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Pumpkin seed granola recipe

Pumpkin seed granola is my favorite everyday breakfast. It’s yummy, quick to make, and so different than store-bought varieties. This granola recipe is sweetened with honey and maple syrup rather than granulated refined sugar, making it guilt-free each crisp fall morning 🙂

fall pumpkin seed granola with dried cranberries
Homemade Granola with Milk on Marble Kitchen Countertop

Ingredient list for autumn granola

  • 5 cups Regular rolled oats (not quick oats)
  • 2 cups Walnuts, roughly chopped
  • 1 cup Almonds, roughly chopped
  • 1 cup Pumpkin seeds
  • 1/4 cup Sunflower seeds (optional)
  • 1/4 cup Buckwheat groats (optional)
  • 1 Tbsp Cinnamon
  • 2 tsp Cardamom
  • 200 g Coconut ribbons (about 4 cups, loosely packed) or shredded coconut
  • 1/2 cup Coconut or avocado oil
  • 1/4 cup Honey
  • 1/4 cup Maple syrup
  • 1 tsp Vanilla extract
  • 1/4 tsp Fine sea salt
  • 1 cup Dried cranberries, roughly chopped

Steps: Spiced pumpkin seed cranberry granola

  1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.
  2. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
  3. In a large mixing bowl, combine the oats, nuts, seeds, buckwheat, and spices. Mix well to coat the dry ingredients with the spices.
  4. Gently mix the coconut ribbons into the dry ingredients, being careful not to break them too much.
  5. In a small saucier, combine the oil, honey, maple syrup, vanilla, and sea salt. Heat slowly on the stove over low heat, just until the mixture flows easily. The oil and honey may separate in the pan (and that’s ok).
  6. Pour the warm liquid over the dry mixture, stirring as the liquid is added. Mix until all the dry ingredients are evenly coated.
  7. Spoon the mixture onto the lined baking sheets. One batch should fit on 2 regular-size baking sheets, or 4 small baking sheets.
  8. Bake at 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Stir every 10 minutes until golden brown. Baking can take anywhere from 20-40 minutes depending on your oven (I’ve even made granola on the BBQ in the summer!).
  9. Let the granola cool.
  10. Add the chopped cranberries.
  11. Mix it all up!

Store in a ziplock bag or in a pretty glass jar. Any airtight container will do. This granola can even be frozen if you can’t eat it all right away. Serve with almond milk, yogurt or greek yogurt, kefir, or on top of an acai bowl.

That’s it! This is one of our favorite healthy recipes (and a go-to recipe for quick breakfasts). Since it’s naturally sweetened with real maple syrup and raw honey, it’s guilt-free, too! See below for more recipe notes and answers to common questions.

Autumn pumpkin seed granola with dried cranberries
Making Homemade Granola
Cranberry Pumpkin Seed Granola Recipe

Buying granola ingredients in bulk

It’s best to buy the dry ingredients for this recipe in the bulk section of the grocery store. Many grocery stores have a bulk section which includes organic oats, pumpkin seeds, et cetera. Buying in bulk allows you to buy only the amount you need for this recipe. The dry ingredient measurements in this recipe are also quite forgiving. If you buy a few too many oats or a few too little pumpkin seeds, just use what you have and the granola will turn out just fine.

I usually make a double batch of this recipe. It takes a little longer to prepare and cook it all, but not twice as much time! I use two big mixing bowls instead of one when I make a double batch of homemade granola. This makes about a month’s worth of granola for the two of us (or lots of gifts!).

Glass Jar of Homemade Granola

Granola recipe FAQs

Is this recipe gluten-free?

The way I make it? Yes! Rolled oats are naturally gluten-free. That being said, when you buy your ingredients or buy store-bought granola mix, you’ll need to check the label to ensure they were processed in a gluten-free facility. Cross-contamination is a concern, and granola bars and storebought granola sometimes use binding agents that are not gluten-free.

Can I add chocolate?

Totally! I don’t usually make mine overly sweet, so I omitted chocolate. But, you could easily add some dark chocolate chunks (or whatever chocolate you want). Just let the granola cool completely before adding it or it will be a melted mess!

What about dried fruit?

Of course! Add whatever you’d like to make this recipe suit your tastes. Adding dried fruit like chopped dried apricots or banana chips would be delicious. You could also chop up some fresh fruit and add it in just before serving.

Can I turn this into a nut-free granola recipe?

You sure can! Since the dry ingredient measurements are very forgiving, you can omit the nuts without noticing much of a difference. I would supplement this by substituting the 3c of walnuts and sliced almonds this recipe calls for with something else, though.

You could add chia seeds, flax seed, or any other favorite substitute. And, you could increase the amount of the other ingredients like the raw pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, dried fruit, etc.

Can I use pumpkin pie spice instead?

I haven’t tried adding pumpkin spice, but I’m sure it would be delicious! Just be careful not to add too much as it has quite a strong flavor.

Adding pumpkin puree would be another easy way to increase the pumpkin flavor in this recipe. Again, I haven’t tried it, but I imagine it would be delicious! Do let us know if you try either of these!

Dried Cranberry and Pumpkin Seed Granola for Fall Mornings

A note on sweeteners for healthy granola

If you find this recipe too sweet, reduce the maple syrup to your taste or serve with unsweetened plain yogurt or kefir. If you find this recipe not sweet enough, add extra maple syrup or serve the granola with sweetened flavored yogurt. For a vegan sweetener option, use agave or another favorite sweetener in place of honey.

Organic Gluten-Free Granola

Conclusion

This granola is crunchy, aromatic, and lovely to look at. It’s perfect on a chilly Autumn day. It also makes a lovely homemade gift. Who can resist organic, gluten-free, sugar-free granola? Not me…

Making your own granola (and eating healthy in general) is also super simple with recipes like this! The recipe as it is is absolutely delicious, but the best part of making granola it home is that you can customize it to fit your tastebuds.

Other recipes you may enjoy

If you liked this pumpkin seed granola, you may enjoy some of our other recipes, too! Give these a try:


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