By now, you probably know I have a thing for granola. But what you probably don’t know is that I also have a thing for chocolate.
Wait. You already knew that, too (obviously). Hmph.
Well, then you won’t be surprised that I’m sharing a recipe for chocolate granola! Besides, who doesn’t want a (healthier) version of Cocoa Puffs in their life?
This chocolate granola is inspired by one I tried recently by Purely Elizabeth. I demolished the whole bag in a matter of days and knew I wanted to create a version for the blog.
This recipe is simple, requiring just 9 ingredients and roughly 30 minutes to make!
The base is nuts, oats, chia seeds, and coconut. To keep things on the healthy side, I went with maple syrup and coconut sugar for natural sweetness. And the chocolate flavor comes from both cocoa powder and vegan dark chocolate! Yessss, come to Mama.
I hope you all LOVE this chocolate granola! It’s:
Crunchy
Nutty
Chocolate-infused
Perfectly sweet
Protein- + Fiber-rich
Quick + easy to make
& Delicious!
This would make the perfect quick breakfast or on-the-go snack. I love adding this granola to some coconut yogurt and berries for an easy summertime breakfast or snack when I don’t feel like cooking.
For more granola recipes, be sure to check out our 7-Ingredient Quinoa Granola, Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip Granola, Banana Bread Granola, Nut ‘n’ Honey Coconut Granola, Chunky Coconut Granola, Strawberry Coconut Granola, Grain-Free Granola, and Gingerbread Granola!
If you try this recipe, let us know! Leave a comment, rate it, and don’t forget to tag a photo #minimalistbaker on Instagram! We’d love to see what you come up with. Cheers, friends!
Sea Salt Dark Chocolate Granola
Ingredients
- 3 cups (270 g) gluten-free rolled oats
- 1 cup (~100 g) chopped raw nuts (almonds, pecans, and/or walnuts are best)
- 1/4 cup (20 g) desiccated or shredded coconut (unsweetened)
- 2 Tbsp (20 g) chia seeds
- 3 Tbsp (36 g) coconut or organic cane sugar (or other dry sweetener of choice)
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/3 cup (32 g) cocoa powder
- 1/4 cup (60 g) coconut (or avocado) oil
- 1/2 cup (120 ml) maple syrup, plus more to taste (or other liquid sweetener of choice)
- optional: 1/2 cup (90 g) vegan dark chocolate chips or chunks (sweeter chocolate is best - I like Trader Joe’s 72% dark chocolate bar)
Instructions
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Preheat oven to 340 degrees F (171 C).
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To a food processor (or mixing bowl), add the oats, nuts, coconut, chia seeds, coconut sugar, salt, and cocoa powder. Pulse a few times (or stir) to combine.
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In a small saucepan over medium-low heat, warm the coconut oil and maple syrup until melted and combined. Pour over the dry ingredients and mix or stir well. If using a food processor, this breaks down the oats and nuts a bit more so it's a finer texture, but this is optional.
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Spread the mixture evenly onto a baking sheet and bake for 17-24 minutes (or until fragrant and deep golden brown), stirring a bit near the halfway point to ensure even baking.
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Let cool completely. Then add chocolate (optional). Place in a container that has an air-tight seal, and it should keep for a few weeks. Or store in the freezer up to 1 month or longer.
Notes
*Nutrition information is a rough estimate for 1 of 9 (1/2 cup) servings calculated with the 90 g dark chocolate.
Nutrition Per Serving (1 of 9)
- Calories: 364
- Fat: 19.1g
- Saturated fat: 9.5g
- Sodium: 225mg
- Carbohydrates: 44.7g
- Fiber: 6.9g
- Sugar: 18.1g
- Protein: 8.2g
Hi, I'm Dana! I am a food stylist, photographer, creator of the Food Photography School and author of the 31 Meals Cookbook and Everyday Cooking.
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So yes, that recipe is definitely happening! That looks incredible delicious!
Melodie
Wow!! This granola looks so yummy! I gotta try that!
Would this work with instant oats or does it have to be regular oats? Definitely going to make this!
That should work!
Yeah!!! Yeah!!! Making this over the weekend…I think my chocolate obsessed boyfriend will be very happy :)
Oh this looks so tasty
where is the salt in the ingredients list? ;)
In the middle of the ingredient listing (1 tsp sea salt) :)
so blind hahaha thank you
This granola looks amazing! Totally need to try it next week!
Oooh yes, I’m so making this today! Looks so delish and chocolaty! Thanks
This looks amazing. I can’t wait to try it.
Awesome! Your recipes are ALWAYS so, so appealing. This one, too. And your humor always gives me a chuckle! You are crackin’ me up! Laughter is a good side dish to any recipe. :-)
So kind! Thanks Julia xoxo
Oh my, this looks delicious! Totally making it this weekend.
Just made this! Delicious! Didn’t have quite enough of any one oatmeal so did combination of reqular, quick, and steel cut. I don’t use oil so subbed a flax egg for binding. Seemed to work.
Nice! Thanks for sharing.
I used this tip and swapped oil for flax egg (as I don’t like the taste of coconut oil) – and it worked great – thanks!
Yay! Thanks for sharing!
Thanks for the recipe! Looks great! any suggestions for replacing the nuts as I am allergic? Thank you xxx
You could add more oats, more shredded coconut, add some seeds (like sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or hemp seeds), plain puffed brown rice cereal, buckwheat groats… granola is pretty forgiving!
Great ideas!
I’m allergic to nuts too. When making granola I sub. Sunflower & or pumpkin seeds to give the granola that nutty flavour & texture.
Came home from work and found your email, threw it together in about 5 minutes in a bowl, no processor and I used avocado oil so I didn’t hear anything. Just mixed in 1 bowl and baked….. OMG the most delicious granola I’ve ever made. Loved that I could taste the salt too. Thanks for another great recipe! Love your site!?
Yay!!!
Would this work without sugar and just the maple syrup???
Yes, but it won’t be as sweet, obviously. Maybe add a little stevia (if trying to avoid sugar), or a little more maple syrup. Good luck!
Maybe you can sweeten with dates/water/almond butter blended.
Any excuse to have chocolate for breakfast:) I love it!
Granola + Chocolate! Yes, please! This looks amazing!
I never need an excuse to eat chocolate – even for breakfast – but when it gets wrapped up in a healthy granola package then I’m all it. Pass me a spoon already! :-)
I just made this and it is now my favourite granola along with your banana bread granola recipe. Next time I make this (there will definitly be a next time), I’ll probably add a little less salt and more cacao.
Oh I didn’t use a food processor and omitted the sugar because it is sweet enough for me like this. Amazing recipe :)
Thanks for sharing, Ann!
looks amazing, have to try
Looks and sounds awesome but I will have to try subbing the oats with quinoa flakes, as even GF oats bother me (must be some other protein in oats). I want to make it and bring it to work to fake out everyone that yes! it’s healthy! Gotcha!
Let me know how it goes, Ines!
Hi Dana! I wasn’t paying attention and accidentally combined everything in the food processor right away-oops! It came out like a paste so I made little chunks and baked them that way and it still turned out wonderful, tastes just like cocoa puffs but with a happy conscience : ) Thanks for another great recipe!!
haha, yes! Sounds like a happy accident!
I have this in the oven right now – smells amaaahhhzing!
Verdict: fabulous! …trying your gingerbread granola next week. :)
That’s a winner, too! Good luck!
This is fantastic! I left out the dark chocolate chips as didn’t have any chocolate to hand, still absolutely delicious and very chocolatey, with a lovely chocolate milk to enjoy at the end (my boyfriend, an ex coco pops addict, was particularly thrilled about this!) I threw some goji berries into the bowl at the end when serving – delicious :)
Thanks for sharing, Teresa!
Wow, this recipe is a game changer:)! So easy and quick to put together and the taste, look, smell and crunch is amazing! I used carob in place of cocoa, date syrup (silan) instead of maple and threw in some hazelnuts alongside almonds and walnuts. Thank you for amazing recipe!
Of course! Thanks for sharing, Lucie!
I am a granola freak and this is my new fave. Can’t. Stop. Eating. Thank you!!
Yay! Thanks Kathy!!
I’m going to try it without the salt (low salt diet). Can’t wait to eat it with plain homemade yogurt! Yum!
Have not tried it, but with grandkids coming soon, how would this chocolate granola do with the life altering banana pancakes? I think there is potential for yumminess !
I think you’re right, Laurie! Hope your Grandkids love it!
I just made this! Dericious!! It’s perfect to be satisfied for my chocolate’s cravings. I used pink salt instead of sea salt. it’s a bit salt for me. I will put less when I make next time. Thanks for sharing the recipe always. ?
Have already made this twice. So yummy!
xoxo!
I made this (with the addition of chopped dried cherries) a few days ago and it’s fantastic. Can’t stop eating it!
Fantastic! Now my favorite granola.
THAAAAANK YOU FOR THIS! I actually tried the Elizabeth’s a few months ago and this is the perfect dupe for it!!! I WILL MAKE THIS ALL THE TIME !!! Thank you!!!
I made this and it’s AMAZING. It’s been hard not eating it for every meal! Thanks for the recipe. :) Definitely will be making it again once i consume the first batch!
am totally loving it. am gonna make it this weekend
I made this and oh my gosh I am never buying store bought granola ever again! It is great as a snack on its own, oatmeal, or yogurt. I made a batch didn’t last a week. thanks for this recipe ??
I made this and this was the best. thing. everrrr!!! Thank you so much!
Just made this recipe, turned out awesome! I didn’t have chocolate chips on hand so subbed dried cherries and it worked out really nicely as an alternative.
I definitely have a thing for granola and chocolate, myself! Put them together with a little peanut butter, and you have drugs in the form of food and nutrients! LOL! Anything with simple ingredients is ideal. It’s hard to replicate granola, and this looks absolutely incredible!
Oh my gosh this is amazing, I’m eating the last of mine right now. And when I mix it with my coconut vanilla yogurt it tastes like I’m eating Cocoa Pebbles. So delicious! Going to make more today.
Just WOW!!! I made it today and we just had a bowl with fresh strawberries, the granola and a bit of soy milk. It tasted heavenly – and i don’t even like coconut very much :D the combo of sweet and salt just can’t be beaten <3
I will never ever buy granola at a store again.
Thank you for that great recipe!
I just made this recipe and OMG!!! I only used two Tbs of dry sugar and 1/4 cup maple syrup (trying to cut back in sugar) and it still was so perfect! I love how chocolately it is without the calories!!! Thank you
Where’s the sea salt
Thank you so much for this recipe! I made it yesterday and am already addicted! It’s so good and easy!
Why did I just make this?? Best granola ever. Granola is an acceptable dinner, right..?
Glad you loved it, Caitlin! :D
Hi! I tried this and it looked delicious but it taste as if i had overcooked something. I figured maybe i burnt the coconut oil/maple mix when combining it together because it was my first time cooking with coconut oil.
How do you know when to stop before burning this type of oil?
Thanks a lot!
Love your website!
I always have to take my granola out earlier than I think–it’s always better a little undercooked than overcooked because it tastes horrible burnt! Also, make sure not to cook the oil/syrup on high–the coconut oil will start to burn past medium on the stove.
Amazing! I am completely addicted. Also love the Banana Bread Granola.
Any suggestions for nut free? Id like to send this to school with the kiddos.
Hi! You could just leave out the nuts and add some more coconut and oats!
This is AMAZING! My dream granola. Thanks so much, Dana!
Absolutely LOVE this recipe. It’s the first minimalist baker recipe I’ve tried and this has become my go to website for when I want something new. I made this FIVE times in a month. I ate it as yogurt topping, on top of apples and peanut butter for added texture, or just as cereal with almond milk. I didn’t ever add chocolate, just because for some reason I never have it on hand. But it is amazing! Btw I’ve never left a review before but I’m going to start!
I made this today but doubled the quantity of shredded coconut because I had lots of it on hand ( I added half a cup), and subbed the maple sirup with agave and the result is FANTASTIC.. sweet and savory coconutey chocolatey dream! I’ve just had a bowl of granola, not completely cooled yet ( I just couldn’t wait any longer but who could blame me?) with plain almond milk… Why was I eating store-bought granola all that time?
Just made this and it’s the best granola i’v had to this day. just added all the ingredients together in my food processor and it took a minute to prepare.
This…. tastes like Cocoa Puffs. Enough said.
This is literally one of the best things I’ve ever eaten! I just came back from a holiday where my kids were choosing chocolate cereals and I was staring longingly at them. I came home and searched healthy gluten free, dairy free chocolate granola. This is the answer! Easy to make and simply delicious.
Thank you Dana
I’d love to make this into a bar! I thought about just adding more syrup and then cooling.. Any other ideas to make this amazing recipe into bars!
Have you tried using brown rice syrup instead of maple? It is much thicker. I’ve used it as the liquid sweetener for oat bars before.
I just made this and my boyfriend yelled out “WHAT IS THIS, BROWNIE GRANOLA?!” We refuse to eat it with yoghurt or milk, it’s way too good just as is. You’re a blessing to us, Dana! Every single recipe I’ve made off your site has been a hit in my (carnivore) home. THANK YOU!
this looks amazing! I was wondering if it would work with Quinoa flakes instead of rolled oats?
Hi Luke! We haven’t tried it, but if you do let us know how it goes!
Made last night… my entire family and I ate half already! All of your granola recipes are amazing! I will say that I do cook it at 300 instead of 340 and just go for a bit longer other wise it might scorch the oats!
DELICIOUS! My 13 year old son saw this recipe on your site last night and asked me to make it. It was so easy to put together, and it is soooo good! We will be making it again!
Chocolate-y Delicious!! Wow!!
So good! And the way that it has made my kitchen smell all day is almost better :)
I’ve made this several times now with my sister (subbed muscovado sugar for coconut, and olive oil for coconut oil), and it is always divine! We have no food processor so we just mix everything together in a bowl, then spread it out on a pan before baking. Thank you for sharing this.
Thank you for this recipe! I am on a quest to try all the best recipes of 2017. This is so flavorful and satisfying sooo much better than anything store bought.
Ok… I have left a review for this before but I have to just emphasize how good this is!!!!!! Literally make it every week!!!
I’ve changed the recipe a little bit: blended some of the oats to make the granola more crumbly and added the cocoa and sugar to the saucepan with maple syrup and oil to make a super sweet syrup :D
I love it so much tho, it’s probably the first chocoalte granola that satisfy me because most of the time they’re good but just… not exactly right and this one is perfect! Thank you <3
Hello!
This recipe sounds amazing..I shall have to try it. Does anybody use fresh dessicated coconut? If so, does that alter the shelf-life. TIA! :)
Your granola recipes (well all recipes in fact) are the bom-diggidy. Every one is fantastic but this is my fav for breakfast! Such a delight to eat wholesome ‘dessert’ to start the day ;) xxx 100% love.
Hi! I am thinking of making this granola but I was wondering if how I could incorporate dates as sweetener instead of the sugar/limiting the maple syrup? Should I chop them up and add it with the nuts mixture? Thanks!
Hi Anne-Celine! If you want to do this, you could try soaking you dates and processing it into a paste? This would change the texture of the granola but may work. If you give this a try, report back on how it goes!
I made this and loved it! Put it on my greek yogurt every morning. Thank you!
I just made this, with a couple of adjustments (added less maple syrup, more cocoa powder, and added raisins instead of chocolate chips), and WOW it’s ridiculously good!! My whole house smells like a chocolate factory now, haha. It’s so so fast to make too and this amount is gonna last me for a couple weeks at least, if I eat it for breakfast every day.
Is it possible to omit the nuts? I have a peanut tree but allergic child. It looks soooo good!
Hi Anna! You could add more oats, more shredded coconut, add some seeds (like sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds or hemp seeds), plain puffed brown rice cereal, buckwheat groats… granola is pretty forgiving!
Would it be crazy to substitute flax seeds for chia seeds?
Not crazy at all!
I made this last week and ate in within days. I am currently making this again…it’s in the oven baking. Excellent recipe and will be trying your coconut granola recipe next!
Excellent! I wanted to come back and give it 5 stars.
Thanks for doing that, Jekia!
I made this earlier; super good!
I made this and shared it with my yoga class. It was a big hit. I reduced the sugar amount to 2 Tbs and added a 1/4 tsp of so of salt along with using Cacao powder as opposed to cocoa powder. This is on the repeat list of deliciousness.
Just made this for a post race brunch and it was delicious with yogurt, strawberries, and bananas. Everyone asked for the recipe!!
Yay! We’re glad it was a hit, Katie!
Love it. The saltiness and sweeteness perfect combination plus crunchy. ummm good. i added chocolate cheerios instead of chocolate chips.
This granola is delicious! I left out the chocolate chips when I made it. I really enjoy eating it with plain yogurt and strawberries for breakfast or a snack. It is not too sweet, perfectly chocolately, and was super easy to make. Excited to try more granola recipes from here!
This is so so so super good! I added chocolate pieces and dried cranberries. Super decadent!
This granola tastes amazing and it really easy!!
Made this for Teacher Treats Day at school. I substituted shelled unsalted sunflower seeds for the nuts (nut free campus). Was pleasantly surprised when a teacher I barely knew hunted me down after school and told me the granola was many of the teachers’ favorite treat of the day and asked if she could have the recipe! Thanks MB!
So awesome! Thanks for sharing your recipe changes, Bernadette!
Just made this. Absolutely delicious! The kids (16 and 17) love it. It definitely won’t last the afternoon. I added the choc chips but think I will leave them out next time. Very yum!
Woot woot!
A “healthy” version of cocoa pebbles?! Yes, please! This was even better than I imagined it would be! I kept going back for a small handful while it was cooling…addictive. I added about a 1/2 cup of chocolate almond meal that I had leftover from making chocolate almond milk. It was pretty sweet for my liking already, so I omitted the chocolate chips and next time I will probably also omit the dry sugar.