Perfect Peanut Butter Granola

Perfect Peanut Butter Granola is a healthier granola with no refined sugar, minimal oil and big peanut butter flavor.  It’s naturally vegan and gluten-free!

The past several years I’ve been trying to buy less processed food.  That said, it’s next to impossible for me to make everything from scratch when my two teenage boys inhale everything that I make in minutes!

I do the best that I can, but I need to be realistic and pick and choose to make the things that are most important to me and supplement with quality store bought items here and there.

This Perfect Peanut Butter Granola has become a staple in the house lately and while it goes quickly, it only takes minutes to prep so I have no problem cranking out batch after batch.

I’m kind of a granola snob because I like nice, big clusters and I can’t stand when it’s too sweet.

I was buying KIND Peanut Butter Granola but it wasn’t peanut buttery enough, and it’s about $5-6 a bag.  I decided to work on making my own peanut butter granola that would be more cost effective and give me the big peanut butter flavor that I crave.

And let’s not forget about those big clusters that I love!

How To Make Perfect Peanut Butter Granola

What’s the secret to this Perfect Peanut Butter Granola?  It’s not really a secret, but there are a couple of tricks to achieving granola that’s perfectly golden brown with those big chunky clusters.

Baking the granola at a lower temperature like 325 degrees is a must for perfectly golden brown granola.  We’re not going to stir it at all during baking for reasons that I’ll address next, so baking it at a lower temperature is necessary or the granola will burn.

Trust me on that one…I’ve tried to bake it without stirring at 350 degrees and the granola tasted like burnt peanut butter. 🙁

The trick to achieving big, crunchy granola clusters is to avoid stirring it during baking.  I pack the granola down into a 1/4″ thick layer and pack it all into a nice rectangle on a parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake it for 25 minutes or until golden, remove from heat and cool completely.  Don’t stir it once it comes out of the oven either!

Once the granola has cooled, I break it into large clusters (or whatever size clusters you desire) and stir in some roasted peanuts to double the peanut lover’s pleasure.

What makes this Perfect Peanut Butter Granola healthy?

This peanut butter granola recipe is healthier because I’ve used unrefined sugar and less of it.  This recipe is just sweet enough, which results in big peanut butter flavor!

I’ve also used a quality all natural peanut butter for this recipe that contains no hydrogenated oil, which results in lower saturated fat.  Natural peanut butter is also is generally lower in sugar and sodium, unlike some brands.

All peanut butter brands aren’t created equally, so check the label to see how your favorite brand stacks up.

This granola recipe contains only 2 tablespoons of oil compared with some granola recipes that call for twice that amount.  This recipe contains 9 grams of fat per serving, but it’s low in saturated fat and the rest are heart healthy fats!

The best part about making your own homemade granola is that you control the ingredients and there are no preservatives.  This Perfect Peanut Butter Granola only contains 6 ingredients, all of which you probably have in your pantry:

• old fashioned rolled oats
• peanut butter
• maple syrup
• canola or coconut oil
• cinnamon
• salt

Does salt even really count as an ingredient?  Probably not, which means this granola is actually only 5 ingredients.

And you can even pronounce all of them! 🙂

This recipe is naturally vegan, dairy-free and gluten-free if you use certified gluten-free oats.  Customize it with your favorite sweetener or throw in a few add-ins like chocolate chips, roasted peanuts or dried fruit.

You’re only 5 minutes away from popping some Perfect Peanut Butter Granola into the oven…..what are you waiting for? 🙂

More healthy peanut butter recipes:

Flourless Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Chia Overnight Oats

Peanut Butter Banana Chocolate Chip Oat Bars

Perfect Peanut Butter Granola

Yield: 12 servings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 25 minutes

Total Time: 30 minutes

Perfect Peanut Butter Granola is a healthy granola with no refined sugar, minimal oil and big peanut butter flavor.  It's naturally vegan and gluten-free!

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Ingredients

• 3 cups old fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup natural peanut butter (creamy or crunchy)
• 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
• 2 tablespoons coconut or canola oil
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Place the oats in a large bowl.
3. Place the peanut butter, maple syrup, coconut oil and cinnamon in a small microwave safe bowl and heat for 25-40 seconds or until melted.  Stir well to combine then pour over the oats.  Add the salt and stir until the oats are coated well with the peanut butter mixture.
4. Pour the oats onto the prepared pan and spread in an even layer, about 1/4" thick, packing it down well.  Packing it down will help give us those big clusters!
5. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 25 minutes or until golden....do not stir!  Remove from heat and cool completely without stirring.
6. Once cooled, break the granola up into chunks and place in an air tight container at room temperature.
7. Serve with milk and fruit or eat by the handful.  Enjoy!

Notes

• Nutrition information was calculated using My Fitness Pal and is meant to be an estimate only.  The numbers will change based on quantities consumed, brands that are used and substitutions that are made.  The information listed does not include any optional add-ins like peanuts or fruit.
• Using all natural peanut butter with no hydrogenated oil is recommended to keep this low in saturated fat, sodium, sugar and preservatives.
• Add some fun add-ins like chocolate chip, dried or fresh fruit or roasted peanuts to change up this recipe!

Nutrition Information:

Yield:

12

Serving Size:

1/4 cup
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 188 Saturated Fat: 3g Cholesterol: 0mg Sodium: 47mg Carbohydrates: 22g Fiber: 3g Sugar: 7g Protein: 5g

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