Maple Quinoa Granola! Golden, crunchy, naturally sweetened clustery granola with speckles of quinoa, nuts, coconut, oats, chia, and other delicious, good-for-you things!
Maple Quinoa Granola
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I made this with my 5 year old and I totally forgot the vanilla but even without, this is THE BEST granola I’ve ever had. My daughter loves it and said ‘It smells like heaven.’
Danielle
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Crunchy, naturally sweet, with big clusters that stick together for easy bite-by-bite snacking? This is exactly how I like my granola.
Granola is one of those things that always requires a bit of a reminder for me each year.
Remember? Remember granola? Remember how good it is, how versatile, how long-lasting it can be (hello, freezer), how fun for gifting, how easy to make, how nutritious, how delicious for breakfast, and snacks, and dessert?
It’s like every year I forget but I come back around to it with renewed passion as we enter the season where it starts to feel really good to have the oven on and the smells of cinnamon and maple and toasted nuts swirling around the house.
This quinoa granola was brought into my life by the new-ish Well Plated cookbook (affiliate link), and I haven’t been able to get enough of it ever since.
If you’ve never made anything with raw quinoa before, you are in for a crunchy little treat. The quinoa gives a little nutty flavor and an extra-big crunch, along with the chia seeds, and generally gives your mouth a little something to go, ooh, that’s interesting! before being overtaken by the mapley sweet oats and toasty nuts and dried fruit.
How To Serve This Granola
Not like you need any ideas but in case you need some ideas, here’s how I love to eat this granola:
- By the cluster. Like, one jumbo mapley cluster at a time, out of the container. I’m just being real with you.
- Over yogurt, for breakfast.
- With fruit, for a snack.
- With milk! Like, cereal style, as a totally normal bedtime treat.
- Crumbled over these little individual apple crisps. It sounds like I just made that up, but I definitely have done this.
What a treat – the cozy, nutritious, gloriously yummy simple pleasure of food. That is what maple quinoa granola is all about.
Watch How To Make This Recipe:
This recipe is republished with permission from The Well Plated Cookbook by Erin Clarke! It’s a super fun cookbook with fast, healthy, easy recipes – this maple quinoa granola being one of my favorites!
Common Questions About Maple Quinoa Granola
How do I store leftover granola?
You can store the granola in an airtight container at room temperature for 1-2 weeks, or freeze in a plastic bag for up to 2 months.
What combination of mix-ins work best?
Erin recommends these granola combinations in her book:
Almonds and dried blueberries, plus ¼ teaspoon pure almond extract added in with the vanilla extract
Chocolate chips and dried cherries
Pistachios and diced apricots
Pepitas and dried cranberries
How can I make this recipe vegan?
We’d suggest replacing the egg white with a flax or chia seed egg substitute.
Maple Quinoa Granola
- Total Time: 50 minutes
- Yield: 14–15 servings (1/2 cup per serving) 1x
Description
Maple Quinoa Granola! Golden, crunchy, naturally sweetened clustery granola with speckles of quinoa, nuts, coconut, oats, chia, and other delicious, good-for-you things! Recipe from The Well Plated Cookbook by Erin Clarke.
Ingredients
Units
Scale
- 2 1/3 cups old-fashioned oats
- 1/2 cup uncooked quinoa
- 1 cup raw nuts (a mix of whole almonds and pecan halves is my favorite)
- 1/2 cup unsweetened shredded coconut
- 1/4 cup chia seeds
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/3 cup pure maple syrup
- 3 tablespoons melted coconut oil or canola oil
- 3 tablespoons unsulphured molasses (not blackstrap)
- 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
- 1 large egg white
- 3/4 cup mix-ins of choice: chocolate chips, dried fruit, chopped if larger than a nickel
Instructions
- Place a rack in the center of your oven and preheat to 300 degrees F. Line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
- In a large bowl, stir together the oats, quinoa, nuts, coconut, chia seeds, cinnamon, and salt with a rubber spatula until combined. Pour in the maple syrup, oil, molasses, and vanilla. Stir to coat, until the dry ingredients are evenly moistened.
- In a small bowl, briskly whisk the egg white with a fork or small whisk until it is foamy. Add it to the granola mixture and stir, doing your best to evenly incorporate the egg white throughout.
- Carefully pour the granola onto the prepared baking sheet and spread into a single layer, pressing it down with the back of the spatula. Bake for 20 minutes, then remove the granola from the oven. With a large, flexible spatula, carefully flip large sections of the granola over, doing your best to keep them intact. With the back of the spatula, press the granola back into a single layer. Rotate the pan 180 degrees, return it to the oven, then bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, until the granola is golden brown, feels almost dry to the touch, and smells irresistible. It will continue to crisp as it cools.
- Place the baking sheet on a cooling rack. Let the granola cool completely on the sheet (no cheating!), then carefully stir in the mix- ins, breaking up the granola as you do. Enjoy with milk, yogurt, overnight oats, over ice cream or frozen yogurt, or on its own by the handful.
Equipment
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- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 40 minutes
- Category: Snack
- Method: Bake
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: granola recipe, healthy granola, quinoa granola, high protein granola, healthy snack
Filed Under: All Recipes Breakfast Dairy-Free Fall Healthy Plant-Powered January Quinoa Recipes Snacks Sugar-Free Winter
January 14, 2021
Nice to meet you!
I’m Lindsay and I ♡ FOOD. I used to be a teacher, and now making food and writing about it online is my full-time job. I love talking with people about food, and I'm so glad you're here.
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Love the idea of adding raw quinoa to granola. For some reason, I despise molasses, haha. Could I substitute brown rice syrup? Also is the egg white just for binding purposes? I’d like to make this vegan. Thanks POY!!
Hi Rach! Brown rice syrup seems like it’d be a good substitute. You could also use more maple syrup. The egg white is for binding purposes to create those big crunchy clusters, but I think it’d be okay to leave it out!
Yey thanks. I’d prefer brown rice over molasses too. I’m excited to make my own.
Regarding the uncooked quinoa … the seeds are hard … what happens with the texture when you put it in the oven uncooked?
I made this yesterday and they were very crunchy on my teeth. I may try to actually cook it first next time!
The quinoa becomes crispy!
Love this idea! I always put quinoa in my granola too. I’ve never tried it with maple and molasses though–sounds fantastic!
We hope you enjoy the granola if you decide to give it a try!
Thank you so much for sharing this Lindsay! So happy you enjoyed the book and granola! <3
Is there a way to make this vegan? What happens if you don’t use the egg white? Or can you make it with a vegan egg substitute?
The egg white helps bind the granola to create the big clusters, but we think you’d be okay leaving it out!
Can I substitute the molasses with honey?
Yes, we think honey would be a good substitute. Enjoy!
Is there a reason we cant use blackstrap molasses? Its all I have so i was hoping not to have to buy more molasses for 1 recipe!
Blackstrap molasses tends to be less sweet and can taste bitter, but if that’s all you have, we think it will work in a pinch!
This granola is SO GOOD!! I made a batch on Sunday and it has been snack/breakfast fuel ALL WEEK!
Yay! So happy to hear it, Kelsey!
Why not black strap molasses? Because of the strong flavor? That’s all I buy because I typically prefer it. Just curious why it’s called out 🙂
Great question! Blackstrap can definitely have a stronger, sometimes bitter and less sweet, flavor since it’s more concentrated. In a pinch, we think it’d work out just fine in this recipe!
Do you rinse the quinoa first? I believe that helps with bitterness when cooked but not sure about when used raw.
We didn’t rinse the quinoa first, and didn’t notice any bitterness in the granola!
Can you leave the molasses out or substitute it with something else?
You could use extra maple syrup in its place!
Fabulous! I cut the sweeteners a fair bit but it was still wonderful–oh, so crunchy, and I definitely would recommend the coconut oil rather than canola!
Great tips, Colette! So glad you enjoyed the granola!
Is it men only? I hope it’s good for women with hormonal imbalance as well.
I heard good things about Quinoa. It’s a healthy food that benefits men. I never heard of Maple Quinoa before. Might have to look into that next time I’m at a health food store.
I made this with my 5 year old and I totally forgot the vanilla but even without, this is THE BEST granola I’ve ever had. My daughter loves it and said ‘It smells like heaven.’
LOVE hearing this, Danielle! So glad you enjoyed the granola!
Made this over the weekend, used cashews, almonds and dried cranberries and followed the recipe. It came out awesome. I love big chunks of granola and this did not disappoint. Thank you and Erin for a delicious new granola recipe!
I’d love to make this, but i don’t have any shredded coconut. Do you have any ideas on alternatives?
You could add in additional nuts or the suggested mix-ins in its place!
Just made this with cranberries, pecans and almonds! I made it very rushed and accidentally put the berries in with the granola!! Silly me. Came out amazing despite my mishap and my house smells SO GOOD.
The smell of homemade granola in the oven is just the best! So glad you enjoyed the recipe, Alaina!
Could I use aquafaba instead of egg white? How much might I use if so??
We haven’t tested the granola using aquafaba, so we can’t say for sure. If you give it a try, we’d love to hear back!
I just tried it with aqufaba last night! I used 1/4c and whipped it as best I could with a hand whisk. It turned out really good flavor-wise, but I didn’t get the nice big chunks. That may have partially had to do with my baking sheet not being quite big enough though (thicker layer).
Recipe looks awesome. Do you think I could pat it into a pan and bake to make granola bars?
I just made this and it’s so delicious! I’m about to just start pouring it in my mouth straight from the jar! I think it’d make really yummy crunchies on a salad with goats cheese too!
Oh, I also used date syrup instead of molasses because I didn’t have any and it worked out great, just in case anyone’s looking for substitutes.
Ooooh we love that idea of making salad toppers!
My family of 5 is in agreement that this is the best granola we’ve ever had and will not be eating store bought again!! Thanks for the great recipe! I didn’t have molasses so I just substituted honey with good results 🙂
We love hearing that, Nicole!
Great recipe and easy to make! No more store bought granola
So glad you enjoyed it, Alyssa!
Hi, I was recently diagnosed with a gluten allergy as well as an oat allergy. Do you have any recommendations for substitutions for the oats? I’ve been trying to find a granola I can eat but all store-bought versions have oats.
Great question, Sara! Can you find gluten free oats at your grocery store? You could also try just substituting chopped nuts.