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Homemade granola is a perfect healthy way to use up extra nuts and seeds you have in your pantry. This recipe uses a mixture of nuts, seeds, and dried fruits to make the perfect low sugar granola recipe for your breakfast and snacks. Once you make this you will never want to buy store-bought granola again!
How to make granola low sugar?
When you buy granola in the store you may be surprised at how much sugar is in the granola. That is a large reason why I like to make my own at home, there is no added sugar. You can still add sweetness but you can control how much.
When making this granola, you get the sweetness from the dates and syrup. You can easily skip the maple syrup if you want less sugar. I don’t add any refined or cane sugar to this recipe. I think the dates give it enough sweetness.
How to make this healthy granola recipe?
To make this granola you first create a paste and then mix it with the dry ingredients. To make the paste, you add the wet ingredients to a food processor and blend. Then you add all of your dry ingredients to a large bowl and mix in the paste. I do this with my hands because it is the easiest way to mix everything. It’s a little messy but worth it!
Once everything is mixed together, add the granola to a baking sheet and bake at 300°F for 25-30 minutes. You want to bake everything together and remove excess moisture but you don’t want to burn it. That is why it is a lower temperature for longer time.
To make sure the granola cooks evenly, take it out and mix it around on the baking sheet 1 or 2 times during the baking process.
Low Sugar Granola Ingredients
To keep this a sugar-free granola recipe I use natural sweeteners. This reduces the amount of sugar. I don't use any additional fats like coconut oil or olive oil in this recipe. I wanted to keep the calories down to make it as healthy as possible. I rely on the dates and tahini to provide the fat and moisture the granola needs.
Dates: Dried dates are what gives this recipe its natural sweetness. Make sure to use pitted dates, or pit them yourself before adding to a blender.
Tahini: Tahini is added to create the paste to make the granola stick together. The flavor goes really well with any other nuts and doesn’t over power the flavor. If you don't have tahini you could use other nut butter like peanut butter, but it will give the granola a stronger flavor.
Syrup (optional): If you want a little more sweetness you can add a couple of tablespoons of real maple syrup, but it’s not necessary.
Oats: The main bulk of your granola come from oats. Make sure to use old-fashioned oats to give it a good granola texture. Steel cut oats or quick oats don’t work as well in this recipe. If you are gluten free make sure to get certified gluten-free oats.
Nuts and Seeds: When it comes to the nuts and seeds, this recipe is pretty flexible. Use a mix of what you have or choose a few of your favorites. One of my favorite combos is cashews, pecans, and pumpkin seeds.
Dried Fruit: Adding some dried cranberries or raisins is another good way to add some sweetness without using straight sugar. Dried fruit also gives a brightness and chewy texture to the granola.
Some other ingredients you can add to mix it up is coconut flakes, chia seeds, or dark chocolate chips.
How to serve granola?
You can use this granola how you would typical use store bought granola. Add granola to your yogurt with a handful of fresh fruit. I love serving it with greek yogurt and sliced strawberries. You can also serve with milk and eat it as a cereal, or just eat it by itself as a snack! My favorite combo is vanilla almond yogurt with raspberries and blueberries, topped with homemade granola.
If you are looking for something sweeter you can also drizzle some honey or maple syrup on top to make is a dessert.
How to store homemade granola?
After you bake the granola, make sure to let it cool all the way before storing. To store, you want to add the granola to an airtight container and store in a cool dark place such as your pantry. You can store granola at room temperature. The granola should store for about 2 weeks but I find it tastes best within the first week.
This easy homemade granola recipe is one of the healthiest granolas I have made. After having this low-sugar granola you'll be so excited to start making your own granola instead of grocery store bought.
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