3 Ingredient Maple Granola

Not only is this granola quick and easy to make, it’s a lot more healthful than store-bought granolas and most home-made varieties, which can be very high in calories and sugar.

This granola is really good in this yogurt berry parfait with almonds, where combined with greek yogurt, berries, and almonds it produces a dish that’s a great post-workout snack, breakfast, or dessert. You can see me making the recipe here.

One trick I used in this granola is replacing oil with a nut butter (peanut butter in this case), but tahini (also called sesame butter) is equally delicious, as is almond butter. When you think of it, oils are quite refined (nuts or seeds with fiber and other nutrients processed out of them). So when it’s possible to substitute, it’s a good idea: using a nut or seed butter increases the fiber, protein, and minerals substantially (see Table in Nutrition Notes).

Although healthier than most granolas, this combination of foods is still quite dense and high in calories, so be mindful of portion size. A few tablespoons on top of plain yogurt and berries is delicious! If your having the granola as a breakfast cereal, consider lightening it up by mixing with a lighter/low sugar cereal (whole grain flakes are a good companion for the granola).

Ingredients

1/4 cup natural peanut butter
1/4 cup maple syrup
3 cups old fashioned oats

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Place peanut butter and maple syrup a large microwave-save bowl. Microwave for about 30-40 seconds (mixture should be runny). Remove from microwave, add oats, and stir until oats are well coated.
Spread oat mixture onto a large pan (about 9.5″ X 13″) and bake for about 15 minutes*, stirring once at about 7 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely.

* check at 12 minutes to make sure oats aren’t browning too much (this might vary depending on your sweetener and pan type); using a glass dish, 15 minutes worked well for maple syrup; 12 minutes was all the granola needed when made with honey.

Makes SIX 1/2-cup servings

Variations

Use a different nut or seed butter instead of peanut butter (tahini is wonderful, almond butter also works well)
Try a different liquid sweeter (honey works well->taste is a bit sweeter)
Add nuts, seeds, and dried fruit to the granola after baking

Nutrition Notes

Oats are well-know for their cholesterol lowering properties, and recent research shows that they contain antioxidant compounds called avenanthramides that help decrease chronic inflammation that can lead to disease.
Peanuts are technically a legume, but their nutritional profile is similar to other nuts. They are a decent source of protein (about 7 g per 2 tbsp peanut butter), and are a good source of resveratrol, an antioxidant being studied for a variety of health benefits, including protecting against heart disease. Although some people consider nuts fattening, research has shown that added to a healthy diet they do not promote weight gain, and have many health benefits, including reducing heart disease risk. Peanuts and peanut butter might also help control blood sugar and reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes, according to this study in women. And another study suggested that replacing a serving of red meat with a serving of nuts would decrease type 2 diabetes risk by 21%.