Simple Sundays | Mocha Coconut Granola
Mocha Coconut Granola is cocoa puffs for grownups. It’s chocolatey and filled with chunks of toasted coconut, slivered almonds, and cacao nibs (or mini chocolate chips).
This Mocha Coconut Granola recipe is chocolatey, with chunks of toasted coconut, slivered almonds, and cacao nibs (or mini chocolate chips). Serve it with vanilla yogurt, drizzles of kefir, or skim milk.
Wednesday morning started like this:
5:50 am: alarm
6:10 am: let the dog out, start the coffee
6:20 am: shower and dress for the gym
6:30 am: wake the sleepyheads
6:35 am: sip hot coffee
6:45 am: coax the kids to get ready
7:00 am: get breakfast on the table, pack lunches into backpacks, sign last minute notes for teacher, take a sip of coffee, warm apple cider because daughter decides she wants to try hot cider for the first time at breakfast this morning, take a bite of yogurt, pour my granola, REALIZE I POURED GRANOLA INTO MY COFFEE.
The offending granola was fished out with a spoon, but instead of tossing it into the sink, I paused. I lifted the spoon to my mouth.
And you know what?
Granola was not meant to be eaten in coffee.
But you know what else?
Coffee was meant to be eaten in granola.
After my sleep induced mistake, a lightbulb went on in my head. Coffee + Chocolate = Mocha. Mocha!
Mocha granola sounded quite delicious, actually.
Saturday morning started like this:
5:50 am: little people crawl into my bed for a cuddle, son on my left, daughter on my right
5:55 am: after some squirming for covers, I wonder aloud why they always wake up so early on weekends (and can barely wake up on time on weekdays)
6:10 am: hubby walks in with steaming coffee, just the way I love
6:40 am: pull on my fluffy robe and get the burners fired for some pancakes
7:00 am: flip pancakes
7:30 am: pull the oats out of the cupboard and mix in cocoa, espresso powder, maple syrup, and brown sugar
Mocha Coconut Granola
Mocha Coconut Granola is more than an accident, it is something that must be made, something that you should plan to do. It’s cocoa puffs for grown ups, it’s just chocolatey enough (so the little ones find it irresistible, too), with chunks of toasted coconut, slivered almonds, and cacao nibs (mini chocolate chips if you’re feeling especially indulgent). And it’s delicious with vanilla yogurt, drizzles of kefir, or drowned in skim milk.
More Delicious Breakfast Recipes
Apple Oatmeal Blender Waffles
Blueberry Almond Butter Muffins (Vegan)
Sheet Pan Banana Pancakes
Oatmeal Pancakes
Gingerbread Granola
Mocha Coconut Granola
Ingredients
- coconut oil cooking spray
- 3 cups rolled oats
- 1 cup sliced almonds
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1 1/2 tablespoons espresso powder
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 1/2 cup maple syrup
- 1 teaspoon vanilla
- 1 cup flaked coconut
- 1 cup cacao nibs or mini chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325°F. Prepare a baking sheet by lightly misting with coconut oil cooking spray.
- In a large bowl, mix together the oats, almonds, cocoa powder, espresso powder and brown sugar. Pour the syrup and vanilla over the oat mixture and stir until evenly coated. Spread the mixture in the prepared baking tray and place it in the oven. Bake for about 30 minutes, stirring every five minutes. Before the final 5 minutes, add the coconut to toast. When the granola is toasted, remove from oven and place in a large bowl to cool. Stir in the cacao nibs/chocolate chips. Store in an airtight container.
- Delicious served with milk, yogurt, or kefir.
Notes
Nutrition
Comments
COOKBOOK
I just made your granola and had to pop on to say THANK YOU!! What delicious mistakes you make!! :)
Aw, you are so very welcome, Suzi! I’m so glad that like it! Enjoy the granola!!
This looks delicious! I’m a sucker for anything mocha, and this looks beautiful and tasty. What a happy accident!
What an amazing set of photos! I am sure it is really delicious as well, would love to give it a try. Many thanks for the share!
Now this sounds tasty! I love how homemade granola is just so deliciously flexible–complete freedom to make whatever flavor you’d like. Coconut and chocolate are totally my cups of tea, so I think I’ll be making this sometime soon…
This looks perfect!
Love this Liren! And I had to laugh out loud about the granola in the coffee! I can very much relate. I’m so glad you had that happy accident!
YES! This looks so good! I never would have thought to put coffee in granola. I love when accidents lead to great kitchen discoveries. Thanks for the beautiful recipe, Liren!
This granola looks phenomenal, Liren! I love waking up to coffee in the morning, and this way it would be in my granola, too. Perfect!
Now this is a granola I can get behind!
Yes please to coffee *in* my granola! How I wish I’d be waking up to a big bowl of this granola tomorrow morning. Gorgeous photos! :)
Goodness. I do believe it would be worth waking up to have this in the morning.
It definitely helps to sweeten the morning!
I laughed out loud when you realized your coffee-granola mistake… Once in an airplane after a late night out my Dad put Alka Seltzer into his coffee (not a good remedy for a hangover), and I have gone out in the snow in my slippers instead of my Wellington boots ;-) http://www.whyisthereair.com/2010/11/30/checklist-for-a-snowy-day/
You’re right, coffee and chocolate were made for granola and, just as a sprinkle of espresso powder adds extra zing to homemade hot chocolate, your coffee and cacao nib mixture – can’t forget the amazing coconut, either – is a sure winner. On my list of recipes to try. Thanks for sharing this oh-so-happy circumstance!
BTW, where do you get your flaked coconut? I’ve only seen “dessicated” and shredded coconut in England and France. The flakes certainly would add a new dimension of deliciousness.
Oh no! Alka Seltzer coffee and cold, wet slippers are no fun! But how I wish I had some snow like you :)
It’s true, desiccated and shredded coconut is easier to come by; I buy my coconut flakes from my local market in the baking aisle. I hope you find some, too! Otherwise, I know they sell it online.
As I sit here with my coffee and maple oatmeal granola you know I’m tempted to do a test, right?
I’ve never, EVER loved granola, never even bought it, until I started to make my own. It’s life changing and this recipe is definitely morning changing. Yum.
Ha ha! Did you, Barb? I don’t recommend it. But I do recommend this granola. Isn’t homemade granola the best? Definitely morning (and all day) changing!
I love the idea of coffee in granola (but not granola in coffee, as you put so well!). Although I wonder if you could use brewed coffee concentrate instead of espresso powder and maybe slightly decrease some of the liquid? I’ll have to give a try. This looks wonderful!
Hm, brewed coffee concentrate could very well work and is worth a try! There really isn’t much liquid in here since I used a powder; the moisture is mostly from the maple syrup. Let me know how it works for you, I think it is a great idea, Natasha :)
This sounds so amazing! I love when stuff like this happens and you find the most unlikely of things together is actually quite great. I’m with you too– I can’t live without my granola. I absolutely love it! It’s the crunch, the sweetness, and the fact that you can eat it with yogurt and/or milk is what makes it so appealing to me. And you can have it for breakfast, snack, or dessert (pre-bed snack for me on many occasions!).
Yay for happy accidents, and yay for granola! We go through so much of it here, too, and we eat it for dessert quite often, too :)
Loving those big flakes of coconut that you used! Yum! Looks so good!
Thanks, Rachel! I was so happy to see your post when I was making this – my kids love it now, too :)