Easy Almond Butter Granola
This almond butter granola recipe is delicious, crunchy and naturally sweetened with maple syrup. With simple pantry ingredients this is a tasty option for meal prep and takes less than 10 minutes to prepare. Almonds, pumpkin seeds, pistachios and rolled oats are tossed with bison tallow, almond butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract and sea salt to create sweet, nutty clusters. We bet you have your favorite granola but try making this healthy granola at home that actually tastes like dessert.
We know what you're thinking. Yes, you can bake with bison tallow! Our bison tallow has a more neural flavor compared to beef tallow, which makes it a great choice for baking as well as cooking. Trust us, you'll be going back for seconds when you taste the almond butter sauce! We make just the sauce to drizzle on ice cream, yogurt or just to spoon!
Baking Substitutions
Mix & match nuts: Swap in your favorite nuts or seeds but make sure to adjust cooking time if using smaller seeds. Try incorporating cashews, hazelnuts, walnuts or peanuts.
Sweetness: This granola has just the right amount of sweetness; however, add more or less maple syrup depending on your taste. We haven’t used honey but it can be a good option.
Cooking fat: If you’re not a fan of bison tallow, try swapping in pork leaf lard for another neutral flavor cooking fat. Beef tallow can be used; however, just remember beef tallow has a slightly beefy taste.
Raid your pantry: Change up the recipe every week by adding in hemp seeds, flaxseeds or dried fruit. If you’re not feeling almond butter try peanut butter, cashew butter or any seed butter.
How to get big granola clusters? Those big clusters are super easy to make. When pouring the mixture into the sheet tray press into a ½ inch thick rectangle, making sure there are no gaps. When the granola is removed from the oven, make sure to let it cool COMPLETELY to firm up. This will take about 30 minutes. Once cooled, break the granola into large clusters or crumble into smaller pieces. Either way it will be delicious.
What equipment do you need?
Small Saucepan
Baking Sheet Tray
Parchment Paper
Large Mixing Bowl
Rubber Spatula
Measuring cups and spoons
Airtight container
Easy Almond Butter Granola
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20-25 minutes
Cool time: 30 minutes
Total time: 1 hour
Makes: 2 ½ cups
Ingredients
2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup mixed nuts (pumpkin seeds, almonds, pistachios), chopped
2 tbsp chia seeds
⅓ cup natural almond butter, unsalted
2 tbsp bison tallow, melted (swap in pork leaf lard, coconut oil or fat of choice)
¼ cup maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg or chai masala (we used chai for extra flavor)
1/2 tsp sea salt
Instructions
1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. In a small saucepan over low heat, add the bison tallow. Once the bison tallow is melted, combine almond butter, vanilla extract, cinnamon, sea salt and maple syrup. Mix well until the sauce is smooth. Remove from heat and set aside.
Note: This almond butter sauce tastes like caramel. We make it often to drizzle on ice cream, yogurt or just to spoon!
3. In a large mixing bowl, mix the nuts, chia seeds and rolled oats. Using the spatula, add in the almond butter sauce and give it a good stir until fully coated.
4. Pour the granola mixture onto the baking sheet. Using a spatula, press the mixture into a ½ inch thick rectangle making sure there are no gaps. This helps with clumping to get those large clusters or skip, if you want a crumbly granola. Either way it will be delicious, so don’t stress if it doesn’t clump!
5. Bake for 15 minutes and then spin the tray. Continue to bake for another 5 to 6 minutes or until the granola is golden brown. Depending on your oven you might have to bake it more or less.
6. Remove the granola from the oven and let it cool completely to firm up. This will take about 30 minutes. Once cooled, break the granola into large clusters or crumble into smaller pieces.
7. Enjoy granola as a quick snack, on yogurt bowls, or add to a bowl with a splash of milk.
8. Store leftovers in an airtight container at room temperature for up to a week.