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Paleo Coconut Cacao Nib Granola

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This delicious paleo low carb granola recipe whips up in less than 30 minutes. Dairy-free and grain-free. See just how easy it is to make this healthy keto breakfast with my new how-to video!

Paleo Coconut Cacao Nib Granola Recipe

Cereal. It’s what we all grew up eating for breakfast, right? And when you decide to follow a low carb, paleo or keto diet, you find yourself stumped. You wake up, bleary-eyed, and head downstairs. You pour yourself a cup of coffee, take a few sips and reach for the cupboard. You open it and you suddenly pull up short. Where are the boxes of cereal? They’re not there! Your tired brain can’t quite handle this information so early in the morning. It refuses to believe that you could be so silly as to let yourself run out of that ultimate breakfast food. Why on earth didn’t you put it on the grocery list last time? Oh wait…that’s right. Because cereal and grains aren’t paleo or keto approved. Oh damn. Now what?

Easy Low Carb Granola Recipe

 

Easy Low Carb Coconut Cacao Nib Granola

I think you know what I am going to say here. Make your own! Let’s face it, if you are on specialized diet, you can’t just head to the store and pick up convenience foods like cereal and bread. You can sometimes order them online but I always look at the ingredients and think “Well, gee. I could make that!”. I absolutely HATE spending money on something I know I could make easily enough at home. “Easily” being the operative word here. And when it comes to homemade cereal, you can indeed easily make it at home. This low carb Paleo Granola recipe whips up in less than half an hour. So even if you just got up, all bleary-eyed and in need of caffeine, you could have your cereal. Better yet, if you make a big batch, you can store it in the fridge for several weeks.

Low Carb Dairy Free Coconut Cocoa Nib Granola

I’ve made a few different kinds of low carb granola and cereal, and I had one reader thank me for making it without coconut. Guess he wasn’t a coconut fan, but I sure am and it got me pondering a tasty version with some large flaked coconut. And some coconut oil, to really play up that flavour, because I adore it. Then some cacao nibs to add a hint of chocolatey flavour, which pairs so well with coconut. If you haven’t tried cacao nibs  (also called cocoa nibs) yet, I think you should. They are chocolatey but not sweet and make a great addition to cookies and cakes, and of course, granola. And they are virtually all fiber, so they make a great low carb food. Just don’t buy them at discount places like Marshalls. I bought a bag that tasted burnt and were just awful. If I hadn’t known what real cacao nibs tasted like, I would have written them off altogether. It’s worth paying a little more for a quality bag if you really want the cacao nib experience!

Low Carb Paleo Granola Recipe Grain-Free

4.73 from 11 votes
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Paleo Coconut Cacao Nib Granola
Prep Time
10 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Total Time
30 mins
 

Making your own low carb granola is easy and delicious. This paleo low carb granola recipe whips up in less than 30 minutes. Dairy-free and grain-free.

Course: Breakfast
Cuisine: American
Keyword: low carb granola
Servings: 15 servings
Calories: 240 kcal
Ingredients
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 300F and line a large rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of a food processor, combine almonds and other nuts or seeds. Pulse until mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some bigger pieces in there too.
  3. Transfer to a large bowl and add almond flour, flaked coconut, sweetener of choice, and salt. Drizzle with coconut oil and stir to combine.
  4. Add egg, and toss until mixture begins to clump together. Stir in cacao nibs
  5. Spread mixture evenly on prepared baking sheet and bake 20 to 30 minutes, stirring frequently, until golden brown.
  6. Remove and let cool.
Recipe Notes

Serves 15. Nutritional counts will vary depending on what seeds and nuts you use as the base of your granola. The way I made it:

Each serving has 10 g of carbs and 6 g of fiber (if you use Swerve). Total NET CARBS = 4 g.

240 Calories; 21g Fat (73.2% calories from fat); 7g Protein; 10g Carbohydrate; 6g Dietary Fiber; 14mg Cholesterol; 90mg Sodium.

 

Nutrition Facts
Paleo Coconut Cacao Nib Granola
Amount Per Serving
Calories 240 Calories from Fat 189
% Daily Value*
Fat 21g32%
Carbohydrates 10g3%
Fiber 6g24%
Protein 7g14%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

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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.

Reader Interactions

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Comments

  1. This sounds great. I get a little tired of eggs for breakfast! I do need to know if the nuts you use are raw, or if it you use pre-roasted nuts (salted or unsalted) . I plan to make this soon, so I hope to find out if it makes a difference whether I use raw or roasted nuts.
    Thanks!

    Reply

      • Thanks!
        I just ordered all the ingredients I didn’t have on hand through Netrition. Looking forward for making a big batch for low-carb me and some for Paleo daughter.

        Reply

  3. Thank you SO MUCH for this recipe. I love granola and miss it in my low carb world. I’m making this over the weekend, and might get crazy and throw some chia seeds in it!

    Reply

  4. I know it would make the carb count a little higher, but do you think this would be good with the addition of freeze-dried raspberries? If so, when would you recommend adding them? (I am thinking at the end once the granola is baked or else they might get soggy from the egg/oil…?)

    Reply

    • Yes, I think that would be great and I would only add them at the end. That way, they’d stay crunchy.

      Reply

  5. Wow – breakfasts have been a challenge within the last year…

    I found a recipe for TVP “oatmeal” and – egads, that was really awful (no offense to those who love it – just didn’t work for me). I found that I missed cereal, but that it wasn’t as bad during the cold months — but I was wondering what I was going to do on another summer morning. I can imagine this with a big dollop of yogurt, instead of plain milk (which is how I tend to eat granola – everything is a parfait!) – all crunchy and lovely. Yum. Thank you much.

    Reply

      • Because TVP is gross! 😂😂😂 My mom used to kept it in our food storage and used to use it to extend ground beef. To be fair, maybe it’s improved since the 70s, but I always thought it was nasty.

        Reply

  8. This not only sounds great but looks awesome! I was just sitting here thinking I wanted some granola and I saw your post on G+ for this recipe. I want to make this one! I am not sure I’ve seen cocoa nibs yet though. Maybe I can find some on my Trader Joe’s trip tomorrow!

    Reply

  9. Can I use something other than ground flax seeds meal? Maybe a mixture of ground chia seeds and some other nut flour like walnut, cashew, or pecan?

    Reply

    • Sure, that would work. Chia maintains more moisture but it’s oven-baked so I think it will have the right consistency.

      Reply

      • So what do you think the mixture of chia seeds to nut flour should be since you call for 1 cup of ground flax meal in your recipe? Maybe 1/2 cup Chia seeds and 1/2 cup of nut flour? Do the chia seeds need to be ground or should I use them whole?

        Reply

        • I think whole or ground would be okay. This is a pretty forgiving recipe, you can kind of do what you want with it. Ground will mean it clumps together a bit more but either way, you’ll have great nutrition and flavor.

          Reply

  10. Made it, ate it, and of course, like all of your recipes: Delicious!!! This will be a staple at our house from now on.

    Reply

  11. Hello Carolyn

    once again thanks for your fantastic article. I’m trying to order `swere online but there’s no “confectioners” only “granular”. Can I still get the confectioners for your recipes ?
    Thanks !

    Reply

    • I know…it will be back in stock VERY soon. For some of my recipes, you only need granulated. But for others, you definitely want the confectioners.

      Reply

      • I know this is a really old comment, but for anyone just finding this recipe like I am, if you can’t find “confectioners/powdered” versions of your sugar substitute, invest in a coffee grinder! $12 on amazon and it powders granular sugar substitute beautifully in 15-20 seconds. 🙂

        Oh and I made this recipe. Delicious!

        Reply

  12. Delicious! I made this last night. It really is as good as any granola I’ve ever had! I can see this will be a huge improvement on bkft. Thanks, thanks & thanks, Karen

    Reply

  14. make this and love it! I ate it with a little unsweetend coconut milk and added some cinnamon and a dash of vanilla, excellent! I think I may try adding the cinnamon to the mix next time.

    Reply

  15. Just made this after getting my cacao nibs in the mail. I had it fir breakfast this morning with Greek yogurt. Heavenly! Thanks!

    Reply

  17. Lol my cacao nibs just arrived in the mail too ( we may have caused a run on them). Can I use already roasted nuts? I find I am buying lots of specialty ingredients lately and would like to us either items I already have on hand.

    Reply

  18. I have tried many of your recipes Carolyn and they’re all good (even if it’s something I wouldn’t make again). This recipe has to be one of your best. To have “cereal” again for breakfast is awesome! Can’t wait to share with one of my diabetic friends. I used half ground flax and half ground chia; added about a tsp. of cinnamon (I was a bit worried about the fishy taste of the flax); shredded coconut as I didn’t have flakes; and once it was baked, I threw in some hemp seeds just for fun and a handful of raisins/dried cranberries so that my husband would eat it (didn’t have cocoa nibs). It turned out absolutely amazing. This recipe is a prizewinner in my books! Thanks again. A note to those who can only find granular erythritol: grind it in your coffee grinder, then let it sit a few minutes so that you don’t have a cloud of the stuff when you take the cap off.

    Reply

  20. First of all, I hadn’t tried cacao nibs before this (and I have to confess, I didn’t even know what they were)…but they are GOOD! On a separate note, the granola is just plain awesome. Since I went low-carb and tried almond milk for the first time, I have dreamed about having it over a bowl of granola. Like literally, every time I had almond milk, it crossed my mind. Glad i held out for a low-carb version, though – now I can enjoy it with no guilt or worry about my blood sugar, and, it rocks with the almond milk! Here’s a tip, though: I have made this recipe twice. The first time I ground the nut/seed mixture into way too small of pieces, so there wasn’t a whole lot of “crunch” to the granola . On the second go-round, I actually hand-chopped all the nuts so some were very small and others were big and chunky. It was kind of labor-intensive, but it was worth it.

    Reply

  22. Hi! This looks great. I am wondering how long this keeps (because of the eggs) and if it needs to be refrigerated when stored. Thank you!

    Reply

    • It keeps for at least 5 days on the counter. The egg is cooked into it, so it’s not raw and shouldn’t be of concern.

      Reply

  25. You specify this as a PALEO recipe, HOWEVER to be paleo, you have to have ALL not synthetic, non-artificial, non-processed ingredients.
    Swerve Sweetener is NOT paleo — far from it.
    The closest zero-calorie sweetener to being true paleo is stevia, it is no-artificial, non-processed, and was used by paleo natives in South America. It is also FAR safer for you!

    Reply

    • Did you actually read the option for coconut sugar in the recipe??? As someone who has an advanced degree in paleoanthropology, I am well aware that Swerve is not paleo, which is why there is a second option. But I am also someone who has diabetes, I have to be mindful of my blood sugar levels. Erythritol, which is the main component of Swerve, is naturally occurring and it is safe. As safe as stevia (which, by the way, can actually lower blood sugar and cause T1 diabetics issues!). Did you know that erythritol is found in the human fetus in high levels? You may want to check your facts before declaring that one sweetener is “FAR safer for you”.

      Reply

  26. I love this granola! It has the perfect crunch and flavor. I can’t believe I used to have cereal and milk every day for breakfast growing up — so much sugar! I love eating a ketogenic diet and this granola will be a staple in my house. I had it with almond milk – yum. Thanks!

    Reply

  29. Have made this granola using almonds, pecans and pumpkin seeds plus the other ingredients and it is delicious. Added cinnamon which I hear is supposed to be good for us diabetics. It makes a large amount so I keep the extra in the freezer and take out a one third cup when it is on my breakfast rotation. Highly recommend it.

    Reply

  31. I LOVED this — low carb but definitely NOT low calorie but with all the nuts and fiber, a little goes a long way and kept me full until lunch. I used almonds, walnuts, sunflower seeds and hazelnuts. Some of the nuts were raw (almonds, walnuts) and some roasted (sunflower seeds and hazelnuts) but it still turned out great. Cacao nibs are not cheap (they cost about $10 per cup) so I would probably substitute with some chopped up dark chocolate next time.

    Reply

  32. I eat this every morning with vanilla unsweetened Almond Breeze. But I omitted the cacao nibs because they are a little bitter to me…which is not appealing early in the morning. But I sprinkle a few dried cranberries in my cereal bowl. I love it!

    Reply

  33. Sounds great. Defenitly gonna try this. One question: you use flaxseed meal. I can’t seem to find that here (Netherlands). At least not by that name. Can I use broken flaxseed also?

    Reply

      • 2 stars
        How much per serving? According to my calculations 75g in the nuts and seeds alone and that’s not much of a serving for anyone. Why do you not include the serving size on the nutritional data?

        Reply

        • As for most granola recipes, it’s about 1/3 cup – this is standard, even for commercial granolas. Why would you rate a recipe poorly when you haven’t even tried it?

          Reply

  35. Just a questions on this as I haven’t made it yet. Will the coconut oil cause this to remain moist or does the flaxseed and egg take care of that when it’s baked? I ask because this looks like an excellent addition to my pack for a long backpacking trip coming up. Just trying to avoid the “greasy on the hands” thing. Love your recipes and the help you give us.

    Reply

  36. I’ve just taken mine out of the oven and it’s made the house smell amazing! I changed the almonds out for cashews because I’m allergic and mixed with pecans as my other nut. The rest of the ingredients were the same + some organic cocoa powder and cinnamon powder. I couldn’t wait for it to cool down before I tried some, so I just tried some with non-gmo unsweetened soy milk and it tastes AMAZING! This is exactly what I was missing with keto until now, something to have for breakfast aside from the usual meat, cheese, avocado etc. Thank you, great recipe!

    Reply

  37. I just cannot handle coconut. Any suggestions of a substitute or is that ingredient kind of a must for this recipe?

    Reply

    • This is a great recipe. I use it as a Banting recipe. I started making this shortly after it was originally published; I now make about 1 – 1.25 kg at a time, packing into 3 containers, and keeping it in fridge. I have added to your recipe: pecan, walnuts, macadamia nuts; flax, chia, pumpkin, sunflower, sesame, poppy, raw hemp seeds; Psyllium raw husk; cacao nuts, Stevia liquid; vanilla, fresh ginger, Ceylon cinnamon, cardamom pods, lime/lemon pith & flaked coconut. I left egg out. I don’t worry too much about quantities or leaving items out if I haven’t got.

      Reply

  38. If someone had told me a year ago that I would be making my own granola, I would have told them to “Get out of town!”. I just cooked up a batch and it’s yum. Who knew making your own could be this easy. Sugar quantity on the recipe was just right. I’d do a taste comparision soon to see how homemade is vs store bought. Homemade will win hands down for sure, but I like to taste the difference and compare. Thanks for another amazing recipe 🙂

    Reply

  39. I have been reading the comments and I keep seeing reference to ground flax seed but I cant see it listed in the recipe or am I going nuts. Going to get the fixings tomorrow and try this out it sounds delicious.

    Reply

  40. I made it this morning. I added a bit of almond extract and vanilla to the coconut oil. I also got my hands on a big bag of high end cocoa nibs. Delicious! I like the idea of adding some spices to it, like other people suggested. This will be a staple in my house! Thanks again, Carolyn! You’re a genius!

    Reply

  41. I have made it 🙂 used a combination of Almonds,Macadamias, Pecans, Sunflower,Pumpkin and Hemp seeds. I am adding it to my Chia Pudding in the morning and enjoying it. Used all Xylitol as the sweetener will use the combination with Stevia when I make the recipe again. Thank you it is delicious.

    Reply

  42. I’ve made this several times now and it’s excellent! I only have two modifications: 2 eggs rather than one. When I did 2 eggs I got larger clusters of granola. I also added two teaspoons of cinnamon. I really want to try using the zest of an orange next time. Thank you for this recipe! It’s great on yogurt, as a cereal or a snack!!

    Reply

  43. I made this over the weekend and I am in LOVE with this stuff! I miss cereal so much! This is tasty dry as a snack, but this morning I had it with just a little bit of coconut milk. YUM! I made it exactly as written using Pecans, Almonds and Walnuts equally. Thanks for this wonderful recipe!

    Reply

  44. Just finished making this almost exactly as given…maybe a little different variety of nuts and seeds….I bought a nut mix that was already chopped up a bit…seemed cheaper than buying each one separately…raw…no salt. May experiment with some different nuts for my next batch and vanilla/cinnamon. But wanted to try the original first. I like it! Topped some coconut “yogurt ” I wanted to try with 1/3 cup of the “nut-ola! Yum! I am a cereal gal again! Thank you! It is very flexible…oh, and some wild blueberries on top!

    Reply

  45. Hi, do you beat the egg first, or just add it directly to the mixture? This looks amazing! Can’t wait to try it tomorrow!

    Reply

  46. This was so delicious, thank you! My kids were begging for cereal (I think they’re getting tired of eggs every day! 😉 ) and this completely hit the spot. I didn’t have cocoa nibs so omitted those and added some cinnamon. Yum!

    Reply

  48. This is one of my favorite recipes Carolyn!!
    So perfect for travelling. Just pop it in the fridge whenever you get a chance and it will last for several weeks. Ate this every morning on a 5 week Botswana and Namibia self-drive camping trip and never tired of it!!

    Reply

  49. I just made this tonight. I must say, the flavor was amazing. Can’t wait to have it in the morning for breakfast with some almond milk. I added fax and chia seeds as well as a small amount of macadamia nuts.

    Reply

  50. Hi, I several food sensitivities. I’d like to make this, it sounds delish! I am allergic to eggs. Do you know of any suitable replacements or will it work if I leave it out?
    Thank you!

    Reply

  51. I also am curious about egg sub or if it would work left out. I wanted to make this because my doc has me on a 4-6 week elimination diet including dairy and eggs which is my daily breakfast….then I saw this had egg…must have forgotten. Now wondering if I could modify it?

    Reply

  52. Another comment from me! This recipe is soooo forgiving! You can make it your own! I forgot the 1/2 tsp vanilla and 1/2 tsp cinnamon I sometimes put in…so added it after it came out of the oven…then popped it back in for under 5 min. Thank you, Carolyn for this great “recipe” I now eat it with half a small carton of full fat plain Greek yogurt and a few blueberries! Love! I now have your cookbook!

    Reply

  53. This is a super recipe. I use pecans, walnuts, chia, sunflower and pumpkin seeds. I omit the cocoa nibs and add cardamom and cinnamon. Next time I will add some orange zest. Thank you for all your recipes and books.

    Reply

    • 5 stars
      I added pecans, walnuts, almonds and a small amount of cashews. I didn’t think I had any seeds on hand, so I added in a small amount of extra nuts. I forgot about chia seeds! Duh. The cinnamon works really well too! Plus vanilla for me. How can you not add cacao? 😂 Just kidding!

      Reply

  54. Hey Carolyn,

    I work for MountainHouse.com and we loved your recipe!

    We were just wondering if you would mind letting us use one of your images for our blog post? We won’t republish the recipe, just link to it and include a small blurb. And if you would like us to add anything to our description of your recipe once it’s published, please let us know.

    Hopefully, some Mountain House fans will become regular readers of your site!

    Thanks,

    Katelyn

    Reply

    • Well it’s also pretty filling so you do need to portion it out. I eat mine with some heavy cream and it’s extra filling that way!

      Reply

  56. 5 stars
    This granola recipe was OUTSTANDING! It truly provided me my cereal fix. The only thing 2 things I changed were the addition of cinnamon and vanilla and half Stevia/half Truvia Brown Sugar Blend. I know those on a strict Keto Diet may not want to add the Truvia Brown Sugar.

    I do have a question though. How should I store the granola? I’ve put it in jars in my cabinet. Is that ok?

    Reply

  57. I made this this morning and added a spoon of your dried cranberries and had with almond milk! What a TREAT!!! I am about to tackle the Gingerbread cake, Earthquake cake, and Cranberry Biscotti. Have already made the stuffing, dinner rolls, Pecan pie and creamy pumpkin pie! You are my favorite!!

    Reply

  64. Fabulous basic cereal recipe. I replaced a portion of the seeds with protein powder, added 1 TBL cinnamon, and replaced the coconut oil with egg whites and upped the amount to 1/2 cup in an attempt to lighten up a bit of the fat content. Bless you for your recipes. They make low carb eating a treat!

    Reply

  65. 5 stars
    We LOVE this recipe. I’m making it again right now and trying the addition of another egg as mentioned in the comments to try to get larger clusters. My husband talked about the granola every day this week…and he’s only low-carb/Keto 80% of the time. Thanks for being my go-to for recipes. You’re awesome!

    Reply

    • As is typical for any granola, it’s about 1/3 cup per serving. This is even more filling and rich than traditional granola because it’s high fat.

      Reply

  67. 5 stars
    I made this yummy recipe! I had trouble getting the granola to crisp up in 20-30 minutes. It seemed like my granola was heaped pretty high in the pan, about an inch deep. If might be a good idea to use two large pans and rotate their levels every 10 minutes. The problem could be my oven, but it definitely seems that Carolyn’s pan picture has a lower height of granola in it. Stirring the granola alot broke up the clumps a bit too much because I baked it almost 50 minutes and flipped five times. I used 2 T of chia seeds, perhaps they contributed to the crumblyness. I might take one of the pans and press it down to compact it keep more chunks. Also note this calls for flaked coconut; I had shredded but I think flaked would have looked better. I had sliced blanched almonds. I think whole almonds is what Carolyn used and I think that is better also. This was a delicious cereal, tastes just like my favorite coconut one. I will definitely make it again! Thank you so much!

    Reply

  68. This granola is amazing! It will go perfectly with dairy-free yogurt and fresh fruit for breakfast. I substituted 1/4 c. maple syrup and a pinch of pure stevia powder, since I’m not keto and can’t have sugar alcohols. Thank you, Carolyn, for another great recipe!

    Reply

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