Peanut Butter Banana Granola
This healthy peanut butter banana granola uses just 8 ingredients, tastes incredible and is also gluten-free and vegan. It's the perfect healthy snack, breakfast, smoothie topping… you name it!
This clustery peanut butter banana granola has all the classic staples of a great batch of granola - a good base, lots of crunch, a hint of savory and satisfyingly sweet. It tastes amazing, it’s easy to make and it’s healthy for you! It’s also the perfect excuse to use those overly ripe bananas on your counter.
A Healthy, Energizing, Low Sugar Granola
Granola is a staple in my kitchen - I don’t think there’s ever a time I don’t have a jar of it in my cabinet. Growing up, my mom would make her signature maple granola and it was a packed snack in our school lunches, and a constant topping on our oatmeal, cereal and yogurt. Now, I still love it sprinkled on oatmeal, smoothies, fruit, or a handful before a workout. All that being said, most of the packaged granolas that you find on the shelves are high in sugar and have a lot of processed ingredients. So while our default is to think all granola is a healthy option, it really depends on what’s in it! If you take a look at the ingredients, you're likely to see it usually isn’t that great. They almost always evaporated cane juice (just a fancy name for sugar syrup) and canola oil. The ingredient lists are usually pretty lengthy, and the sugar content is way higher than I’d like or would ever recommend.
The good news is, it’s so easy to make healthy, delicious granola at home! All you need to do is swap those two main ingredients for healthier alternatives. Here are my favorite substitutions:
CANE JUICE: totally unnecessary when you have things like maple syrup, honey, dates or mashed banana
OIL: instead of canola oil use coconut oil, olive oil or nut butter in its place
When you swap out those two ingredients and keep the rest unprocessed and/or (your oats, nuts, spices, etc.) then your batch of homemade granola will taste awesome, be totally healthy, and keep you energized without a big blood sugar spike and crash! It will also leave your kitchen smelling amazing.
How To Make This Granola
Course Breakfast
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Total Time 50 minutes
Servings 24 servings
Calories 133 kcal
INGREDIENTS
5 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
4 large medjool dates, chopped
3 bananas
1/4 cup peanut butter (or nut butter of choice)
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/4 cup coconut oil
INSTRUCTIONS
Preheat the oven to 325ºF.
Combine all the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl and set aside.
Mash the bananas in a separate bowl until smooth.
On the stove, combine the peanut butter, maple syrup and coconut oil and heat on low. Stir occasionally to make sure it doesn’t burn.
Pour the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until well mixed and all the ingredients are coated.
Mix the mashed bananas in, leaving some in clumps to get clusters!
Separate the mixture onto two baking sheets, and bake for 30 - 35 minutes, until the granola is starting to brown. I recommend stirring and flipping it every 10 minutes to ensure even cooking.
Let cool completely then transfer to an airtight container. Store in a cool, dry place for up to four weeks.