Skip the store-bought version and make my easy chocolate granola! It’s completely customizable and works equally well for breakfast or a healthy dessert. Recipe includes a how-to video!
Why You’ll Love This Chocolate Granola
- Super simple and adaptable. Use your favorite sweetener, add-ins, and oil of choice. You can completely customize it to your own preferences and dietary needs.
- Not too sweet, unlike many store-bought brands that are packed full of sugar.
- Eggless. Unlike my other homemade granola recipe, egg whites are not necessary here. There is enough moisture from other ingredients to bind it together and make clusters, so an egg white simply isn’t necessary. Skipping the egg white also makes this a vegan recipe (so long as you use vegan chocolate chips!).
- Long shelf life. Your granola will stay fresh for weeks in an airtight container, or you can toss it in the freezer and enjoy it for months!
Some mornings call for indulgent breakfasts, and that’s when my chocolate pancakes or chocolate muffins hit the spot. Most days though, we reach for something that’s more nutritious but still satisfying and flavorful, like this chocolate granola sprinkled over Greek yogurt.
Made with carefully selected ingredients like rolled oats, coconut oil, maple syrup (or honey!), and your favorite add-ins (we like nuts and seeds!), this is most certainly a mindful breakfast choice.
Those of you with a sweet tooth (my people 💜), don’t turn back just yet–we are tossing in plenty of chocolate chips too! You’re going to love this one!
Ingredients
Keep in mind, this recipe is super versatile so most of these can be swapped out for something else. Let’s talk a bit about what you can (and absolutely cannot) substitute.
- Oats. Like when making my apple crisp or oatmeal cookies, old-fashioned rolled oats are the way to go! Quick or instant oats will make your granola too crumbly and dry, so don’t substitute those.
- Cocoa powder. Natural cocoa powder adds the perfect chocolatey flavor. Dutch process cocoa will make for a darker color with a more intense taste. It certainly works, but isn’t my personal preference.
- Sweetener. I like to use honey (or pure maple syrup) and sugar. You can use whatever kind of sugar you like; granulated, coconut, turbinado, or brown sugar will all work here.
- Coconut. I know everyone isn’t a fan of the texture of coconut. It’s a small bit that I personally love, but you may omit this (just sub it with an extra spoonful of oats).
- Nuts. I love adding almonds and pecans, but you can use peanuts (if you’re a big chocolate peanut butter fan, add peanut butter chips too!), walnuts, pistachios, macadamia nuts, etc. Anything goes, so use your favorite!
- Oil. I add coconut oil, but you can use your favorite neutral oil. Avocado oil is another great choice. For those of you who don’t like the flavor of coconut, you will want to make sure you use a “refined” coconut oil, as “unrefined” has a coconut taste.
- Add-ins. We like chia seeds, cacao nibs, and flax seeds, but you can get creative with your add-ins. Dried fruit, additional nuts or seeds, different chocolate chips, etc. will all work.
SAM’S TIP: Use regular table salt for the oat mixture and save your flaky sea salt for topping the granola after it comes out of the oven. I love doing this with my sourdough chocolate chip cookies too!
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe with exact amounts and instructions please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Chocolate Granola
- Combine the oats, nuts, cocoa, coconut and add-ins in a large bowl, then whisk the oil, sweeteners, vanilla, and salt together in a separate bowl. If you opted to use coconut oil, make sure you melt it first!
- Stir the wet and dry ingredients together until everything is evenly coated, then spread the mixture over a parchment lined baking sheet
- Bake until the granola appears dry, then sprinkle the chocolate chips and sea salt overtop. We add the chocolate after the granola bakes because otherwise it would seize and burn in the oven, making it crumbly and unappetizing. It will still get somewhat melty when added after baking, but if you wait long enough, you can break apart the granola without covering your hands in chocolate.
- Break the granola into clumps once completely cooled, then enjoy!
SAM’S TIP: Wait until the granola has COMPLETELY cooled before attempting to break it up into clumps, or you will 1) make a chocolatey mess and 2) create a much crumblier texture than expected. Chocolate granola should be crisp and cluster-y, so have patience!
Frequently Asked Questions
At my house, we love eating this granola over yogurt with fresh berries, but I suppose you could also enjoy it with milk like cereal. Or you can just eat it by the handful–it makes a great hiking snack this way!
Making your own granola has its health benefits; there are no preservatives or unnecessary additives, and you can control exactly what goes in it.
As written, this granola is full of fiber, has a good amount of protein (even more if you serve it with Greek yogurt!), and vitamins and minerals. That being said, it does contain some refined sugar too, but not nearly as much as the store-bought versions!
Follow the instructions for making my classic homemade granola instead (or, if you’re looking for bars, try my homemade granola bars).
I’d love to hear how you customize your chocolate granola! Let me know in the comments below 🤎
Enjoy!
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Chocolate Granola
Ingredients
- 3 ½ cups (315 g) old-fashioned oats
- 1 cup (130 g) chopped nuts I like almonds and pecans
- ⅓ cup (33 g) natural cocoa powder
- ⅓ cup (21 g) shredded coconut (sweetened or unsweetened, your preference)
- ⅓ cup (71 g) melted coconut oil or a neutral cooking oil like avocado oil
- ⅓ cup (78 ml) honey may substitute maple syrup
- ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated turbinado, or coconut sugar
- 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
- ½ teaspoon table salt
Optional add-ins (use all or none of these)
- 2 Tablespoons chia seeds
- 2 Tablespoons flax seed
- 2 Tablespoons cacao nibs
For topping
- ⅔ cup (100 g) semisweet chocolate chips I like to use a blend of mini and regular
- Sea salt for sprinkling
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300F (150C) and line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a large mixing bowl, stir together oats, nuts, cocoa powder, coconut, and any of the optional add-ins listed at the bottom of the recipe.3 ½ cups (315 g) old-fashioned oats, 1 cup (130 g) chopped nuts, ⅓ cup (33 g) natural cocoa powder, ⅓ cup (21 g) shredded coconut, 2 Tablespoons chia seeds, 2 Tablespoons flax seed, 2 Tablespoons cacao nibs
- In a separate, medium-sized bowl, whisk together (melted) coconut oil, honey (or maple syrup), sugar, vanilla extract, and salt.⅓ cup (71 g) melted coconut oil, ⅓ cup (78 ml) honey, ⅓ cup (66 g) granulated, 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract, ½ teaspoon table salt
- Pour the wet ingredients over the oat mixture and use a spatula to stir until all of the dry ingredients are coated with the wet.
- Spread into an even layer onto prepared baking sheet and transfer to center rack of 300F (150C) preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes or until granola appears dry.
- Immediately after removing from the oven, sprinkle chocolate chips and flaky sea salt over the surface of the granola (see note). Allow granola to cool completely, then use your hands or a wooden spoon to break the granola into clumps (if you break up the granola before it has cooled completely you will not have a clumpy granola).⅔ cup (100 g) semisweet chocolate chips, Sea salt
Notes
Chocolate chips
Note that the chocolate will remain soft and melty for quite a while and can be a little messy when you break up the granola. You can let the chocolate sit and then smear it over the surface of the granola for a more even distribution and faster cooling if you prefer.Storing
Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place. It should keep for several weeks. Chocolate granola may also be frozen in an airtight container for up to 6 months.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Ivy
Hi Sam! Could I use this recipe for your granola bar recipe? Thanks!
Casey @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ivy! This is probably too crumbly for a granola bar, but we do have a granola bar recipe!
Jan
I made it for the first time. I used regular cacao powder and mixed about 3 Tablespoons of dark or Dutch cacao powered in the 1/3 cup. I also used pure Maple Syrup instead of honey. I used coconut sugar and coconut oil but left out the shredded coconut all together (not a coconut fan). I added chia seeds and chopped pecans. I didn’t have semi sweet chocolate chips so I sprinkled Ghirardelli 60% cacao chocolate chips on top after baking. Smeared the chocolate once melted and let it cool completely until chocolate was hard and not shiny. Loved it!! I will be making this one again! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Jan! 🙂
Ivanna
Easy and delicious! This is a better tasting and cheaper alternative to buying granola weekly. I added both flax seed and chia seeds, loved that addition. Will try next time with dark chocolate chunks.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Ivanna! 🙂
Theoncereluctantcook
Thanks Sam for another great recipe! My fam all loved it and we’ll definitely be making this again.
Sam
I’m so gald everyone enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Misty Jones
This was so good!!! My new obsession is gronola with honemade yogurt so thanks for sharing this recipie!!! It’s such an easy and inexpensive snack to have on hand!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy it so much, Misty! 🙂