Banana Bread Granola

My baking routine has been disrupted or paused for a little while now ever since my diet was turned upside down during our trip in New Orleans late February. 

A simple Greek yogurt banana bread and a unique banana bread granola are slowly easing me back into the game. 

With no oil and refined sugar, the banana bread was a little dense for my liking. But these banana bread granola thooooo.. These are great in my yogurt parfait and even just as a snack on their own. 

I love how the sweetness mask the not so pleasant Greek yogurt flavor (:

Banana Bread Granola
recipe adapted from Minimalist Baker
makes about 7 cups

240g old fashioned rolled oats
95g walnuts
40g pecans
25g sunflower seeds
38g coconut chips, unsweetened
1 Tbsp (10g) organic coconut palm sugar
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 Tbsp cinnamon, ground
1 Tbsp flax seeds, ground
1 tsp chia seeds 

52g coconut oil, melted
100g maple syrup
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 medium ripe banana, mashed  (~1/2 cup)

1. DRY: In large bowl, combine oats, nuts, seeds, coconut chips, sugar, sea salt, and cinnamon.
2. WET: In pot over low heat, combine oil, syrup, and vanilla and warm till liquid state.
3. WHISK: Whisk mashed banana into wet ingredients.
4. COMBINE: Pour wet ingredients into dry. Mix until evenly combined.
5. BAKE: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, then spread granola mixture out in an even layer. Bake at 350F, gently stirring at 15 minutes, until the granola is golden-brown and dry, 30 minutes.
6. COOL: Let cool completely and transfer to jar to store. 

Dry ingredients.

All ready to combine together.

Last minute idea to throw in my leftover coconut chips.

Spread out to an even thickness layer.

Mix them up a bit to release the heat once they are done baking.

Good chunky size!

Yogurt parfait.

Granola > Greek yogurt.

Taste: 5 stars out of 5

Banana flavor was mild. Good amount of sweetness. Lovely toasty-ness from the nuts.

Texture: 4.5 stars out of 5

Not as crispy as my last granola, but nothing a little longer bake time can't fix.

Matcha Granola

Happy February! My goal for this month is to eat healthy and in moderation until NOLA! It's going to be tough because there's Chinese New Year and Valentine's Day happening. Let's try to focus on family and love instead of yummy food and sweets? Haha.

I am already thinking about making a Banoffee Pie though. Maybe I can even it out with another figurerobics session.


For this week's breakfast, I got berries and matcha granola topped greek yogurt.
(and for lunch, quinoa kale salad with a lemony dressing)

Matcha Granola
recipe adapted from Peaceful Cuisine
makes about 4 cups

150g oats
60g liquid sweetener (maple syrup)
30g coconut oil, melted
75g nuts (chopped pecans, chopped walnuts, sliced almonds)
15g toasted sesame seeds
1 Tbsp (10g) chia seeds
1 Tbsp matcha powder
65g dried fruits (dried blueberries)

Mix dry ingredients and whisk wet ingredients.

Combine everything together.

Spread in an even layer and bake.

Make sure to stir or rotate pan so you don't end up with uneven browning like mine.

1. COMBINE: In large bowl, combine oats, liquid sweetener, melted coconut oil, nuts, seeds and matcha powder.
2. BAKE: Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper, then spread granola mixture out in an even layer. Bake at 350F, gently stirring at 15 minutes, until the granola is golden-brown and dry, 30 minutes.
3. MIX: Remove from oven and mix in dried fruits.
4. COOL: Let cool completely and transfer to jar to store.

Recipe yields about 3 mason jars.

Love the big chunks.

Also came upon this guide on how to make granola using a basic ratio from Epicurious. It seems simple and super flexible to customize to anyone's liking.

1. Start with 6 parts dry to 1 part wet
- dry: 3 parts oats, 1 part nuts, 1 part seeds, and 1 part anything
- wet: 1 part oil, 1 part liquid sweetener/egg white
2. Season to taste with cinnamon/vanilla extract/cardamom/nutmeg/salt
3. Bake at 300F, gently stirring every 15 minutes, until granola is golden-brown and dry, 40 to 45 minutes.
4. Stir dried fruit into hot granola.  Let cool completely before storing.

Taste: 5 stars out of 5
Lightly sweetened and pairs well with plain greek yogurt. Subtle matcha flavor and lovely toasted nutty aroma.
Texture: 5 stars out of 5
Crispy!

Add berries/fruits on top to make it even more nutritious!