crispy cardamom cereal

a big batch, any time snack with tons of nuts and seeds

i absolutely love this cereal and always try have a big bag of it in the pantry to crumble over a bowl of yogurt and fruit, eat with some milk, or just reach into for a crisp, sweet snack. i’d say it sits somewhere between cracker jacks and honey smacks in terms of flavor and texture, but with tons of cardamom and all your favorite mixed nuts.

i’ve made many variations of this over the years (it’s been a favorite since i first tried the original recipe in 2019) and based on all of that experience (lol but seriously), i can tell you that this recipe, like many granola / cereal recipes more generally, is very forgiving. i’ve tried it with more nuts and less puffed wheat, less nuts and more puffed wheat, added rolled oats, shredded coconut and chia seeds, swapped agave for honey, used granulated sugar instead of dark brown—it literally always works.

that being said, the version below is the cream of this specific cereal crop in my humble opinion, and as with all recipes you have to start somewhere, so i suggest you start right here and leave the substitution options on the back burner for the first go around.

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crispy cardamom cereal

makes about 250 grams, serves 8 - 10 as a snack, this recipe is an adaptation of ashure cereal from sarit packer adapted by samin nosrat for nyt cooking

40 grams canola oil

50 grams agave syrup (substitute: maple syrup, honey)

60 grams dark brown sugar (substitute: coconut, cane or beet sugar)

80 grams plain puffed wheat (substitute: plain puffed spelt or buckwheat)

15 grams sesame seeds (substitute: flax or chia seeds)

50 grams pumpkin seeds (substitute: puffed amaranth of quinoa)

25 grams salted peanuts (substitute: pecan halves, chopped almonds, hazelnuts, or cashews)

25 grams sunflower seeds (substitute: any of the aforementioned seeds, puffs or nuts)

1 teaspoon ground cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/2 teaspoon salt

1. preheat oven to 180°C/350°F. line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside. add puffed wheat, sesame seeds, pumpkin seeds, peanuts and sunflower seeds to a large bowl. add ground cinnamon, cardamom and salt and mix.

2. combine oil, agave and brown sugar in a pot and set over medium-high heat. use a spatula to mix it as it starts to heat up and bubble. once it’s at a boil, pour it over the other ingredients in the bowl and mix everything to coat; you’ll want to move quickly here before the sugar sets up. once everything seems evenly coated, pour it onto the lined baking sheet and spread it out into an even layer. transfer the baking sheet to the oven and bake for 8 minutes.

3. use a spatula to push the cereal to the center, mix and then flatten out again on the baking sheet. rotate the baking sheet 180 degrees then bake for another 5 minutes, or until everything looks golden brown. i like to keep an eye on it during the second bake, sometimes i let it go longer to get really burnished, bordering on burnt and other times i let it go until just ever so slightly golden brown for a lighter flavor—it just depends on what i’m feeling, so i encourage you to follow your instincts and desires here, too.

4. remove and allow to cool completely, about 20 minutes, then break up the cereal into large (or small) chunks and transfer to a airtight container or freezer bag. it will keep for up to 2 weeks but, to be honest, i’ve had batches for a month that have still stayed crisp and delicious. i’m not endorsing this necessarily, but just saying: it keeps well for quite a while.