Low Sugar Peanut Butter Granola

We are nut butter lovers in our house. I never seem to buy and make enough of them. My homemade salted cashew butter is my personal favourite, but we are all partial to good old-fashioned peanut butter. Fortunately, nut butters are definitely not out-of-bounds when trying to cut back on sugar. Although you need to read labels if you are buying them, as there are some brands that have added sugar.

Granola, however, is kind of a no-no. Pretty much, well, always. Mostly because, as with cookies and bread, it is one of those things that has to include at least a little sugar. Because without sugar, it simply will not caramelise, and you will simply end up with flavoured toasted oats. Which is not a bad thing. But it’s not granola.

I have managed to make a few great granolas since cutting back on sugar, but this is by far the best of the bunch. Not only because it features peanut butter. And not only because it features chocolate, which let’s face it, is amazing with peanut butter. And not only because the cinnamon and orange zest make it taste like Christmas in a bowl anytime of year. No, the main reason this is the best is that it is really low sugar. It’s hard to find just the right amount of rice syrup to allow the granola to brown and taste sweet without overdoing the amount of sugar in the recipe.

This was one of those rare recipes that was amazing first time. But I made another batch, just to be sure. And another, because I wanted to know I’d found just the right amount of syrup. Maybe I’ll make it again, just because. If I’m lucky, my husband family may not have scoffed the lot in seconds, and I’ll get a nice big bowlful for myself, drowned in warm milk or stirred into yogurt and berries.

And since I am now drooling on the keyboard, I think it’s time to stop talking and start doing. Why don’t you join me and make it today, too?

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Low Sugar Peanut Butter Granola

Prep Time

5 mins

Cook Time

20 mins

Total Time

25 mins

 

This sugar free peanut butter granola is wintery and lightly spiced with cinnamon, orange zest and chocolate. It is easy and incredibly cheap to make, and is about as low sugar as granola can get and still be called granola! Adapted from A Year in 120 Recipes by Jack Monroe.

Course: Breakfast, Christmas, Snack

Servings: 8 servings

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup (80g) unsalted butter
• 6 tbsp crunchy peanut butter
• 3 tbsp xylitol
• 2 tbsp rice syrup*
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon, optional
• 2 tbsp chopped dark chocolate (at least 85%), optional but yummy!
• zest of 1/2 an orange or 1 clementine
• 3 cups (300g) rolled (porridge) oats (you can use gluten-free oats, or wheat or spelt flakes if you like)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 180C/350F/gas 4.

2. Place the butter, peanut butter, xylitol, rice syrup, cinnamon and chocolate in a pan. Heat gently, stirring all the while, until everything is melted and combined. Take off the heat and add in zest and oats. Mix well.

3. Spread the granola on a tray lined with baking paper and bake for about 15-20 mins, until golden and starting to firm up. Allow to cool before serving.
   

Recipe Notes

*rice syrup is classed as a free sugar by the World Health Organisation, but we prefer it to many other sugars as it converts to glucose, not fructose, in the body and so is better metabolised and "dumps" on the liver less.