This Sugar-free granola has no refined sugar or sweeteners. It is a great base recipe that can be modified to suit taste.
Granola is often advertised as a wholesome and healthy breakfast choice but unfortunately, this is more often not the case. Commercial varieties are often loaded with enough added sugar to compete with a chocolate bar and homemade granola recipes are often no better. Most recipes call for quite a bit of sugar, maple syrup, honey or other sweeteners.
This version contains no sugar or sweeteners so does taste quite a bit different to granola as you know it. If you are used to sweet granola you may find you have to add a little sweetness via dried fruit or fruit.
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Ingredient Info (& Alternative Suggestions)
- Oats: For this granola recipe you’ll want to use rolled oats (also called old fashioned oats or whole oats)
- Nuts: Use any nuts you like or have available, this recipe uses almond flakes, walnuts, cashew and hazelnuts. Make sure to finely chop if serving children under five. For a nut-free version, substitute with extra seeds (e.g. sesame, sunflower, chia) and add some coconut flakes.
- Pumpkin Seeds: You can substitute with different seeds (sunflower, sesame etc) or replace with extra nuts.
- Spices: Adds flavour, add more or less to suit taste.
- Egg White: The biggest challenge with sugar-free granola is getting it crunchy enough and for it to form little clumps. The beaten egg white helps to achieve this. If you have an egg allergy you can skip it. Replace with 1 tablespoon extra of coconut oil or a little maple syrup (will no longer be sugar-free)
- Coconut Oil: Used to crisp up the oats. If you wish to skip the oil you can add an extra egg white.
Step By Step Instructions
Homemade sugar-free granola is very easy to make, it really is just a case of combining the ingredients and baking until golden and crispy.
- Mix together all the dry ingredients
- Add the coconut oil and mix through
- Whisk the egg whites until they form soft peaks
- Gently stir through the egg whites
- Transfer the mixture to a lined baking tray and bake for 30 mins, stirring halfway through the cooking time. Watch your granola carefully while in the oven, it can go from done to burnt in a couple of minutes.
Mix it Up - Added Ingredient Suggestions
As this granola is mild in flavour and sweetness, it is a perfect base for you to add in extras. Why not:
- Stir in some dried or freeze-dried fruit for extra sweetness (after baking).
- Add chopped fresh fruit add berries for a hint of sweetness (after baking).
- Stir through some coconut flakes after cooking, or halfway through (for toasted flakes)
- Change the spices, maybe vanilla, clove or mixed spice. You can even try savoury spices to make savoury granola.
- Throw in a handful of chocolate chips (after baking)
Serving Suggestions
- Serve at breakfast with milk and some fresh fruit;
- Make a yoghurt parfait (pictured below) with some creamy Greek yoghurt, fresh berries and a drizzle of honey;
- Use it to top fruit salad. It will add crunch and make it more satisfying;
- Take it out and about as a snack. Think of it a little like a trail mix, you can add some dried fruit and choc chips for extra kid appeal
Storage Instructions
Store the granola in an airtight container, at room temperature, for 1 to 2 weeks. (If it lasts that long)
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Sugar Free Granola
Equipment
- Electric Hand Mixer / Stand Mixer
Ingredients
- 200g (2 cups) Rolled Oats
- 60g (½ cup) Pumpkin Seeds
- 80g (⅔ cup) Mixed Chopped Nuts ,I used cashew, hazelnut and walnuts
- 45g (½ cup) Almond Flakes
- 2 teaspoon Cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon Ginger
- 4 tablespoon Coconut Oil ,melted
- 2 Egg Whites ,beaten to soft peaks
Instructions
- Pre heat oven to 150c / 300f / Gas 2 and line a baking tray with baking paper.
- Add all the dry ingredients to a large mixing bowl and combine.
- Add the coconut oil and stir through, coating the mixture.
- Whip the eggs to soft peaks using an electric hand mixer or stand mixer.
- Add the beaten egg whites and gently stir to coat the mixture.
- Spread the mixture onto the baking tray and bake for 30 mins, stirring once halfway through the cooking time.
Recipe Notes
Nutritional facts
*This recipe was first published in June 2016. It has been updated with new process shot photos and more information in the post. The recipe ingredients remain the same.
Sandra
Hi , how do I need to modify this if I want to add some maple syrup? Thanks
Charlotte
Hi quick question, the nutritional values that you have provided, is that set per portion Oct size or as a whole once made following the directions? I'm weighing my food to get a better understanding of my calories intake and I am struggling to workout what 40 g looks like I'm the figure
many thanks!! It's a great recipe
Amy
Hi Charlotte, sorry for the delay in my response. I'm glad you like the recipe. The nutritional information is based on a 7th of the recipe. I found it made 7 half-cup portions. Please not that the nutritional information is a rough guide only, calculated using an online nutrition calculator
JJ VAN WYK
Hello, please help!
I am 68 years old and was diagnosed with Diabetes 2 from Cape Town, RSA.
I wish to make my own beakfast cereal/granola in dry bulk.
Yesterday I bought the following:
1 kg of pumpkin seeds
1 kg of sunflower seeds
750 g of cranberries
750g of raw pecan nuts
250g desicatted coconts
750g raw almonds
300g of macadam nuts
I live alon and can get hold of xylitol
I an no great cook annd live alone
Question: Can I put the abovementioned into a food processor anf chop up roghly and mix?
Toast in the oven
My plan is to eat 1 cup of this in the mornings with milk of some sort.
Till now I have eaten bacon ang eggs for breakfast and I am sick and tired of this?
Please respond asap.
Kindest regards
JJ VAN WYK
Amy
Hi JJ, You can follow the recipe card and add any other nuts that you wish. If you want to roughly pulse them in the food processor that will be fine, just don't overdo it. I would just add the cranberries after cooking the granola. Mix through once cooled and store in an airtight container.
Good luck with your new diet plan, all the best, Amy
mahalia bolds
Just one quick question, may I add sugar to the egg whites to make it a little sweet due to me not having honey nor maple syrup?
Amy
Hi Mahalia, that should work. (Although as I haven't tried I can't say for sure)
Nancy Gomez
Hi Amy, thought this recipe was amazing! I love how I can enjoy a sweet treat with my son without the sugar!
I’m hoping to make a fruit yoghurt tart for my sons first birthday, as we want a sugarless product. I thought this would be great as a tart but I wondered if you could recommend what I could add to the granola to make it stick together to create a base?
Thank you!
Amy
Hi Nancy, so glad you enjoyed this recipe and thanks for taking the time to let me know.
Getting the granola to stick together may be difficult without something like honey or another liquid sweetener. You might only need a little to get it to stick though. I wonder if mashed banana could work? I'd have to experiment to be of more help, sorry.
Margaret
Thank you for creating a sugar free granola recipe! Like Nancy, I’ve been on the hunt for a sugar free granola bar (which could be used as a crust). I have experimented with a combination of mashed sweet potato, nut butter and egg to act as binders. It does come out cakier. I like the idea of banana. Perhaps applesauce and egg would also work. If you do any experimenting, please share your findings!
Amy
THanks Margaret, I'll be sure to share my findings. It sounds like you have been doing quite a bit of experimenting already 🙂
Anne E BERRY
I have come up with an idea for making sugar free granola that works well for me. Adding a gelatin egg and /or coconut butter will help stick things together so thaat it clumps a little and the cinnamon will stick to the oats and nuts. If you want more sweetness, a few drops of stevia could be added. For myself, the coconut butter makes it plenty sweet.
Roo
Hi. Just wondering how long this keeps with the egg white. Looks yumtious!
Amy
Hi Roo, sorry just seeing your comment now. I have stored this for a couple of weeks with no issues. Enjoy!
Carol
Hi! I made this today and like it. Can you tell me what a serving size is considered to be? Thanks.
Amy
Hi Carol, Sorry I haven't detailed this. I am trying to go back through my old recipes to update this kind of information. I would say around a 1/4 - 1/2 cup would be a good serving size for this. Glad you like it and thanks for the feedback.
Rita
I have electric stove what do set oven on.rita
Amy
Hi Rita, My stove do you mean oven? I heat my electric oven to 150c
Frida
Hi, I Made a similar granola recently, but I added an apple chopped in very little pieces to the mixture before baking. It added a lot of sweetness and my kids loved it. I thought you might like the idea
Amy
Oh I love that idea, thank you! Will def be giving that a try next time.
Kika
Can I skip the egg white (for vegans)?
Amy
HI Kika, I used the egg whites to get that crispy / crunchy texture the sugar usually gives. Without the egg whites you won't get that crunch.
Catie
Normal granola is far sweeter than I would like. This sounds great! Do you have to keep it refrigerated because of the egg white?
Amy
Hi Catie, you don't need to keep it in the refrigerator. Just store it in an airtight container. Hope you enjoy 🙂
Sara
Lovely. Beautiful photo – Bookmarked and ingredients added to shopping list 🙂
I cannot believe people still think you need to add sugar or gluten to make food delicious AND healthy! People, If you really want to lose weight, burn more calories than you eat, it’s that simple – eat gluten and sugar free! – I followed ‘Tim’s plan’ (http://www.paleorecipediet.com/paleo-recipes-diet/) which is made to do just that! My only problem is that it costs you commitment and discipline. But it gets easier from day-to-day.
sara