Chocolate lovers, this chocolatey figgy homemade granola recipe is for you! Dessert granola with California Dried Figs—the best dried fruit for granola—might just become your new favorite way to satisfy an afternoon craving or a sweet treat at breakfast.
Dessert Granola
You know how granola sometimes pretends to be healthy—after all, a description for healthy food eaters has been “granola”—this granola recipe isn’t that. But this also is a granola for adults (that kids will also fall for). Deep chocolate flavor and warm color enrobes the oats as vanilla simple syrup, figs, and semisweet chocolate chips add just enough sweetness.
Deeply Chocolatey + Deeply Figgy
Our Mission Dried Figs are the best dried fruit for granola so intensely chocolatey since the deep familiar sweetness of mission figs stands up to dark chocolate. You could use Orchard Choice or Sun-Maid California Dried Golden Figs with their delicate, nutty flavor for a different approach. But if you decide to go with mission figs, they keep the granola rich and darkly hued.
Ideas to Eat Chocolate Homemade Granola
Try the double chocolate granola sprinkled on a plain yogurt whisked with vanilla paste (for a no sugar added version of a vanilla yogurt, beautifully specked).
Fresh raspberries are a natural pairing with dried figs and chocolate, but strawberries would be great too. You might prefer to eat the granola like cereal and if you go that route, you are particularly in for a treat—the cocoa from the granola makes your milk chocolate milk and that might just be the ultimate indulgence, right?
Other ideas: try mixing the Double Chocolate Fig Granola into pancake batter or as a garnish for a fresh fruit salad. Or, if you’re planning a hike or road trip, add some hazelnuts, toasted almonds or pecans to pack in some protein for a trail mix.
Double Chocolate Fig Homemade Granola Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1/2 cup water
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups rolled oats
- 6 tablespoons canola oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- 6 tablespoons cocoa powder
- 1 cup Orchard Choice or Sun-Maid California Mission Figs , stems removed and quartered
- 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 275°F.
- Make Vanilla Simple Syrup: Combine sugar and water in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook for 7 minutes or until sugar dissolves, stirring occasionally. Stir in vanilla off-heat.
- In a mixing bowl, combine the oats, oil, simple syrup, salt, cinnamon, and cocoa powder until oats are coated. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet.
- Bake for 32 minutes, removing from the oven to gently stir every 8 minutes (a total of four times). Remove from the oven and stir in the figs and half the chocolate chips.
- Cool the granola. Then, stir in the remaining chocolate chips.