I enjoy cooking and developing new recipes. I made my own Dark Chocolate Granola, which is a terrific alternative to chips and cookies for a snack. I hope you enjoy!
| Prep Time: | 15 mins |
| Cook Time: | 15 mins |
| Total Time: | 30 mins |
| Servings: | 8 |
| Yield: | 8 servings |
Ingredients
- cooking spray
- ½ cup brown sugar
- 2 tablespoons peanut butter
- 2 tablespoons honey
- 2 tablespoons butter flavored spread (such as I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!® Spread)
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 2 cups oats (such as Quaker Oats®)
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ cup dark chocolate chips
- ¼ cup sweetened dried cranberries (such as Craisins®) (Optional)
- ¼ cup sliced almonds (Optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Line a 9×13-inch baking dish with aluminum foil and spray with nonstick cooking spray.
- Melt together the brown sugar, peanut butter, honey, butter flavored spread, and vanilla extract in a small saucepan over low heat. Stir until well combined; remove from heat.
- Combine the oats, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl. Pour the brown sugar mixture into bowl; stir well to combine. Stir in the chocolate chips, dried cranberries, and almonds. Spoon into the prepared pan; pat down and spread evenly.
- Bake in preheated oven until browned, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Fresh and/or organic ingredients work the best! Enjoy!
Reviews
So good! maybe just a little less salt next time!
Very easy to make and delicious! I followed other suggestions…used butter instead of butter flavor spread; added Tblspoon of cocoa. Used a little water in the pan as the oat mixture did not get fully covered at first. I’ll make this again!
I’ve made this several times and always forget to add the chocolate chips and dried cranberries. This time I added them after baking. I use coconut oil instead of butter spread and leave out the salt. We don’t like salt in our granola (that we eat like cereal with milk). Besides what is on the ingredients list, this time I added toasted coconut, sunflower seeds, and chia seeds. Yummy! Sweeter than our usual though. It’s also very good without the chocolate and cranberries!
This is my favorite granola recipe EVER! I’ve been using this recipe for years and it’s always a hit. Thank you!
THIS IS FANTASTIC….I must admit I did double the chocolate chips and cranberries….I should have followed the advice of the other reviewers and doubled (or maybe tripled) it!
so easy, and so good! I doubled most ingredients except the brown sugar (used 3/4 c), and added an extra cups of oats when it looked like more “good stuff” than I wanted. Baked it 20 minutes, and added the chocolate chips after it cooled. Can’t wait to try it on my instant pot yogurt in the morning
I love this recipe and how versatile it is. I’ve stopped buying packaged granola all together! Sometimes I use coconut oil in place of butter for a different flavor.
It turned out great! I would totally recommend this recipe. I just used white chocolate chips instead of brown chocolate chips which I like much better.
I am making these for the kids lunch. We have to be peanut free so I omitted the peanut butter and added 2 more tablespoons of honey. It is pretty sweet, but still very nice. Does anyone have any other suggestions?
I doubled the recipe and put the 2nd batch on a bigger tray, which meant cooking the granola in a thinner layer, which scorched it (word to the new granola makers like me).
My family & I love this!! All my friends ask for the recipe. It’s great as is but I usually add a handful (1/8-1/4C) coconut, chia seeds, & wheat germ. This is great to eat when we’re biking, hiking, etc.!
Amazing. Used olive oil, and added 1 Tbsp cocoa powder to the dry mixture. Also left out the almonds and cranberries because I didn’t have any. Just fabulous. Love it with milk. Stirred every five minutes, and it was done by 15 minutes. Will be making again. Thanks for sharing!
Made exactly as written except added the chocolate after cooking and used real butter. This was my first try making any sort of homemade granola and it’s delicious.! Mine was still a bit mushy after the cooking time, but pulled it out of the oven hoping it would crisp up. It dried out and crisped up just fine.
Used coconut oil instead of butter flavored margarine. Made it super crunchy and we loved it!
I love this chocolate granola! A yummy treat, but pretty healthy as well! I always double it and cool for about 23 minutes total. I do add two tablespoons of cocoa powder to a double batch for a little extra chocolate flavor. And I use coconut oil in place of butter to make it a little healthier. Make sure you put parchment paper down or tinfoil on your pan for easy clean up!
Very good. Sweet and crunchy. I used dried cherries instead of cranberries.
This is a hit with my kids and grandkids! I changed the first batch by using orange honey, real butter, and sunflower seeds. The second batch I replaced the almonds with chopped walnuts, but kept the real butter and sunflower seeds. I used parchment paper on a large baking sheet and pressed the mixture down firmly with a big spatula. Once baked I let it cool completely before removing it from the pan. It comes out like peanut brittle, you just break off a pieces and store sealed in the refrigerator!! (Next time I may try Canola oil.)
This is easy and quick to make and tastes awesome. I added 2 tsp of cocoa for extra chocolate goodness. I also swapped coconut oil for butter flavored spread.
Question: The first time I made this it came out like “bars” … big, flat clumps of granola. The second time it tasted just as delicious but was crumbly granola. I liked the larger pieces better, as I could grab a couple of pieces as a snack. I think I made it the exact same way both times, but the consistency was entirely different! Any ideas on how I can get the bigger chunks? BOTH batches were delicious though!
I’m addicted to this granola. Secret ingredients are the brown sugar & peanut butter. I added some coconut and used pecans…you created a great granola…tastes great as a cereal.
This is amazing for me because I don’t eat wheat, so it makes a great breakfast cereal alternative. I didnt use the nuts and instead used coconut and dried cherries. It was amazing! Thank you so much for the recipie!