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Healthy Dark Chocolate Granola

This dark chocolate granola is healthy and SO delicious. Packed with cocoa flavor but made with only a little maple syrup and tons of healthy ingredients (seeds, nuts, oats), it's a perfect treat for topping granola or snacking on.
Prep Time15 minutes
Cook Time40 minutes
Total Time55 minutes
Course: Breakfast Goodies

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 1 1/4 cup of whole rolled old-fashioned oats
  • 2/3 cup of uncooked white quinoa
  • 1/4 cup of cocoa powder I prefer Hershey's Special Dark
  • 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon
  • 1 teaspoon of kosher sea salt crystals the bigger ones, see notes
  • 1/8 teaspoon of fine sea salt
  • 2 tablespoons of ground flaxseeds
  • 1 tablespoon of chia seeds
  • 1 tablespoon of sesame seeds
  • 1/3 cup of melted coconut oil
  • 1/4 cup of maple syrup
  • 1/4 cup of tahini
  • 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract
  • Optional: 1/4 to 1/3 cup of dark chocolate chips chopped (see notes)

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 325℉. Line a large cookie sheet with parchment paper. 
  • In a large mixing bowl stir together all the dry ingredients (oats, quinoa, spices, seeds, etc) EXCEPT the chocolate chips.
  • Add the maple syrup, melted coconut oil, tahini, and vanilla. Stir until everything is well combined.  If it's too wet, you may need to add a handful more of oats.
  • Spread the mixture onto the prepared baking sheet in an even layer.
  • Bake at 300 F convection (325 F regular) for 20 minutes, then down to 275 F convection (300 F regular) for between 15-25 minutes. In the last 5-10 minutes of baking, evenly sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top of the granola, to get the chocolate melty without scorching it.
  • Remove from the oven. Let stand at room temp for 1-2 hours so it can cool and the granola clusters can set. Definitely let it cool completely before putting it in a storage container. 
  • Store in a big ziploc or mason jar at room temp for 3-4 weeks. 

Notes

  1. This is is still super delicious and chocolate-y without the dark chocolate chips, you can easily leave these out and it will be even healthier.
  2. You can swap in 1/4 cup of roughly chopped pecans in place of the other seeds if desired (I don't love the texture of nuts as much).
  3. Could swap peanut butter or almond butter for tahini if desired
  4. You can easily double this for a family.
  5. The oil amounts in tahini vary drastically by brand, and that can make a big difference in how wet your mixture is, and thereby how long it takes to bake.  You can add more oats if the mixture is too wet, or back off the coconut oil, or bake longer.  Or just add more of the quinoa and oats until it's the right texture.
  6. If you don't have the big kosher sea salt crystals and are using more fine Himalayan or table salt, go with more like 1/4 teaspoon.