This easy 7-ingredient granola recipe is a delicious healthy snack or quick breakfast. It not only tastes delicious, but it smells amazing while it cooks!
This is my go-to healthy granola recipe. Packed with oats and nuts and naturally sweetened with maple syrup, it’s a great way to get fiber and healthy fats into your first meal of the day. Even better, it clumps well! I add a tablespoon of almond butter to bind the components together, so you get plenty of delicious nutty clusters. I like to make it on Sunday and have it on hand for yogurt parfaits throughout the week!
While we don’t have kids that are going back to school this week, I’m starting to think more and more about healthy make-ahead breakfast ideas. You know – to send to work with my big kid (Jack) in hopes that one day he might start skipping the greasy breakfast tacos & processed Costco bagels that are usually waiting for him at the office. With a warm-spiced, coconut-y flavor and an addictive crunchy texture, this homemade granola recipe may have won him over.
Healthy Granola Ingredients
My basic granola recipe calls for 7 simple ingredients:
- Oats. Be sure to use whole rolled oats (not instant oats), and if you’re gluten-free, look for Certified Gluten-Free Oats that haven’t been processed in a factory containing wheat.
- Walnuts. Feel free to use any nut you have on hand. Walnuts are my favorite, but almonds or pecans are delicious too.
- Cinnamon. Once this granola is in the oven, the cinnamon in this recipe will make your kitchen smell amazing!
- Sea Salt. I add a pinch to highlight the sweet, nutty flavors.
- Maple Syrup. Unlike white or brown sugar, maple syrup gives the oats and nuts a deep, caramelized sweetness.
- Coconut Oil. This helps toast the nuts & oats as they bake. I like to use unrefined coconut oil for a coconut-y taste. If you don’t like the flavor of coconut, use refined coconut oil instead.
- Almond Butter. We all love granola clumps, right? The almond butter in this recipe makes it wonderfully clumpy!
Healthy Granola Recipe Variations
Homemade granola is flexible, so feel free to play with this recipe. Here are a few ideas for changing it up:
- Swap the walnuts for your favorite nuts and seeds. Almonds, pecans, pistachios, sunflower seeds, pepitas, hemp seeds, or a mix would all be excellent.
- After your granola cools, add mix-ins! Stir in chia seeds, chocolate chips, dried cherries, or your favorite dried fruit.
- Spice it up! I love the cinnamon here, but other warm spices, such as cardamom, ginger, nutmeg, or allspice, would be good additions too.
Let me know what variations you try!
This granola is great on its own as a healthy snack, but it’s also delicious with fruit & milk. Alternatively, layer it into parfaits with berries and yogurt for a quick, nutritious breakfast.
If you love this homemade granola recipe…
Try my overnight oats, baked oatmeal, quinoa breakfast bowl, or oatmeal breakfast cookies next!
Healthy Granola
- 1 cup whole rolled oats*
- ¼ cup chopped walnuts
- ¼ cup coconut flakes, optional
- 1 teaspoon cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon melted coconut oil
- 2 tablespoons maple syrup
- 1 tablespoon creamy almond butter
- fruit and yogurt, for serving
- Preheat the oven to 300°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, combine the oats, walnuts, coconut flakes, if using, cinnamon, and salt. Drizzle in the coconut oil and maple syrup and add the almond butter. Stir until combined. Scoop the granola onto the baking sheet and press the mixture into a 1-inch-thick circle. This will encourage clumping.
- Bake for 15 minutes, rotate the pan halfway, and use a fork to gently break the granola apart just a bit. Bake for 15 minutes more, or until golden brown. Let cool for 15 minutes before serving.
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The CUTEST! I love anything that goes into a mason jar
This looks SO good! I love parfaits!
What lovely granola! Love this!
These look deliicous – I am loving crunchy nuts at the moment and looking for a healthier sweet treat!
Bec x
http://www.dancingthroughsunday.com.au
These are beautiful! There’s something so therapeutic about making your own granola and I’m a huge sucker for the maple walnut combo. Pinning! 🙂
OH thank you for his– Love it and I will make some today!!!
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What a great idea to have the parfaits ready in the fridge. I used to buy this same thing in college and even still occasionally at coffee shops. It makes so much sense to make it at home to be ready on the go! And I love the addition of hemp seeds!
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Loving the maple walnut flavour! This sounds lovely!
Great recipe. I make parfaits often but have never really tried making my own granola. Looks delicious.
I’ve never been one for big breakfasts’ in the morning, something about eating right when I wake up just doesn’t do it for me. My usual is a bowl of granola (more cereal-like than clumpy) with a bit of milk and a mug of tea. The granola is eaten first and hurriedly and I only let myself drink my tea once I’m finished. That’s how I get myself to eat breakfast – terrible, isn’t it? But I bet if I made these the night before, I’d enjoy eating them in the morning!
I go through breakfast phases, where I eat the same food for 3 months in a row until I get sick of it and move onto the next. It’s been a while since I had parfaits… bookmarking this to try soon.
This granola sounds great – I need to definitely make this granola soon, delicious!!
Delicious! I’ve been really wanting to whip up some granola lately and this recipe would be perfect!
I love parfaits and this looks so yummy! I am going to try and make this one!
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YUM. My dad often skips lunch, which makes me very sad (he works from home, so it’s not like he’s being given unhealthy food all the time- he just forgets!). These parfaits sound like an awesome make-ahead option for people on the go. Thanks for sharing!
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I agree that there is something about the start of the school year that makes me think about healthy and new breakfast ideas…..even though I’m not in school and don’t have kids! These parfaits look absolutely perfect!
I just made up my weekly batch of granola too. But this maple walnut combo is hard to beat, I love these flavors! And yes, you can and should try….don’t know who could resist this granola?! 😉
The idea is awesome, because skipping g breakfast isn’t nice) and such a refreshing and healthy breakfast will definitely make the day!)
Yogurt parfaits make a regular appearance on our breakfast table; I particularly love how pretty they are. (I suspect I’m the only one in my testosterone-filled house who notices that aspect, but my boys do love to eat them…)