Easy Chocolate Granola Food

THE BEST HEALTHY CHOCOLATE GRANOLA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 350°F. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper, and set aside.
• In a large mixing bowl, stir together oats, almonds, cocoa powder and sea salt until evenly combined.
• In a separate mixing cup, stir together the melted coconut oil, maple syrup and vanilla extract until combined. Pour the coconut oil mixture into the oats mixture, and stir until evenly combined.
• Spread the granola out evenly on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes, stirring once halfway through. Then remove from the oven, give the mixture a good stir, then sprinkle the coconut evenly on top. Bake for 5 more minutes, until the granola is lightly toasted and golden.
• Remove baking sheet from the oven and transfer to a wire baking rack. Let cool until the granola reaches room temperature. Then stir in the chocolate chips and/or any other add-ins that you prefer.
• Serve immediately, or store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 month.

BASIC GRANOLA RECIPE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• In a large bowl, mix together the oats, light brown sugar, cinnamon and salt. Stir the honey, oil and vanilla extract into the dry ingredients. Use your hands if necessary to make sure it's well combined.
• Spread the mixture in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 20 minutes and then remove from the oven and stir; add the chopped almonds. Return to the oven and bake until everything is toasted and evenly browned, an additional 10 minutes.
• Allow the granola to cool on the baking sheet, then add the dried cranberries and toss to distribute. Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 weeks.

THE ULTIMATE CHOCOLATE GRANOLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Toss the oats, almonds, coconut, cocoa, salt, and 1/3 cup of the sugar in a large bowl. Whisk the melted coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla together. Set aside. Pour the liquids over the dry ingredients and stir to combine. Spread the granola into two large jelly roll pans in an even layer.
• for 50 minutes total, stopping about halfway through to check the granola and shake or stir the pan if needed. After 50 minutes, sprinkle the chocolate chips over the top of the granola, return to the oven for 5-10 minutes until chocolate chips are very soft. Sprinkle with the remaining turbinado sugar and coarse sea salt to taste. The added sugar and salt should stick the outside of the chocolate chips. *YES*
• Let the granola stand for 1-2 hours. Gently scoop the granola into jars or an airtight container for storing. The advantage of doing this when the chocolate chips are still soft (at the 1-2 hour mark) is that it makes for great texture once it cools - the chocolate chips will sort of melt their way into the clusters and harden within each individual granola cluster. SO GOOD. You can also leave the granola out overnight or for several hours until the chocolate chips are fully cooled and hardened if you want to preserve the shape of the individual chocolate chip pieces in the granola.

CHOCOLATE ALMOND GRANOLA

Steps:

• Roughly chop the dates and add into a blender along with the boiling water. Cover and set aside to soak for 20 minutes.
• Preheat your oven to 300 degrees F (150 degrees C) and lightly grease a large, rimmed baking sheet with cooking spray.
• Add the almond butter, cocoa powder, maple syrup to taste, oil, vanilla and salt to the blender and blitz until smooth (a few bits of dates is totally fine).
• Stir the oats and almonds together in a large bowl and add the cocoa mixture. Mix very well until evenly combined, then transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Spread the mixture into an even layer and bake until crisp and crumbly, stirring about halfway through, 50 minutes to 1 hour.
• Cool the granola to room temperature, then break any large chunks up and transfer to a resealable container and store at room temperature for up to 1 month. Serve with milk, on yogurt or enjoy out of hand.

SWEET AND SALTY CHOCOLATE GRANOLA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line a rimmed baking sheet with a piece of parchment paper and set aside.
• In a large bowl, mix together the oats, oil, syrup and salt. Toss well to coat evenly. Spread the mixture on the prepared baking sheet and bake for 30 minutes, stirring halfway through. Remove the baking sheet and stir in the almonds and walnuts. Bake, stirring halfway through to brown evenly, an additional 25 to 30 minutes. Let cool completely, then stir in the chocolate chunks.
• The granola will keep in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.