Homemade Peanut Butter Granola (The Easy Way)
Updated on October 27, 2025
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If you’re looking for a cheap and easy homemade peanut butter granola recipe, look no further! Here’s how to make fool-proof granola in under 30 minutes for less than half the price of store-bought granola!
In my quest to find cheaper alternatives to store-bought foods I like, I developed a recipe for homemade peanut butter granola that has become a breakfast staple in our home. We like to eat it as a cereal with milk or put it on top of yogurt. This recipe uses a peanut butter and honey base that pairs with any mix-in topping you like. On top of that, it’s simple to make and less than half the price of boxed granola cereals!
What Ingredients Do I Need to Make Homemade Peanut Butter Granola?
The base recipe for homemade peanut butter granola consists of just 4 ingredients: oats, honey, peanut butter, and vanilla extract. You can add whatever additional toppings you’d like to this base for more flavor!
- Old Fashioned Oats: You can use quick oats in a bind, but Old Fashioned oats give a chunkier, more typical granola appearance
- Honey: I use clover honey from Aldi because it’s the cheapest I’ve found, but you can use any honey you like!
- Peanut Butter: I prefer creamy peanut butter, but I’ve had success with crunchy peanut butter as well
- Vanilla: I use homemade vanilla, but any imitation vanilla extract is fine!
- Mix-Ins of Choice: I like to use chia seeds, sliced almonds, and shredded coconut, but you could also add other seeds, nuts, or dried fruits. If you use dried fruit, wait to add the fruit until the granola is fresh out of the oven. If you add dried fruit before baking, the fruit may burn or harden.
How To Make Homemade Peanut Butter Granola
- Preheat oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit
- Pour oats and additional mix-ins (except dried fruits) into a large bowl.
- In a smaller bowl (or measuring cup), mix the peanut butter, honey, and vanilla extract until smooth. This will make a very thick, almost paste-like sauce.
- Pour the peanut butter and honey mixture into the dry ingredients. Stir until evenly coated.
- Pour your mixture out onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. Flatten out so there are no large mounds.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden brown. Optional: add dried fruit after removing from the oven.
- Cool and store in an airtight container
Homemade Peanut Butter Granola
Equipment
- 2 Bowls
- 1 Baking Sheet
- 1 Parchment paper
Ingredients
- 2.5 cups Old Fashioned Oats
- ⅓ cup Peanut Butter
- ⅓ cup Honey
- 2 tsp Vanilla
Instructions
- In a small bowl, mix Peanut Butter, Vanilla, and Honey together until completely combined.
- In a large bowl, mix together Old Fashioned Oats and any other mix-ins of choice
- Pour Peanut Butter, Vanilla, and Honey mixture from small bowl into the dry ingredients and combine thoroughly
- Pour out mixture onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Spread it out to make an even layer across the entire sheet.
- Bake for 18-22 minutes at 300℉
Notes
Storing Homemade Granola
Homemade peanut butter granola can last 2-3 weeks on the counter or in the pantry in an airtight container. The air-tight container keeps the granola from getting mushy in the humidity or stale in open air. Granola does not need to be refrigerated.
Is Homemade Peanut Butter Granola Cheaper?
Yes, it’s cheaper to make homemade peanut butter granola. As an added benefit, you can avoid additional preservatives and customize your granola to exactly what you like best! Store-bought granola, such as Nature’s Path and Bear Naked, costs just under $5 for 3 cups (approximately 6 servings) of granola. By using this recipe for homemade granola, you can make 6 cups (12 servings) for $2.82*. That’s about a quarter of the price per serving!
Here’s the breakdown:
- Great Value Old Fashioned Oats: $3.98 for the whole container. $0.66 for the 2.5 cups needed in this recipe
- Honey: $5.05 for the whole container. $1.62 for the 1/2 cup needed in this recipe
- Peanut Butter: $3.98 for the whole container. $0.46 for the 1/2 cup needed in this recipe
- Imitation Vanilla: $1.67 for the whole container. $0.08 for the 2 teaspoons needed in this recipe
- Mix-ins: Whatever extra ingredients you choose for this recipe will increase the price. I used $0.46 in shredded coconut, $1.06 in sliced almonds, and $0.67 in chia seeds.
*The recipe pictured with added mix-ins of coconut, almonds, and chia seeds costs $5.01 for 6 cups (12 servings) or half the price of store-bought granola with fewer ingredients.
Let me know if you try out this recipe! I’m interested to hear what mix-ins you choose!
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