I Made My Own Homemade Granola For A Healthier Alternative To The Grocery Store Version

Every granola recipe consists of a few different types of grains, nuts, and seeds as its base. Some popular options include oats, almonds, peanuts, walnuts, pecans, sunflower seeds, and pumpkin seeds.

I started down the bulk aisle at the grocery store and came away with oats, pecan pieces, and pumpkin seeds.

In addition to these basic ingredients, you can add other flavorful mix-ins like fruit or chocolate. I opted to add unsweetened coconut flakes, because I love me some coconut. I also used peanut butter.

Many people add dried fruit of some kind, which is a great way to add some sweetness to the recipe without adding sugar. Try chopped dates, raisins, dried cranberries, or dried blueberries. You can also skip fruit altogether if you plan to add fresh fruit to your granola when you eat it — that’s what I did!

Also, you will have to add oil of some kind. This is what makes the granola get crisp.

I used coconut oil, because again, I love me some coconut. But you can use any oil that you like.

If you choose, you can also add sweetener of some kind, like honey or maple syrup. I skipped this step, since I prefer to just sweeten the granola a bit when I’m actually eating it. That way, I can easily control how much sugar I’m eating.

And lastly, you’ll need salt and spices. Cinnamon, ginger, vanilla, and pumpkin spice blends are all popular options.

I ended up with two batches of granola in the end, each flavored a slightly different way. Neither of them contain any sweetener at all. One definitely turned out better than the other. 

I did some experimenting to see which ingredients helped the granola clump and get crispy the best, so you can follow along with me here and decide what’ll work best for you and your taste buds!

Here’s a full list of the ingredients I used:

• 3¼ cups rolled oats
• ½ cup pecan pieces
• ½ cup unsweetened coconut flakes
• ½ cup pumpkin seeds
• ⅓ cup coconut oil
• 2 tablespoons peanut butter
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• Pinch of salt

You’ll also need a large mixing bowl and two sheet pans.

First, I combined the oats, pecan pieces, and pumpkin seeds in a large bowl. I mixed them with my hands. Note that I left out the coconut flakes — those will go into the mix later!

Then I melted the coconut oil in a Pyrex measuring glass — I was aiming for ⅓ cup, but I just eyeballed it, honestly. I melted it by dipping the measuring glass into a bowl of very hot water.

I added the cinnamon and vanilla to the coconut oil. I also added a pinch of salt.

This blend was for my first batch of granola: the pure coconut batch.

While the oil was melting, I heated a couple tablespoons of peanut butter on the stove and added water until it was a nice liquid-y sauce. Again, I just eyeballed it.

This blend was for my second batch of granola, a peanut butter-coconut combo.

I spread the oats, nuts, and seeds evenly onto two sheet pans.

At this point, I decided to do a little experiment with my two batches. My goal was simply to find out whether peanut butter or coconut oil would make for a yummier, clumpier granola, or whether they might even work better together.

For the coconut batch, I poured the coconut oil mixture over the dry ingredients and mixed it in evenly. For the peanut butter batch, I poured the peanut mixture over the dry ingredients and, again, mixed it up. And then on a third batch, I poured both coconut oil and peanut butter and mixed.

I popped both sheet pans into the oven at 350 degrees F for about 10 minutes.

Then I mixed in the coconut flakes and put everything back in for another 10 minutes. Waiting to add the coconut flakes is a good way to ensure that they get nice and roasted but not burnt.

In the end, I discovered that the best granola was definitely the version with both the coconut oil and the peanut butter mixture.

The version with only peanut butter was fine, but not quite as flavorful. Meanwhile, the version with only coconut oil did not clump whatsoever.

So I combined the two peanut butter versions into one jar, and it’s my new go-to breakfast!

Warning: This granola doesn’t have any sweetener or dried fruit, so on its own, it’s very dry. I usually eat it with fresh blueberries, cashew milk, and a drizzle of maple syrup on top, and it’s perfection — delicious and filling.

If you prefer to build in some sweetness from the beginning, I recommend adding either chopped dates or dried cranberries to this recipe. Alternatively, you can add honey to taste to the peanut butter mixture on the stove. Honey also helps the granola clump more easily.

Even with maple syrup or honey on top, this granola has all of the benefits of grocery store granola — tons of fiber and nutrients and healthy fats — with just a fraction of the sugar content. And it tastes good, too. Success!