A crunchy keto cereal the whole family will love! It’s crispy, chocolatey, and super easy to make. And it’s nut-free and sugar-free, for a healthy breakfast treat.
I am not kidding, this whole batch of homemade keto cereal disappeared in 48 hours. It was there and then it was gone. I swear I barely blinked, and my hungry children had consumed it all. ALL! Those greedy little monkeys.
But in reality, I was absolutely delighted that they liked this low carb chocolate cereal so much. They aren’t always easy to please, these monkeys of mine. And getting them fully on board with low carb eating is a struggle, to say the least.
Let’s just call it a work in progress, shall we?
But kids like cereal. I suppose because it’s crisp and lightly sweet, and so easy to snack on. My kids particularly love cereal because they don’t get to have it very often, so it seems like a special treat.
And chocolate keto cereal? Now that, my friends, is the way to a kid’s heart.
Making Nut-Free Keto Cereal
This is actually a very similar recipe to my Keto Thin Mint Cookies. Those are delightfully crispy and the chocolate wafer is not overly sweet, so I thought it would make a great cereal.
But almond flour isn’t for everyone. Nut allergies abound, especially among young children, and I want this to be a kid-friendly a recipe as possible. So I decided to make a nut-free version of this chocolate cereal recipe.
Easy enough to do, since sunflower seed flour makes a great replacement for almond flour. It’s even easy to make your own sunflower seed flour at home: How To Make Sunflower Seed Flour.
I’ve used sunflower seed flour in a number of recipes, including these Chocolate Blackout Cupcakes, and in some of my favourite low carb chocolate chip cookies.
But before you get all gung-ho on sunflower seed flour, there are a few things you should know:
If you have severe nut allergies, you want to make sure to get the flour or the seeds that aren’t processed on facilities that also process nuts. One brand that is certified allergen free is GERBS, available on Amazon. They sell both the finely ground flour or the raw nuts for making your own.
Sunflower seeds react with leavening agents like baking powder and baking soda, and the inside of your baked goods can turn a funny shade of green. Don’t worry, they haven’t gone bad! You can offset this reaction with a tablespoon of acid such as lemon juice or apple cider vinegar.
For chocolate recipes, like this keto chocolate cereal, you don’t need to worry about the green reaction. The cocoa powder will cover it up just fine.
Tips for making crispy keto cereal
I’ve already discussed the sunflower seed flour above. If you don’t have nut allergies, feel free to use almond flour instead. It measures almost cup for cup the same as sunflower seed flour.
Beyond that, here are a few more tips for the ultimate keto chocolate cereal experience:
Sweetener: You really need an erythritol based sweetener here, like Swerve. Substituting another may keep your cereal from crisping up properly. Check out my guide to keto sweeteners to find out more about how they affect your baked goods.
Cocoa powder: Use dutched cocoa powder to keep the cereal from being too bitter. Raw cacao powder is hard to work with and can leave a bitter aftertaste.
Keep stirring: It will seem like there isn’t enough liquid ingredients compared to the dry ingredients but trust me. Use a silicone spatula and keep working the egg and butter into the dry ingredients and the dough will come together.
Dairy-Free? Try subbing any dairy-free oil for the butter.
Roll it really thin! Getting the dough rolled out really thinly, 1/8 of an inch or less, is key to getting the thin crisp cereal bites you’re looking for.
Let it cool completely: It will seem a bit soft when it first comes out of the oven. Let it cool completely to crisp up. If you live in a humid environment, it may go soft on you later but you can always return it to a warm oven to re-crisp.
Can I make keto cereal in advance?
You bet! Dry-baked keto treats like this can last for up to 7 to 10 days. I recommend storing it in an airtight container on the counter.
If you live in a very humid environment, it may become less crispy as it sits. Simply pop it back into a warm oven (200F) for 10 to 15 minutes. It should become crispy again as it cools.
More Delicious Keto Cereal Recipes
- Low Carb Cinnamon Crunch Cereal
- Low Carb Banana Nut Cereal
- Keto Peanut Butter Granola
- Coconut Frosted Flakes Cereal
- Maple Pecan Granola
- Keto Granola Clusters
Chocolate Keto Cereal
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cup (185 g) sunflower seed flour
- 1/3 cup (28.67 g) cocoa powder
- 1/3 cup (60.67 g) Swerve Sweetener
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) salt
- 1 large egg
- 2 tbsp butter, melted
- 1/2 tsp (0.5 tsp) vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300F.
- In a large bowl, whisk together the sunflower seed flour, cocoa powder, sweetener, baking powder, and salt. Stir in the egg, butter, and vanilla until the dough comes together.
- Transfer the dough to a large silicone baking mat or a large piece of parchment paper. Top with another piece of parchment and roll out as thinly as possible (without being see-through!).
- Remove the top piece of parchment. Use a sharp knife or a pizza cutter to score into small squares, about 3/4 inch wide.
- Bake 25 to 30 minutes, until firm to the touch. Remove and let cool completely. If it's not completely crisp, return to a warm oven (175F) for another 20 or 30 minutes.
- Break into pieces and serve.
Video
Nutrition
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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I cannot wait to try these. I make keto hot ot iced cocoa and this sounds good. Thank you!
Just ordered sunflower seed flour so that I can make this. I’m wondering if using Serve brown would be good. Did you ever try it?
The new Swerve Brown contains allulose so it will prevent this from crisping up properly. You need a different erythritol-based sweetener.
I have found lots of different flours on Amazon but I couldn’t find sunflower seed flour. Is there anything else I can use? I went looking for the blog that covered this but couldn’t find it. I might just be too late in the game to look up stuff like that. I want to make this for my son and surprise him but am having trouble finding the ingredients.
im getting a tortilla press from amazon (thanks prime day 2022) for things like this…i think it will be so wonderful to be able to select and press to a distinct thickness. i cant wait to make your cinnamin cereal too!
No nut allergies, local stores don’t carry sunflower seed flour or pumpkin seed flour. Would almond or coconut flour work for this cereal?
I address that in the blog post!
This looks amazing! My dad is keto and I’m always looking for easy things for him…I’d love to try this, but he’s allergic to both sunflower seeds and peanuts – is there any other flour I could use to replace the sunflower? Thank you!
Can you do pumpkin seed meal? If not… what nuts/seeds is he not allergic to?
Could this be frozen? I know I won’t eat 9 servings in a week and it’s too much time and effort for me to justify making small batches.
It may lose a bit of crispness in the freezer…
Greetings Carolyn,
Enjoying your recipes. This morning I made my second batch of chocolate cereal. I use 3/4 c raw sunflower seeds processed + 1 cup almond flour. Rolled out nice & thin, scored with a pizza cutter before baking.
9 satisfying servings per batch, 41 g Weighed and pkgd in sandwich bags. The recipe, I crunched in my Carb Manager app.
2.6 net carbs, cereal Tracks at 3 net carbs with 1/2 c almond milk
6 g protein
15 g fat
I really enjoy it with a few berries +1 net carb
Is it possible to add hemp seed flour with unflower seed flour. Like 1 1/2 cup of sunflower seed flour and 1/4 cup of hemp seed flour.
I gotta say this cereal is a game changer for me. this is one the best recipes I have ever tried, will be trying a lot more
Glad you like it!
I’m tempted to make this recipe, but currently don’t have any Sunflower Seed flour. How do you think this recipe would work with Hazelnut flower?
Should work well!