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Crunchy, nutty, and sweet Chocolate Granola packs is rich with plenty of dark chocolate! Eat it for a hearty breakfast or indulge in a snack that will leave you feeling satisfied while satisfying your sweet tooth.
Delicious Details
- Cuisine Inspiration: American
- Primary Cooking Method: Oven
- Dietary Info: Gluten-free option, Dairy-free option
- Skill Level: Easy
Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Granola Recipe
I love a good gluten free granola. It’s one of the best breakfasts around. You can pair it with yogurt, milk, or non-dairy milk for an easy meal. But it’s also amazing eaten by the handful for a quick snack!
I wanted to change up my reliable granola recipe and pack it with extra nuts and seeds. Then I added a decadent twist for even more flavor – cocoa powder and chocolate! Here’s why you’ll love this chocolate granola recipe:
- Quick to assemble. It takes just 10 minutes to toss the ingredients together and pop it in the oven.
- Easy to make gluten free and dairy free. I wrote this recipe in a way that makes it easy for you to adapt it to any allergies or preferences you may have while still keeping to the basic outline of granola. You just need to ensure you use certified gluten free oats and dairy free chocolate.
- Easily adapted. You can make this granola following the basic measurements below, but choose what kind of nuts and seeds you’d like to include! And you can even add dried fruit or coconut.
- Makes a great gift. The granola makes for great gifts for the holidays. Place the granola in pretty jars and tie them with ribbon.
Ingredients and Substitutions
Here’s an outline of what you’ll need to make homemade chocolate granola. See the recipe card at the end of this post for the full ingredient amounts.
- Old fashioned oats. Don’t use quick oats! Choose certified gluten-free rolled oats if needed.
- Nuts. I like to use a combination of almonds and walnuts, but you can use what you like. Cashews and pecans are also wonderful in gluten free granola. Or substitute pumpkin seeds for a nut-free option.
- Cocoa powder. Regular or dark.
- Chia seeds.
- Salt. Salt in granola is important to balance the sweetness.
- Sugar. I like to use date sugar, but you can substitute coconut sugar, or even light brown sugar.
- Maple syrup. Use pure maple syrup, not pancake syrup. You can substitute honey.
- Coconut Oil: You can substitute avocado oil or walnut oil if you wish.
- Vanilla Extract: Pure vanilla extract will give the best flavor!
- Dark chocolate. I like to use 72% or 80% dark chocolate, but you can use what you like best, or even substitute semisweet chocolate chips.
Other Add-In Ideas
You don’t have to limit yourself to the suggestions I’ve given above. Granola lends itself beautifully to including all kinds of add-ins. Here are some suggestions:
- Unsweetened shredded coconut – Add unsweetened coconut flakes or shredded coconut.
- Add dried fruit – When you add the chocolate, feel free to add dried cranberries or cherries.
- Swap the nuts – As I said, cashews or pecans are also great, but you can try pecans, macadamias, and hazelnuts as well.
- Add seeds – feel free to toss in some pumpkin or sunflower seeds.
Tips for the Best Chocolate Granola
Here are a few best tips for success to help you make the perfect chocolate granola every time:
- Use rolled oats. Old-fashioned rolled oats are a must in a good gluten free granola. Quick or instant oats almost disappear into the granola when they’re cooked, and they don’t give the same chewy-crisp texture.
- Make sure to use fat. Granola needs a bit of fat in the form of coconut or olive oil. While you may be tempted to reduce the amount of oil called for in this recipe, don’t! Your granola will not turn out as well.
- Don’t overbake it. I’ve found that homemade granola can quickly go from perfect to oops, I cooked it too long very quickly. Check your granola often after it’s baked for an hour, and pull it when it’s just starting to turn lightly brown.
- Stir the granola while it’s baking. Give your homemade chocolate granola a stir or two while it’s baking to help it cook evenly.
- Transfer to a cool pan immediately. This stops the cooking process and ensures the granola doesn’t burn from sitting on a hot pan.
- Add the chocolate after you cool the granola. If you add it while it’s still warm it will melt and you won’t have those nice chunks. Same goes if you add fruit. The heat will make the dried fruit hard.
Proper Storage
Store your homemade chocolate granola in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks. You can freeze the granola in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
Make it a Meal
Yes, we all love spooning granola over some yogurt or enjoying it out of a bowl with milk. But that’s just the beginning. Here are some serving ideas for you:
- Make a parfait. Take that yogurt bowl up a notch by layering it into a yogurt parfait with other additions like fruit, peanut butter, and a drizzle of honey.
- Top a smoothie bowl. A sprinkling of this chocolate granola adds the crunch factor to a delicious chocolate smoothie bowl.
- Dress up a stack. Yes, you can even add granola to your toppings for a stack of gluten free chocolate chip pancakes.
- Make a snack. Sure, you can just eat a handful, but you can also use it for making these little peanut butter banana snacks.
- Add to oatmeal. You can add crunch to any oatmeal, use it for meal prep when you make freezer oatmeal cups, or double the indulgence of chocolate oatmeal.
Chocolate Granola
Crunchy, nutty, and sweet Chocolate Granola is rich with plenty of dark chocolate! Eat it for a hearty breakfast or indulge in a snack that will leave you feeling satisfied.
Servings: 20 servings (1/4 cup per serving)
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cups old fashioned oats (certified gluten free, if needed)
- 1/2 cup almonds, chopped
- 1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
- 1/3 cup cocoa powder
- 1 Tablespoon chia seeds
- 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 cup date sugar, coconut sugar, or light brown sugar
- 1/3 cup maple syrup
- 1/4 cup melted coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 3.5 oz dark chocolate, chopped into chunks or 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line two 9×13-inch baking sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.
- To a large bowl add the overnight oats, almonds, walnuts, cocoa powder, chia seeds, and salt. Stir until everything is fully coated with the cocoa powder. Set aside.
- In a large bowl add the date sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil, and vanilla. Mix until fully incorporated.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until everything is moistened and well incorporated.
- Transfer the granola to the baking sheets into an even layer. Bake at 325°F for 10 minutes. Mix the granola around on the baking sheet and bake for an additional 5-15 minutes, checking every 5 minutes, until dried and golden brown. Do not let the granola get too dark.
- Remove from the oven and immediately transfer the granola to a cool baking sheet so the granola will stop cooking and the chocolate doesn’t burn.
- After 30 minutes or once the granola is completely cooled add the chocolate chunks. Store in an air-tight container for up to 2 weeks.
Nutrition Facts
Chocolate Granola
Amount Per Serving (0.25 cup)
Calories 165
Calories from Fat 90
% Daily Value*
Fat 10g15%
Saturated Fat 4g20%
Trans Fat 0.003g
Polyunsaturated Fat 2g
Monounsaturated Fat 2g
Cholesterol 0.1mg0%
Sodium 40mg2%
Potassium 148mg4%
Carbohydrates 19g6%
Fiber 3g12%
Sugar 7g8%
Protein 3g6%
Vitamin A 3IU0%
Vitamin C 0.05mg0%
Calcium 33mg3%
Iron 1mg6%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.
Disclaimers: Please discuss your individual dietary needs (i.e. gluten free) with a physician. Even when not specified, be sure to verify all ingredients are gluten free, if needed, by reading labels on all packaging and/or confirming with the manufacturer this varies by brand and can change at any time. Nutrition information shown is an estimate and not guaranteed to be accurate.
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How to Make Chocolate Granola (Step by Step)
Here’s my simple method for making homemade chocolate granola. You’ll find the detailed instructions in the recipe card at the end of this post.
- Prepare. Preheat your oven to 3250°Fand line a couple of baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Mix together the dry ingredients. In a large bowl, combine oats, nuts, cocoa powder, chia seeds, and salt.
- Combine wet ingredients. In another large bowl, stir the sugar, maple syrup, coconut oil, and vanilla together.
- Combine. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, tossing until evenly distributed and moistened.
- Bake. Spread the granola on the baking sheets and bake, tossing once.
- Cool. Immediately transfer the granola to a cool baking sheet to stop the cooking process.
- Add chocolate. Once the granola is cool, add the chocolate. Store in an airtight container.
My family loves this recipe! We have nut allergies so I just sub it with pumpkin and sunflower seeds!
Yummy! I love all the good stuff you have in here, why didn’t I think of putting chia and flax seeds and cocoa in granola?! Printed and pinned! 😀
Brianne, this granola looks so good!
Thanks Jennie! I actually was just munching on some 🙂
These nuts look awesome!! I miss nuts, we avoid them because of our kids nut allergy. But got to keep the kids safe! Your granola looks fantastic!
What a GREAT start to the link up this week! We hare some awesome recipes!! Thanks for linking up at our Gluten Free Fridays party! I have tweeted and pinned your entry to our Gluten Free Fridays board on Pinterest! 🙂
Thanks for linking back to the Gluten Free Fridays post!
Cindy from vegetarianmamma.com
Definitely gotta do what you have to for the little ones! But thanks!
Brianne, your granola looks amazing!! I am so in love with California Walnuts! I have some leftover I might need to do this too, or just buy more 😉
Thanks so much! It is quite tasty! And those walnuts are awesome. Just put some in a chicken salad tonight.
I am surprisingly crazy for granola, and I love the chocolate and all the goodness you put in this!
I don’t make granola often because I actually tend to eat too much at a time. But this is sooo good!
wow! This is some great looking granola! I can totally get on board with this. Might have to whip it up sometime soon.
Thanks! Anything chocolaty can’t be bad, right?