This Peanut Butter Granola is the perfect healthy breakfast! It's sweet and loaded with flavor, packed with crunchy peanuts and dark chocolate. It's made with simple pantry ingredients and without refined sugars. Nutritious and quite delicious, easy to prepare too. Such a treat!
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This weekend it struck me. I haven't made granola in a very long time. My granola jar stands empty for quite some time. It was a time to refill it with one of my favorite homemade granola recipe. And weekends are best for making granola.
This Peanut Butter Granola is nutty, mildly sweet, full of crunchy peanuts. It's spiced with beautiful cinnamon and full of dried fruits and bitter-sweet dark chocolate. Such a fantastic combo of textures and flavors. No wonder why it's one of my favorites.
But this granola is not just a tasty treat. It's super healthy, made without refined sugars, and loaded with wholesome ingredients. It's packed with fibers, proteins, and Omega-3s. A nutritious meal that is perfect for mornings, noons, or evenings. For breakfast or as a snack. And it's super easy to make with just a few pantry ingredients.
Ingredients used
For this peanut butter granola recipe, you will need only a few simple pantry ingredients:
- Rolled oats. They are healthy and filling. An excellent source of fiber, especially beta-glucan, a type of soluble fiber that keeps our heart healthy. Not to mention they are a good source of protein.
- Peanut butter. It's a star ingredient in this homemade granola. I used creamy all-natural peanut butter (the one made without added sugars or oils). Peanut butter is a versatile protein-packed spread that is not only super tasty but super healthy too. It’s packed with proteins and healthy fats, as well as fibers. (1)
- Raw peanuts. They gave a crunchiness, extra flavor (roasted peanuts are so delicious), but also an extra nutrient boost.
- Sweetener. It is necessary since it binds the mixture together. But the beauty of homemade granola is that you control how much sweetener you add and which one you use. I used pure maple syrup. You can swap it for raw honey or date syrup here if you like.
To add some extra flavor and make this granola even more delicious, I also added:
- Ceylon cinnamon. Also known as “true” cinnamon. It's a highly delicious spice with many health benefits. Cinnamon gave this peanut butter granola an amazing flavor. It pairs so well with peanuts.
- Dried fruits. I used cranberries. They uplifted a flavor, giving the granola a nice sweet-sour kick.
- Dark chocolate. Peanut butter and dark chocolate are THE BEST combo ever! I used 80% dark chocolate chips, made without refined sugars.
Other pantry ingredients you’ll need:
- Salt - I used Himalayan salt.
- Extra virgin coconut oil. It helps make granola crisp.
How to make Peanut Butter Granola
Making homemade granola is quite easy. It will take you about 30 minutes (tops!). And you'll need only basic kitchen equipment, mixing bowls, spatula and baking sheet.
Step by step instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F. Line a big baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Melt and cool the coconut oil.
- Prepare and measure all other ingredients using measuring cups.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, raw peanuts, cinnamon, and salt. Mix everything with a spoon or spatula (Picture 1).
- In a small bowl, add peanut butter, maple syrup, melted coconut oil. Mix together using the spatula or whisk (Picture 2).
- Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients. Mix with a spatula until all of the dry ingredients are coated in the wet mixture (Picture 3).
- Spread granola onto the prepared baking sheet and flatten it into one layer (Picture 4).
- Bake for 20 minutes and then stir granola to make sure everything bakes evenly. When stirring, don't get too crazy because you don't want to break up all of the clumps.
- Continue baking for another 10-15 minutes until everything is a nice golden color. Watch out not to over-bake and burn the granola.
- The granola will still be slightly wet when you take it out and will crisp up after it cools.
- Cool down granola completely (Picture 5).
- Mix in dried cranberries and dark chocolate chips (Picture 6).
- Store granola in an airtight glass container for up to two months.
- Makes around 10-12 serving. The typical serving size of granola is up to ⅓ cup.
Substitutions
- I used rolled oats here, but you can substitute them with quick oats. Rolled oats will give denser chewier granola clusters.
- I used raw redskin peanuts. You can use any type of peanuts. NOTE: don't use dry roasted or salted ones from stores.
- You can substitute maple syrup with honey or date syrup. Make sure honey is liquid, runny form, not raw form.
- You can substitute dried cranberries with raisins, sultanas, or currants. Dried chopped dates are good too.
- You can substitute dark chocolate chips with cacao nibs. NOTE: cacao nibs are hard to chew.
- You can substitute coconut oil with avocado oil. Other oils won't work well here.
- Make it gluten-free: Use certified gluten-free oats.
Tips for storing
- Store peanut butter granola in an airtight, glass container at room temperature.
- It will last for 3-4 weeks.
Faq
Granola is considered healthy but it really depends on the ingredients used and how it’s made. Store-bought granola usually contains unhealthy high-fructose sweeteners, like corn syrup, in excess amounts. Not to mention many granola varieties list palm oil and hydrogenated oils on their ingredient list. That's unhealthy granola. That's why homemade granola is healthier. When you make your own granola you're in control of the ingredients and the amount of sweetener you use. So if you choose healthier natural sweeteners and healthier fats (like this peanut butter granola recipe), and you add them in moderation, that's when granola becomes a healthy food choice.
The typical serving size of granola is up to ⅓ cup. This means indulging in a huge bowl of granola for breakfast is way excessive. But again serving size depends on your energy needs. So the right portion of granola would be the portion that leaves you satisfied, but not stuffed.
How to eat granola
- Serve granola with the milk.
- Serve granola with yogurt, topped with fresh fruits.
- Enjoy granola over ice cream.
- Serve granola with fruits and a drizzle of nut butter.
- Snack granola straight out of the jar.
- Make a yogurt parfait.
- Add granola to a fruit salad.
This Peanut Butter Granola is a delicious and super healthy breakfast choice for the whole family. It's a nutritious meal packed with fibers good for our digestion, proteins, and essential Omega-3s. It's crunchy, sweet, and filled with wonderful flavors. Enjoy!
Recipe
Peanut Butter Granola
Ingredients
- 3 cups rolled oats
- ½ cup raw peanuts
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 1 ½ teaspoon Ceylon cinnamon
- ¼ cup pure maple syrup
- ⅓ cup creamy peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil melted and cooled
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325F. Line a big baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large mixing bowl, combine oats, raw peanuts, cinnamon, and salt. Mix everything with a spoon or spatula.
- In a small bowl, add peanut butter, maple syrup, melted coconut oil. Mix together using the spatula or whisk.
- Pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients. Mix with a spatula until all of the dry ingredients are coated in the wet mixture.
- Spread granola onto the prepared baking sheet and flatten it into one layer.
- Bake for 20 minutes and then stir granola to make sure everything bakes evenly. When stirring, don't get too crazy because you don't want to break up all of the clumps.
- Continue baking for another 10-15 minutes until everything is a nice golden color. Watch out not to over-bake and burn the granola.
- The granola will still be slightly wet when you take it out and will crisp up after it cools.
- Cooldown granola completely and then mix in dried cranberries and dark chocolate chips.
Notes
- I used rolled oats here, but you can substitute them with quick oats. Rolled oats will give denser chewier granola clusters.
- I used red peanuts. You can use any type of peanuts just don't use (dry)roasted, salted ones from stores.
- You can substitute maple syrup with honey or date syrup. Make sure honey is not raw but in liquid, runny form.
- You can substitute dried cranberries with raisins, sultanas, or currants. Dried chopped dates will work well too.
- You can substitute dark chocolate chips with cacao nibs. You can substitute coconut oil with avocado oil. Other oils won't work well.
Kathleen says
First off, I thought I was the only one with a granola jar! And mine was empty too! I realized half through prepping that I was out of maple syrup, so used honey as suggested. Oh the peanutty-ness, chocolate and crunch! Such a great granola!
Erin says
This had so much flavor and was so easy to make! Will definitely be making again!
Louise Cayzer says
You had me at Peanut Butter! So easy to make and with all my favourite flavours!