My dark Chocolate Granola recipe is a delicious granola with dark chocolate and cocoa powder. Perfect for a healthy breakfast or snack, especially for chocolate lovers! Just 30 minutes to prep and bake! So easy!
I bet you're not surprised I’m sharing a recipe for chocolate granola! By now you probably know I love chocolate, and I love making granola at home. This recipe in particular has been buried on the blog for years (since 2013!) so I wanted to give this post a face lift so you all can make it.
Just as flavorful as my banana granola, this healthy chocolate granola combines superfoods like dark chocolate and cocoa powder with nuts and seeds for a delicious oat free and grain free granola.
The result is a much healthier chocolaty granola recipe with just the right amount of sweetness, great for breakfast or as a snack, and perfect as a crunchy topping on acai bowls, smoothies, milkshakes, or for adding to yogurt with some fresh fruit (my favorite!).
Here are just a few reasons why you'll love this chocolate granola recipe:
- Chocolaty and nutty.
- Crunchy, crispy and chunky.
- Super easy to make with basic kitchen tools and pantry ingredients.
- Flexible and customizable
- Stores beautifully making it a great homemade gift.
- Much healthier and better than store-bought. It's Vegan, Paleo, Keto (gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free).
Ready to make some? Let's get started!
Ingredients & substitutions
This recipe is simple, requiring just a few regular pantry ingredients. And we'll be making this granola with almond butter and without oats to keep it grain-free, gluten-free and Paleo-friendly.
It has a nice healthy base of almonds, pecans, unsweetened coconut flakes, and sunflower seeds. Then raw cacao powder is mixed in to add that lovely dark chocolate flavor.
To sweeten things up, a dash of maple syrup, coconut oil and vanilla are added. Not too much sweetener is added because all the ingredients are already sweet giving this granola a natural sweet taste.
And then everything gets sprinkled with dark chocolate! I like adding cacao nibs for a boost of antioxidant, but sometimes I make it with Vegan and Paleo chocolate chips. And when I'm not feeling lazy, I also make my homemade dark chocolate chips to add to this granola.
Possible substitutions
- Almond and pecans: use any other type of nuts you like. For example, cashews and hazelnuts are delicious alternatives!
- Sunflower seeds: use pumpkin seeds.
- Coconut oil: use avocado oil or almond oil.
- Shredded coconut: add gluten-free rolled oats (not grain-free or Paleo but delicious).
- Almond butter: use cashew or hazelnut butter, peanut butter or coconut butter.
Equipment you need
Here are the few kitchen tools you need to make this dark chocolate granola:
- Food processor, blender or knife to chop the nuts and seeds.
- Mixing bowl.
- Large baking sheet.
- Parchment paper or silicone baking mat (optional).
- Mixing spoon, silicone spatula works best.
- Tin foil
How to make it
You’re going to love how easy it is to make this healthy chocolate granola recipe. Below is an overview and I'll show you how to bake it 2 different ways. Be sure to print the recipe and watch me make it in this video.
Coarsely chop (step 1): Coarsely chop (leaving some large chunks) the almonds, pecans and sunflower seeds in your food processor, blender or using a knife. If you're using a food processor or blender, pulse to coarsely chop them.
Mix together (step 2): Add the chopped nuts to a mixing mixing bowl and using a spatula, mix together with the shredded coconut, almond butter, coconut oil, cacao powder, vanilla and maple syrup until everything is combined.
Spread on baking sheet (step 3): Line baking sheet with parchment (or silicone baking mat) and spread the mixture in an even layer on the pan leaving some spaces in between so it bakes evenly.
Bake: There are two ways to bake this chocolate granola, fast bake or slow bake. Here's how to bake with each and you can choose the method that works best for you:
- Fast bake: Bake in a preheated oven to 350°F covered with aluminum foil for 20 minutes.
- Slow bake: Bake in a preheated oven to 200°F uncovered for 4 hours or until dry and crispy. Because of the lower temperature, this method may preserve more of the nutrients in the ingredients.
Lastly, set the pan on a wire rack to cool and break into pieces with a spoon, leaving large chunks if you like. Then after completely cooled, stir in some dark chocolate chips, cacao nibs, or both.
Important notes & tips
Almond butter: Make sure to mix the contents in the jar very well before measuring the amount needed so that you don't end up adding more oil in the recipe. To make mixing easier you can use an immersion blender.
Cocoa: I recommend using raw cacao powder instead of dutch processed cocoa. Raw cacao is naturally sweeter, doesn't contain added ingredients and it's made from cold-pressing unroasted cocoa beans, which means it's full of healthy antioxidants and minerals.
Tips for the best chocolate granola
- Like yours sweeter? Simply add more sweetener, as much as you like. I usually add just 3 to 6 tablespoons of maple syrup or honey so it's not too sweet to eat for breakfast, but if I want to have it as a snack add about 6 to 10 tablespoons instead. Maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar, dates sugar, or any keto sweetener, all work great in this recipe.
- Add-ons: Sprinkle flakes of sea salt after baked. Chia seeds, dried dates and cranberries are other great additions!
- Make clusters: Love big clumps in your granola? After baked, break your granola leaving some large chunky clusters.
- Drizzle with melted chocolate after it comes out of the oven, then refrigerate it and break it into large and chunky chocolate granola clusters. Yum!
- Serving ideas: The possibilities are endless! Eat it on its own, use it as a topping for ice cream and smoothies, enjoy it with some fruit, or as a cereal with your favorite dairy-free milk or yogurt.
How to store it
It depends how you store it. In your pantry, store it in a large mason jar or airtight container and it should stay crunchy and fresh for roughly 4 to 6 months. You can also keep it refrigerated or frozen in an airtight container or ziplock bag, and it will keep well for at least 1 year.
Granola variations
This dark chocolate granola recipe is so much better then even the popular grain-free brand, Purely Elizabeth. Once you try it, you won’t go back to store-bought. So for inspiration, here are a few more delicious granola recipes I've come up with for you to try:
- Banana Granola: My favorite! This grain-free granola is crunchy, crispy, and slightly chewy with a delicious mild banana flavor, spiced with cinnamon.
- Blueberry Granola: Another delightful healthy granola recipe full of blueberries.
- The very best Paleo Granola: I love this version so much that the recipe can only be found in my cookbook, Living Healthy With Chocolate.
- Dark Chocolate Granola Bars or my Cookie Dough Granola Bars: These healthy dark chocolate granola bars are the perfect on-the-go snack.
Please let me know how this recipe turns out for you in the comments! I love hearing from you and hope this chocolate granola recipe becomes your new favorite.
Recipe video
Recipe
Dark Chocolate Granola (Grain-Free)
Ingredients
- 1 cup (160g) almonds
- 1 cup (110g) pecans
- ½ cup (40g) unsweetened shredded coconut
- ⅓ cup (43g) sunflower seeds
- ½ cup (131g) almond butter
- 3 tablespoons (40g) coconut oil, melted
- ¼ cup (20g) raw cacao powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 6 tablespoons (114g) maple syrup, or raw honey
Optional add-ons:
- ¼ cup (30g) cacao nibs
- ½ cup (82g) dark chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F, and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
- Coarsely chop (leaving some large chunks) the almonds, pecans and sunflower seeds in your food processor, blender or using a knife. If you're using a food processor or blender, pulse to coarsely chop them.
- Add the chopped nuts to a mixing mixing bowl and using a spatula, mix together with the shredded coconut, almond butter, coconut oil, cacao powder, vanilla and maple syrup until everything is combined.
- Spread the mixture in an even layer on the pan leaving some small spaces in between so it bakes evenly.
- Bake in a preheated oven, covered with aluminum foil for 20 minutes or until dry and crispy.
- Set the pan on a cooling rack to cool and break into pieces with a spoon, leaving large chunks if you like. Then after completely cooled, mix in some dark chocolate chips, cacao nibs, or both.
Notes
- Fast bake: Bake in a preheated oven to 350°F covered with aluminum foil for 20 minutes.
- Slow bake: Bake in a preheated oven to 200°F uncovered for 4 hours or until dry and crispy. Because of the lower temperature, this method may preserve more of the nutrients in the ingredients.
- Almond butter: Make sure to mix the contents in the jar very well before measuring the amount needed so that you don't end up adding more oil in the recipe.
- Like yours sweeter? Add more sweetener, as much as you like. I usually add just 3 to 6 tablespoons of maple syrup or honey so it's not too sweet to eat for breakfast, but if I want to have it as a snack add about 6 to 10 tablespoons instead. Maple syrup, honey, coconut sugar, dates sugar, or any keto sweetener, all work great in this recipe.
- Drizzle with melted chocolate after it comes out of the oven, then refrigerate it and break it into large, chunky clusters. Yum!
- Other add-ons: Sprinkle with flaky sea salt after baked. Also mix in chia seeds, dried dates or cranberries.
Nutrition per serving
This recipe was originally published on Mar 5, 2013 and this post has been updated with new information, photos and recipe video. Original recipe updates: Added an extra tablespoon of cacao powder (from 3 to 4 tbs, which is ¼ cup); Replaced honey with maple syrup to make it Vegan and changed the amount added from 2 tbs to 3 to 6 tbs; Changed baking time and temperature from 200°F baked uncovered for 4 hours to 350°F baked covered for 20 minutes.
