This jazz trio of the granola universe strips granola down to its basic elements – oats, coconut, and nuts – toasted slowly with olive oil and honey. No excess sweetening, heavy spices, or dried fruit. We’re choosing to share this recipe first not only because it is addictively good, but it features honey, an ingredient that will be created in beehives right on the rooftop of the Castro Valley Marketplace (just as they do at the Alameda Marketplace). A great place to begin.

Olive oil in granola? Don’t worry, it won’t taste like salad dressing. It adds healthy fat and aslightly savory warmth to the finished granola, and a modest amount of honey and maple syrup add just the right amount of sweetness.

We love (shocker) Amphora Nueva olive oil and owner Nate Bradley has a few favorites for granola – “Persian lime, blood orange, butter and Arbequina or Barnea extra-virgin olive oil”. Having tasted them recently, the blood orange would be fantastic here. For the sweetener you are free to use 100% honey, but you might need to heat it. A 50/50 mix of honey and maple syrup is much easier to work with and adds depth of flavor. Try Coombs Family Farm maple syrup from Brattleboro, VT (available at Alameda/Castro Valley Natural Grocery).

Weighing out ingredients on a scale makes this recipe especially fast to put together (read: less dishes to wash). You can use any combination of nuts and seeds you like, but we prefer to keep it simple with sliced almonds, whole walnuts or pecans (also, seeds are messy). This is fantastic with plain yogurt and fresh fruit (our favorite), with milk or on its own.