Paleo Granola (Grain Free Granola Recipe)

This paleo granola recipe is nutty, naturally sweetened and perfectly crunchy. It's made with nuts, seeds, and coconut. Get my recipe and tips for making a grain free granola that is delicious for breakfast. 

This Paleo Granola adds the perfect crunch to breakfast

Do you ever just crave something crunchy? 

I know I do. And when these cravings happen, often a handful of granola really hits the spot. 

I particularly love this paleo granola because it's: 

• Nutty 
• Lightly sweetened 
• Filled with healthy fats
• Naturally gluten-free 
• Delicious at breakfast or as a snack 

It’s also quick to make. Even more, it's a great way to use up any leftover nuts or seeds in your pantry! 

Bursting with nuts, seeds, coconut, and dried blueberries, this paleo granola recipe is a tasty healthy breakfast. See how easy it is to make this grain free granola! 

Is granola paleo?

Typically, no. 

Granola is traditionally made from oats, which are not paleo. However, that doesn’t mean paleo granola doesn’t exist. In fact, you have two options:

• make your own - which I will show you how in this post, or
• or buy it. 

This grain free granola recipe I'm sharing today is actually inspired by a paleo granola I found at Costco. 

It's filled with almonds, honey, pecans, sunflower seeds, toasted coconut, vanilla, and cinnamon. This grain free granola is a tasty option that you can buy online. 

You can buy it from Amazon from the links above. But you may be able to find it at your local Costco for even cheaper. 

Benefits of making your own grain free granola

Even though there are grain free, paleo granola brands out there, I still prefer to make my own. I hope I can convince you too. This recipe is really delicious and easy to make! 

You choose exactly what to include in your paleo granola

Most importantly, I make my own because I can control what I put in it. But it also saves money. And because it's made with pantry staples, I don't have to run to the store when there's no more granola!

This granola recipe uses honey as a sweetener

Many store bought granolas are high in sugar. So by making it at home, I can control how sweet my granola is. Additionally, I can pick what I use as the sweetener.

For this paleo granola, I only use raw honey and dried blueberries.

Easily make different varieties of paleo granola

I've also noticed that there isn't a huge market for paleo granola. So by making my own, I can easily create a bunch of varieties. I simply use different combinations of nuts, seeds, dried fruits, and other ingredients.

Plus, making homemade grain free granola is so simple and quick to do.

How is this paleo granola different from regular granola?

Unlike traditional recipes, this paleo granola recipe doesn’t use any oats. That's because oats are grains. And therefore, not considered paleo. 

Instead, it’s loaded with a variety of nuts, seeds, and coconut chips. All that gives it a delicious, crunchy granola texture that’s just as addicting. 

Ingredients in this grain free granola

To make this recipe you need just a handful of ingredients: 

• Almonds 
• Pecans
• Walnuts
• Raw coconut chips
• Sunflower seeds
• Dried blueberries 
• Honey
• Coconut oil
• Pure vanilla extract
• Sea salt and cinnamon 

I like the combination of these ingredients. However there's no need to make a special trip to the grocery store if you already have a variety of nuts and seeds at home.

Granola is a great way to use up whatever is in your pantry. Or if you don't like an ingredient, you can easily swap it out. Personally, I think macadamia nuts would be delicious too! 

To keep it paleo, just make sure not to use peanuts. That's because they’re technically a legume. 

Dried blueberries add a natural sweetness 

For natural sweetness, this paleo granola uses dried blueberries. 

If you haven’t had them before, dried blueberries are small, round, and packed with flavor. Even more, they are also incredibly nutritious.

In fact, dried blueberries are rich in fiber, potassium, vitamin C, folate, and antioxidants. They also add just the right amount of sweetness. 

I like these dried blueberries. They are unsweetened, and it's just 100% blueberries. 

Nutrition boost from nuts and seeds

Thanks to nuts and seeds, this grain free granola is packed with protein and healthy fats. 

Plus, nuts like almonds, walnuts, and pecans are high in essential vitamins and minerals. For example, they are high in vitamin E and magnesium.

Is vanilla extract paleo? 

Imitation vanilla flavoring is not paleo. But vanilla beans are. So, make sure to use a good quality pure vanilla extract or vanilla powder. 

My go-to is something like this 100% pure vanilla bean powder. It's made from Madagascar vanilla beans. Not only does vanilla powder provide a rich flavor, but it also adds specks of vanilla bean. That makes your granola look a bit fancier. 

What can I substitute for the coconut oil? 

Since there’s already coconut chips in the granola, I used coconut oil for an extra boost of coconut flavor. 

However, if you don’t have coconut oil, you can use avocado oil instead. Both are suitable for a paleo diet.

Tips for making this paleo granola recipe 

This grain free granola recipe is easy to make. Even so, there are a few key tricks for getting it just right. 

There are two options for chopping the nuts 

Option 1: Chop the nuts by hand. It’s a bit tedious. Yet by doing so, it gives you control over how uniform in size the pieces are. 

Option 2: Use a food processor. This is the option I went with. As you can see in the pictures, the pieces won’t be as uniform. However it’s much faster. 

I pulsed the mixture 15 times, with about 1 second per pulse. This resulted in big and small pieces. There were even some nearly whole almonds. 

While I like the variation in size, and the convenience factor, how you chop the nuts is up to you. 

Spread the grain free granola mixture out evenly

For pretty much any granola recipe, you want to make sure to spread the mixture out evenly in the pan. Doing so helps it brown evenly.

Also make sure it's in a single layer. If your pan is too small the granola might get crowded. If that happens, then it wont cook evenly. I find a rubber spatula works best for this step.

Watch your oven very closely 

There's one tricky part about making this paleo granola. Keep in mind that it can go from slightly soft to super crunchy within minutes. 

As the nuts are already crunchy on their own, I like to keep my granola a little soft. 

TIP: For a slightly softer granola, remove the pan from the oven when the honey mixture still looks soft and is just slightly bubbling.  

However, if you like your granola super crunchy, leave it in for another 2 minutes or so. Again, you’ll want to just watch you oven very closely. 

And remember, the granola will still cook a bit on the pan as it cools after baking. 

Add dried blueberries after baking 

Make sure to stir in the dried blueberries after baking. Don't do it before! 

TIP: Adding any dried fruit to granola before baking can result in the fruit becoming rock hard in the oven. Not what you want. 

Instead, keep them nice and chewy by stirring them in afterwards. 

This paleo granola is a delicious breakfast recipe 

From eating a handful by itself or using it as a topping, this paleo granola recipe is the crunch that your breakfasts and snacks have been missing. 

Plus, store it in an airtight container. That way, it can even last in your pantry for a couple weeks! 

I really hope this breakfast recipe makes it on your table soon. It’s definitely a recipe I like to keep on hand for easy breakfasts.

Any questions? Feel free to ask in the comments below.

More granola recipes

Try one of these recipes on The Worktop: 

• Honey Granola
• Healthy Seed Granola 
• Strawberry and Granola Open Face Sandwich 

For a great kid-friendly option, I like to sprinkle this grain free granola over a slice of Peanut Butter Apple Toast. My toddler loves it!