Healthy Granola Recipe

This homemade granola recipe is such an easy, healthy breakfast to have on hand. It comes together with rolled oats, almonds, dried cranberries, and a little maple syrup.

Top your favorite breakfast smoothies, smoothie bowls, or chia seed pudding with this healthy granola.

We’re so excited to be sharing this easy homemade granola recipe with you today. It’s perfectly sweetened with maple syrup, crunchy, and so easy to make!

Why We Love Homemade Granola 

Granola is an essential item for those of us that are crunch people. I love topping smoothies, oatmeal recipes, and chia seed pudding with a big scoop of granola for a bit of crunch.

There are so many reasons beyond the crunch of why we love homemade granola.

• Packed with Fiber: rolled oats are high fiber and this recipe is made with a base of old fashioned oats.
• Meal Prep: this homemade granola recipe will last for 1-2 weeks stored in a cool, dark place.
• Whole Grains: because granola is made with the base of rolled oatmeal, you’re going to get a serving of whole grains.
• Better than Store Bought: we might be biased, but homemade granola is for sure better than store-bought. It’s better for you and it tastes better too.
• All-Natural Sweetener: this recipe calls for maple syrup and no white sugar. You can use honey or maple syrup in this recipe, making it sweetened with just natural sugars.

What You Need

This healthy granola recipe is how we like our granola- basic. It is also a simple guide for you to make homemade granola just the way you like it. Our granola recipe is composed of 6 different parts, which you’ll see below.

1. rolled oats
2. dried cranberries (dried fruit)
3. almonds and pepitas (nuts and seeds)
4. maple syrup (all-natural sweetener)
5. coconut oil
6. ground cinnamon (spices + extracts)

What we love about this granola recipe is that you can use it as a base and deviate from it by swapping out other ingredients.

How to Make Granola (Quick Guide)

1. Preheat: preheat oven to 350ºF and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Combine Ingredients: add rolled oats, almonds, and pepitas to the baking sheet and toss.
3. Toss with Oil and Maple: drizzle with coconut oil and maple syrup and season with cinnamon. Toss to combine.
4. Bake & Toss: bake at 350ºF for 20-25 minutes, tossing every 10 minutes.
5. Add Dried Fruit: once the granola is golden brown, remove it from the oven and add dried cranberries. Toss and let cool for 15 minutes.

Storage

Let your granola recipe cool completely on the baking sheet. Then, transfer it into an airtight container such as a glass container or gallon size bag. Remove as much air as possible and store in a cool, dark place for up to 2 weeks.

Homemade Granola Ingredient Swaps

Rolled Oats

Old fashioned oats are the most common grain used for granola. They toast wonderfully and have a delicious nutty flavor. Below you’ll find some other swaps.

• Quinoa flakes
• Cooked quinoa
• Coconut Flakes

Dried Fruit

We used dried cranberries in this healthy granola recipe. Dried fruit should be added after baking (or with a few minutes left) so that it doesn’t burn or harden. Here are some other tasty dried fruit options.

• Dried Apricots
• Dried Cherries
• Dried Dates
• Dried Banans
• Banana Chips
• Dried Mangos
• Dried Apples

Nuts + Seeds 

Add a little protein and fiber to any granola recipe by adding nuts and seeds. Chop them up or leave them whole. We like to use 1/2 cup of each.

• Almonds
• Walnuts
• Cashews
• Pistachios
• Pecans
• Sesame Seeds
• Sunflower Seeds
• Macadamia Nuts

Natural Sweeteners 

As you guys know we are all about natural sweeteners (think honey or maple syrup) because the flavor is better and it’s better for you. We used maple in this recipe to keep it vegan, but check out some other options below.

• Maple Syrup
• Honey
• Agave Syrup
• Monk Fruit syrup

Oil

Oil is important in any healthy granola recipe because it helps bind the granola together as well as crisp it up. There are so many options when it comes to oil so feel free to substitute your favorite.

• Coconut Oil
• Olive Oil
• Grapeseed Oil
• Avocado Oil
• Macadamia nut oil
• Walnut Oil

Spices & Extracts

Flavor up your granola by adding your favorite dried spices and extracts. We kept it simple and just added cinnamon to this granola, but you could spice things up by using a couple of teaspoons of our DIY Chai Spices, too.

• Ginger
• Allspice
• Nutmeg
• Cardamom
• Sea salt
• almond extract
• vanilla extract

Healthy Granola Q&A

Why is granola so bad for you? Store-bought granola is considered unhealthy because it’s made with so much sugar. Homemade granola typically calls for less sugar and fat.

How do you make homemade granola? To make homemade granola mix together all ingredients and then transfer it onto a baking sheet. Bake at 350ºF for 20-25 minutes, stirring every 10 minutes until golden brown.

Is it cheaper to make homemade granola? Granola is made from a base of rolled oats, nuts, dried fruit, oil, and a sweetener such as maple syrup which are all inexpensive to buy on their own, making homemade granola cheaper than store-bought.

How long will homemade granola last? homemade granola will last 1-2 weeks if stored in an airtight container in a cool, dark place.

Favorite Store-Bought Granola

Not into making your own homemade granola? It’s ok, we love trying new packaged granola, too! We do have our favorites, so when you’re not feeling like whipping up a batch of our your own granola, try one of these: