Sweet & Salty Banana Nut Granola
When I talk about granola, I feel like Buddy the Elf. It’s truly one of my main food groups. I’ve been eating it every day for about 15 years, and I don’t plan on stopping anytime soon. I also don’t discriminate between crunchy, chewy, chunky, sweet, and salty. There’s a granola for every type of mood, ya know?
Growing up, I loved super sweet cereals and granolas, but as I’ve gotten older, I’m not a huge fan of starting the day off with a sugar bomb. Enter: Sweet & Salty Banana Nut Granola. I’ve been working on this recipe for months and feel like I’ve finally mastered my dream granola. To me, it’s the perfect mix of sweet, salty, crunchy and chewy. It’s loaded with fiber, protein, healthy fats, and all around simple, whole foods ingredients that will get your day off to a great start. It’s also not overly sweet with only a hint of maple syrup. Most of the sweetness comes from the ripe bananas! This recipe makes a big batch, so you can prep ahead for the week and store in a mason jar or two.
For the base:
1 1/2 cups chopped pecans
1/2 cup chopped walnuts
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds
1/4 cup chia seeds
1/4 hemp
2 cups oats (old fashioned rolled or quick are fine)
For the coating:
2 very ripe bananas*
3 tbsp maple syrup (honey works here, too!)
1/4 cup creamy almond butter
2 tsp vanilla
3 tbsp coconut oil
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tsp salt
*If your bananas aren’t ripe (spotted or soft), then they aren’t ready. Ripe bananas are much sweeter. This recipe doesn’t include a lot of added sugar, so the granola needs that layer of natural sweetness from the bananas.
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
Add all of the base ingredients into a large bowl and mix until combined. In a separate bowl, mash the bananas until mostly smooth (a few chunks is totally fine). Place a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the mashed bananas, maple syrup, almond butter, vanilla, coconut oil, cinnamon, and salt. Stir constantly until everything is combined. When the mixture bubbles for ~1 minute, remove from heat and pour over the base ingredients. Make sure all of the oats/nuts/seeds are evenly coated (this may take a min or two!).
Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper. Pour the granola onto the pan and spread into one flat layer. Bake at 350 for 15 minutes, then use a spatula to stir / flip mixture. Reset the oven to 325 and pop the tray back in the oven for 15-20 minutes until golden. When you take the granola out of the oven, do not touch it! It’s super important to let it cool COMPLETELY or else you won’t get those nice clusters. Once cooled, enjoy with some almond milk, sprinkled over a smoothie, or by the handful! You can pop the leftovers into some mason jars or air-tight containers to store, which should stay fresh for ~2-3 weeks.
Can’t wait to see you all make this! Tag me @gracefole or send me a photo if you do!
If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment below.
What recipes do you want to see next?