What's For Breakfast: Coconut Chai-Spiced Granola

Your morning bowl of yogurt is clamoring to be covered with this coconut chai-spiced granola.

Our ladies have been a little lax at laying of late, so instead of scrambled eggs, I've been reaching for my ol' standard breakfast -- a bowl of Greek yogurt sweetened with maple syrup, scattered with fresh berries (yay summer!), and topped with crunchy granola.

I have to admit I've been a little lazy lately and have been purchasing granola from the store. But that ends now! Particularly since I typically have all the ingredients I need on hand, anyway; I really don't have an excuse not to make my own granola from scratch. This granola gets a little extra crunch from the addition of whisked egg white to the ingredients. In addition to crunch, the egg white also helps in the formation of clumps -- which I think is the best part of granola. (And, yeah, I'll admit it, I'm totally That Girl who grabs all the ginormous clumps from a freshly opened bag of granola.)

I tend to go a little plain Jane with my granola and skip the addition of dried fruit, but feel free to stir in some dried cherries, raisins, or banana chips after pulling the baked granola from the oven.

Coconut Chai-Spiced Granola (printer-friendly version)
makes about 6 cups

3 cups rolled oats
1 cup unsweetened coconut flakes (also called chips)
1 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
1/2 teaspoon Maldon flaky sea salt 
1/2 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 large egg white

1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees. Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper or a silpat and set aside.
2. In a large bowl, mix together all the ingredients except the egg white.
3. In a separate bowl, whisk the egg white until frothy.
4. Pour the egg white over top the oat mixture and stir to evenly coat.
5. Spread the granola into an even layer over top the prepared baking sheet. Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, then use a spatula to carefully flip the granola over, maintaining as many clumps as possible. Return the baking sheet to the oven and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, or until the granola is  golden brown and dry to the touch. Let cool on the baking sheet, then place in an airtight container to store.