Healthy Coconut Granola

This Healthy Coconut Granola is crunchy, clumpy, and perfectly sweetened with only maple syrup! This is made with pantry ingredients and doesn’t take long to whip up! If you like your granola in clumps, this recipe is for you! No more buying granola when you can make it for a fraction of the price at home, and with all the ingredients you love!

For more delicious breakfast ideas, check out this Banana Cardamom Bread, Lemon Poppyseed Muffins, Banana Pecan Breakfast Muffins, or this Lemon Blueberry Loaf.

Can I make this Healthy Coconut Granola Gluten Free?

Yes, you can definitely make this easy granola recipe gluten free. Make sure your oats are gluten free, like these rolled oats from Bobs Red Mill. The other ingredients like the seeds, coconut, maple syrup and coconut oil are naturally gluten free, but it’s always best to read labels and double check to make sure!

Can I make this granola vegan?

Yes! This simple granola recipe is naturally vegan! There are zero animal products used here.

How can I make sure this granola clumps together?

This granola recipe has been tested multiple times to make sure it clumps. By pressing the granola down with a flipper, it helps the sugars from the maple syrup bind the ingredients together. The other important part is to not break up the granola until it’s mostly cooled!

Ingredients needed for this easy granola recipe!

The base of this Healthy Coconut Granola recipe is oats! I used Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free Oats here. This recipe uses rolled oats. It’s important that you don’t use steel cut oats because they won’t cook properly.

Maple Syrup is the sweetener in this granola recipe! Use pure maple syrup here, not the artificial stuff.

Coconut oil is needed for this granola to get some crunch! It’s best to use unrefined coconut oil here. It’s melted and combines with the maple syrup to create the perfect sticky binding for the oats and seeds. If you don’t have coconut oil, avocado oil works well too!

Sunflower and pumpkin seeds add a delicious crunch to this healthy granola! you can use one, or the other, or both if you like because the granola is flexible like that! Sunflower and pumpkin seeds add a delicious crunch to this healthy granola! you can use one, or the other, or both if you like because the granola is flexible like that!

Pecans are used here, but use whatever nuts you have in your pantry!

Cinnamon is used here because it adds a beautiful flavour to the granola. I’m a cinnamon lover, so use more of less if you like!

Coconut flakes are added to the granola half way through the baking time. Flakes are best in this recipe because finely grated coconut burns very quickly.

Vanilla is used to add flavour!

Ground flax seeds adds as a binder for the granola, and they pack a nutritional punch!

Dried fruit is optional here. Cranberries and raisins are both delicious additions, but make sure to not add it in before baking because they will burn! Wait until thew granola is cooled, and then add them in.

How to Make this Healthy Granola Recipe?

Start with preheating the oven to 350° and line a large baking pan with parchment paper.

In a small pot, heat the coconut oil until just melted. Add in the maple syrup and vanilla.

In a large bowl, add the oats, seeds, flax seed, pecans, salt and cinnamon, mix around. Whisk the oil mixture quickly to combine and immediately pour it on the oats. Mix around until all of the oats are well coated. Do not add in the coconut yet, otherwise it will burn.

Pour the granola on to the baking pan and spread it out evenly. No need to press it down yet. Pop in the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

At the 10 minute mark, pull the granola out of the oven. Add in the coconut flakes and lightly toss around using a flipper. Once the coconut is evenly combined, press the granola down. Keep compacting it until it’s as compact as possible. Put the coconut granola back in the oven and continue to bake for another 15-17 minutes. The granola should be a light brown colour and the coconut should have brown edges.

Now here is the tricky part, once the granola is baked, remove it from the oven and do not touch it until it’s cooled. This will allow those sugars from the maple syrup to cool and bind to the other ingredients and this is what creates those delicious clumps that everyone loves!

Once the granola is cooled completely you can transfer it to an air tight container and it will keep for a couple of weeks! It goes really well on top of yogurt, or all by itself as cereal and even by the handful as a tasty snack!