Vanilla Almond Granola

A recipe for homemade Vanilla Almond Granola made with rolled oats and almonds and without any refined sugars. Serve this almond granola with milk or yogurt for a delicious and healthy breakfast!

This simple to make gluten-free Vanilla Almond Granola is made with pantry staples and includes old-fashioned oats, crunchy almonds, almond butter (though it can be omitted) and is lightly sweetened with pure maple syrup.

You'll find this crunchy granola made with wholesome ingredients is so easy to make at home that you'll no longer need to pick it up at the grocery store.

How to Make Almond Granola

This great recipe for Vanilla Almond Granola can be prepared, baked and ready to eat in less than an hour.

Below is an image and list of the ingredients you'll need. Also included are substitutions you can make and step-by-step images for making homemade almond granola.

You can find the full recipe with ingredient amounts in the recipe card at the end of the post.

Ingredients Overview:

• Old fashioned rolled oats. For a gluten-free granola, be sure to use certified gluten-free oats.
• Raw almonds. Sliced or slivered almonds will do. Or you can roughly chop some whole almonds. Feel free to use other raw tree nuts. Chopped cashews, walnuts or pecans are all great choices and add extra crunch to granola.
• Almond butter or a natural nut or seed butter of your choice.
• Maple syrup or honey. Though you will want to stick to maple syrup for vegan granola.
• Grapeseed or other light-tasting oil such as avocado or canola oil. Melted coconut oil is also a good choice and tastes delicious in this granola.
• Vanilla extract
• Almond extract
• Ground cinnamon and salt

Steps Overview:

1. To make this almond granola recipe, line a baking sheet with parchment paper and preheat the oven.
2. Add all of the dry ingredients to a large bowl.
3. Add the wet ingredients into a medium bowl, whisk together and then pour the wet mixture over the dry ingredients (oat mixture).
4. Stir to combine making sure to properly coat all of the oats and almonds with the almond butter mixture.
5. Spread the granola mixture on the prepared baking sheet and press it down into an even layer (see picture below), this step will help to form clusters of granola.
6. Bake in the oven for 15 minutes, stir or flip small sections of the granola over and bake for an additional 10 to 15 minutes or until the granola is fragrant and golden in colour.

Tip: To keep some clusters of granola, I like to flip small sections of granola over with a spatula instead of stirring it.

Remove the almond granola from the oven and let it cool on the baking tray before storing it. The granola will crisp up on the baking pan as it cools.

Variations:

• For a nut-free granola you can simply omit the almonds or you can use pumpkin or sunflower seeds instead.
• Add dried fruit. I love adding dried blueberries, cherries, cranberries, raisins and coconut. Make sure to add them after having baked the granola and it has come to room temperature. Large flaked coconut can be added to the main granola ingredients and baked.
• You can vary the spices to suit your preferences. Try adding a bit of ground nutmeg, cardamom or ginger.

Serving Suggestions

The simplest way to serve this almond vanilla granola is for breakfast with milk. In fact, this granola reminds me of my favorite almond cereal.

You can add fresh fruit to your bowl of granola. Fresh blueberries, raspberries and blackberries are all delicious. You can also add sliced strawberries and bananas.

If you enjoy smoothie bowls for breakfast you can top it with a handful of this granola.

Granola also makes a great snack, I will occasionally grab a handful to snack on while I'm working.

You can serve granola with yogurt. Add half a cup of yogurt to a bowl and top it with 1/4 to 1/3 cup of granola.

Granola Parfait: Build a yogurt and granola parfait by layering yogurt, granola and fruit, or a fruit sauce or jam such as this homemade Peach Sauce or this Plum Jam in a glass or small mason jar. Not only is it delicious for breakfast but it also makes a healthy dessert!

Calories:

There are approximately 225 calories in one serving of this Vanilla Almond Granola. This does not take into account any milk or yogurt or any substitutions you may have made to the recipe.

Storage Instructions

Store this Vanilla Almond Granola in an airtight container at room temperature for up to two weeks. Granola can also be frozen for up to three months in a freezer bag. Thaw granola at room temperature before serving.

Enjoy!

More Breakfast Recipes

• Homemade Maple Pecan Granola
• Toasted Muesli
• Homemade Coconut and Seed Bars
• Quinoa Breakfast Bowls