Chocolate & Coconut Granola

Finding myself craving my healthy granola, but also chocolate, I combined the two - as well as some coconut meat I had stored in jars in the fridge. This time, I also added less maple syrup and changed up the recipe a bit for a more delicious result. What I love about this recipe is that it is much healthier than any store-bought granola, it contains only healthy and incredibly nutritious ingredients, and it has no nut butters.

If you are like me and have a batch of coconut stored and don't know what to do with it (or have some store-bought flakes), I recommend you try this recipe out. It will make your mornings much brighter and bring a smile to your lips.

This recipe is pretty similar to my other healthy granola, but this time I added some sugar-free chocolate chips, coconut flakes, and banana chips. Because all of these are quite sweet, I decided to decrease the amount of maple syrup of my previous recipe as well.

As an experiment, I tried folding some coconut flakes into the mixture and the rest I added as a topping once the granola was ready and out of the oven. The flakes I folded beforehand lost their crunch and a bit of their flavor as well, so I recommend you only add the coconut flakes after the granola bakes.

As for the banana, I chopped it into thin slices and threw them into the oven on top pf the granola. I never baked banana before, so I unrealistically expected it to come out crispy and crunchy like store-bought banana chips... but unfortunately that wasn't the case and I ended up with soft banana bites. On the bright side now I know how to make homemade banana chips: you should dip the banana in lemon juice and bake for 2 hours total. Now, it is your choice if you want soft chips, or if you'd prefer to pre-bake crunchy chips, or even use the store-bought kind (watch out for brands with sugar and other unwanted additives).

Nevertheless, I learned from my mistakes and the granola still came out perfectly delicious! I will definitely repeat this recipe.

As a final note, you should store this granola in an airtight container, and it keeps well for a bit over a week - after that it will lose its crunch, though it does not spoil unless for much longer.

Now, let's jump straight into the oven:

Simple & sweet!

You can enjoy this granola topped on some vegan milk, yogurt or smoothie bowl along with fruit and berries for breakfast, or even on its own for a yummy snack!

It is perfect for many occasions and I sure love having a batch ready for those busy mornings. Filling, nutritious, and incredibly pleasant, this granola will not only satisfy your sweet-tooth, but also supply you with large amounts of protein, diverse vitamins, iron, magnesium, iron, and so much more.

You will never want to reach for unhealthy store-bought granolas once you try this healthy, nutritious, and incredibly delicious recipe!

If you do try this recipe, don't forget to share your result and tag me on Instagram!