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Shallow glass jar filled with peanut butter granola with roasted peanuts and dark chocolate chunks with spoonful of peanut butter to the side.

Peanut Butter Dark Chocolate Chunk Granola {Love Crunch Copycat}

Yield: 12 servings (makes about 6 cups of granola)
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Cooling Time:: 30 minutes
Total Time: 1 hour 10 minutes

Ingredients

  • 2 cups (200 g) old-fashioned rolled oats
  • 1 cup (100 g) quick oats
  • ½ cup (135 g) peanut butter, natural or regular (see note)
  • ¼ cup (80 g) pure maple syrup
  • 3 tablespoons (42 g) coconut oil
  • 1 tablespoon (13 g) brown sugar or coconut sugar
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup (135 g) roasted peanuts, optional (see note)
  • 1 to 1 ½ cups (170-255 g) dark chocolate chunks or chocolate chips (see note)

Instructions 

  • Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Line a half sheet pan with parchment paper. Set aside.
  • In a large bowl, toss the old-fashioned oats and quick oats together.
  • In a small microwave-safe bowl or liquid measuring cup, add the peanut butter, maple syrup, coconut oil, brown sugar, vanilla and salt. Microwave for 30 to 45 seconds until the peanut butter and coconut oil are melted and the ingredients can easily be whisked together into a smooth mixture (don't overheat).
  • Pour the peanut butter mixture over the oats and stir until evenly combined.
  • Add the peanuts, if using, and toss until evenly combined.
  • Spread the granola evenly on the prepared sheet pan and bake for 15 minutes. Stir. Bake another 10 minutes.
  • Sprinkle the chocolate chips across the top of the granola and give a quick stir to combine them into the granola. Return to the oven for 1 minute.
  • Out of the oven, DO NOT STIR. Let the granola cool completely on the sheet pan.
  • When cooled, stir or scrape the granola into pieces and store in a covered container. The granola keeps well at cool, room temperature for several weeks.

Notes

Oats: using both quick oats and old-fashioned oats produces the best texture for this granola. You can experiment changing the ratio of oats or using all of one type or another.
Peanut Butter: this recipe was tested with both natural peanut butter (Kirkland brand - needs stirring before using and is fairly runny in consistency) and regular peanut butter (Skippy brand). The texture of the finished granola is pretty similar between the two peanut butters. The granola made with Skippy peanut butter is slightly sweeter (but not too sweet).
Sugar/Syrup: I know 1 tablespoon sugar doesn't seem like much, but using brown sugar (instead of increasing the maple syrup by another tablespoon) adds a bit deeper flavor that I really like. You can experiment changing up the types of sweeteners (i.e. using honey in place of maple syrup, etc).
Peanuts: the peanuts can easily be subbed by a different type of nut (almonds, pecans, etc) or they can be omitted completely without making any other changes to the recipe. If using peanuts, look for lightly salted (or unsalted) peanuts. It's not a deal breaker to use regular (fully salted) peanuts - the granola will just have more of salty bite to it where the peanuts are mixed in.
Chocolate Chips: my favorite chocolate chips to use in this recipe are Ghirardelli bittersweet chocolate chips (they are a bit larger than regular chocolate chips and melt extremely well), but semisweet chocolate chips or chunks can be used. I think milk chocolate is too sweet for this granola, but you can use milk chocolate if that is your preference.