormancy, granola witnessed a revival in the 1960s thanks to the health-orientated, free-loving hippie movement. Though Gen-Z’ers might think that the ‘granola girl’ aesthetic – consisting of Patagonia fleeces, Blundstone boots, always-ready-for-hiking, farm-to-table granola-eating girlies – is a modern trend, it’s just a revival of 60s counterculture.
Is granola gluten-free?
Not all granola is gluten-free. Though all oats are naturally gluten-free – some granolas and granola bars contain wheat flour or wheat germ. It’s always important to double-check the label on your granola if you suffer from coeliac disease or are gluten intolerant.
What is grain-free granola?
Grain-free granola is granola without oats. In our humble opinion, this just isn’t real granola – it’s toasted nuts and dried fruits. Some people go grain-free due to health conditions, or simply because grain-free granola ‘feels’ healthier.
What’s the difference between rolled oats in granola, and porridge oats?
Rolled oats have been crushed or husked, whereas porridge oats are finely stone-ground. The result is a difference in texture, with the former being crunchier – especially after baking – and the latter producing a creamy, smooth texture when cooked.
Is granola healthy?
So long as your granola is free from nasty additives and isn’t too high in sugar, granola is a wonderfully healthy food which is filled to the brim with zinc, magnesium, B vitamins and fibre.
Whether you identify with granola girl’ism, or simply adore the healthy, oaty cereal in the morning and as an afternoon snack, we’ve rounded up a selection of our favourites. Keep scrolling for oaty goodness.
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