Peanut Butter Granola
This healthy Peanut Butter Granola recipe creates a crispy, crunchy homemade granola made with fewer than 10 ingredients. Serve it for breakfast, as an afternoon snack, or as a topping for yogurt and ice cream.
I love making healthy granola recipes, and in fact, easy vegan recipes are my forté! I also love saving money! So, I knew making this DIY granola recipe healthy would be the way to combining it all.
In fact, this peanut butter granola recipe checks off all the boxes because making your own homemade granola with peanut butter saves money and is way easier than you think.
Why This Recipe is a Winner
- A flax egg binds the granola together, creating the tasty granola clumps that we all love
- Coconut oil bakes into the granola, making it crispy
- Pressing the granola into the pan before baking is another secret for creating those pieces of granola that form into clumps. It’s a winning formula for the best granola!
What Peanut Butter is Best?
There are three basic types of peanut butter: 1) Natural (the kind that has to be stirred, 2) Creamy, and 3) Crunchy. Some types of peanut butter work better for different recipes. Most of the time I prefer using natural peanut butter because it doesn’t have added hydrogenated oils or sugar. For this recipe, you can use whatever kind of peanut butter you like best.
What You Need
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
- Lemon — We’ll use both the zest and the juice of the lemon.
- Oats — I used rolled oats for this recipe, but you can substitute instant oats.
- Chia — We’ll add some ground chia seeds to create a thicker texture. You can use whole chia seeds; I just prefer ground because it creates a smoother finished texture.
- Syrup — I used maple syrup, but you can substitute agave nectar.
- Milk — We’ll use almond milk for the best overnight oats! Substitute your favorite plant-based milk.
- Yogurt — I love adding some plant-based yogurt (plain, unsweetened) for an even more tangy flavor.
- Protein Powder — I add some vanilla protein powder for increased flavor and nutrients. If your protein powder is not sweetened, you may want to add an extra teaspoon or two of sweetener.
- Cornstarch — We’ll use cornstarch to thicken the lemon curd topping.
- Turmeric — A pinch of turmeric makes that lemon curd sunny yellow.
- Flax Egg — You can use either a flax egg or a chia egg
- Rolled oats — These are also referred to as old-fashioned oats
- Pecans – I buy pecans in large packages on my vegan shopping trips at Costco. You can also buy them at grocery stores or online.
- Additional nuts — Use your favorite nuts, like pistachios, cashews, peanuts, and almonds
- Seeds — Add your favorite seeds, like pumpkin, sunflower, hemp, and sesame
- Syrup sweetener — You can use maple syrup, vegan honey, or agave nectar
- Peanut butter — You can use natural, creamy, or even crunchy peanut butter.
- Coconut oil — Using refined coconut oil gives it a more natural flavor. You can substitute olive oil.
- Dried fruit — Use your favorite dried fruits, such as raisins, dried cranberries, or even dried strawberries.
Note: You can use a variety of ingredients such as sunflower seeds, chia seeds, and any of your favorite nuts, like cashews. I like to mix it up from time to time to give it variety.
How to Make Peanut Butter Granola
If you’re wondering how to make granola, here are the steps I use to make it the best! Of course, I love making homemade granola healthy because it’s so easy:
- Make the flax egg and set it aside.
- Stir together dry granola mixture from the oats, pecans, additional nuts, and seeds in a large bowl.
- Make the peanut butter sauce by combining the syrup, peanut butter, and coconut oil in a microwave-safe bowl. Heat this in the microwave until the mixture is smooth enough to spread. Stir in the flax egg.
- Pour the peanut butter sauce over the oat mixture. Stir, ensuring all the oatmeal and nuts are coated.
- Spread the sticky granola into prepared pans, distributing it equally across the pan. Use a spatula to press the granola down into the pan.
- Bake for 30 minutes, until the granola is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and set it aside for 10 minutes to cool.
- Add the dried fruit and then break the granola into pieces.
Storage Tips
Store granola in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 weeks. It can be refrigerated or even frozen for longer storage.
Serving Suggestions
- This healthy granola recipe makes a perfect travel snack for road trips
- Serve it for breakfast with some plant-based milk, like cashew milk or pecan milk
- Sprinkle it over vegan chocolate ice cream
- It’s great over some peanut butter overnight oats
Marly’s Tips
Use these tips and tricks to make the perfect batch of peanut butter and granola every single time:
- For keto granola — remove the oatmeal, add more nuts and seeds, and use a zero-calorie syrup sweetener, like Stevia Maple Syrup.
- I prefer to line my baking sheets with parchment paper because it makes cleanup so much easier.
- Make chocolate peanut butter granola by adding 2 to 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder to the granola sauce.
There are rules for making the very best oatmeal granola. I love these tips from The Kitchn on ways to make the best granola.
More Peanut Butter Recipes
Do you love healthy peanut butter recipes beyond vegan granola? Be sure to check out these peanut butter recipes too:
That’s it for this Healthy Peanut Butter Granola Recipe!
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Peanut Butter Granola
Ingredients
- 1 flax egg
- 6 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup pecans roughly chopped
- 1 cup additional nuts pistachio, cashew, almonds, etc,
- ½ cup seeds pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, etc
- ½ cup syrup sweetener maple syrup, honey, or agave nectar
- ½ cup peanut butter
- 3 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 cup dried fruit such as raisins
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 300°F/150°C. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Make the flax egg and set it aside.
- Combine the oats, pecans, additional nuts, and seeds in a large bowl. Stir to combine.
- In a small bowl, combine the syrup, peanut butter, and coconut oil. Stir to combine. Heat this in the microwave in 11-second increments until the mixture is smooth enough to spread. Stir in the flax egg.
- Pour the peanut butter syrup mixture over the oat mixture. Stir, ensuring all the oatmeal and nuts are coated.
- Pour the sticky granola mixture onto prepared pans, distributing it equally across the pan. Use a spatula to press the granola down into the pan. Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes, until the granola is golden brown.
- Remove from the oven and set it aside for 10 minutes to cool. Add the dried fruit and then break it apart into pieces.
- Store in an airtight container.
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Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This post was originally published in 2014 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2021.
We love snacking on granola while traveling! This granola looks perfect for our next road trip!
We should start a rock group: The Traveling Granola Crunchers! 😉
I joke about moving to Hawaii all the time, so glad I am not the only person dreaming about it! And I am a total snackers, wherever I go there will be snacks in my bag 🙂
We are total Hawaii dreamers. Snackers too!
as someone who’s gluten-free, it is so important for me to be prepared and have snacks on hand. this peanut butter pecan granola looks so good – those clusters!
Thanks, Amanda! I know how you feel having a special diet does mean a little bit of planning ahead. But with good food like this to bring along, it’s not so bad! So glad you like this peanutbutter granola recipe!