Easy Pumpkin Spiced Granola made with oats, quinoa, maple, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, pecans, pepitas and dried cranberries.
Skinny Pumpkin Granola
Skinny Pumpkin GranolaMaking your own granola is easier than you think, and the beauty of doing it yourself is you can customize it to suit your taste plus it’s so much cheaper than buying it in the store. A few other granolas I enjoy making are Low Fat Chewy Bars with Pecans Raisins and Chocolate, Morning Maple Cranberry Pecan Oat Bars and Banana Split Quinoa Bars.
Since pumpkin is so popular this time of year, I thought it would be fun to make a pumpkin version using oats, quinoa, maple, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, pecans, pepitas and dried cranberries.
Granola is great to eat alone as a snack, or over yogurt, but my favorite way to eat granola is with some fresh fruit and almond milk; it’s one of my favorite quick breakfasts.
I paired this with some fresh chopped apples and pears, if you have some pumpkin butter, you can even stir some in… yum! (FYI, the cute spoon is from For Such A Time Designs)
The trick to keeping a bowl of granola cereal light is the ratio of fruit, milk and granola. First I fill my bowl with fresh fruit, then top it with 1/3 cup of granola and then some unsweetened almond milk. It’s a great way to get your serving of fresh fruit and has lots of fiber to keep you feeling full longer. I’ve included the nutritional info both ways, for your convenience.
Easy Pumpkin Spice Granola
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup uncooked quinoa, rinsed well and pat dry with paper towel
- 1 1/2 cups rolled oats*
- 1/4 cup ground flaxseeds
- 1/4 cup pepitas, or other seed
- 1/4 cup chopped pecans
- 1/2 cup dried cranberries
- 1/4 cup real maple syrup, or honey
- 1/4 cup pumpkin puree
- 1 tsp oil, coconut or canola
- 1 tsp pumpkin spice, or more to taste
- 1/4 tsp cinnamon
- pinch kosher salt
- 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325° F.
- Spread oats* and quinoa out on a parchment lined baking pan.
- Toast in the oven 10 minutes, stirring once.
- Remove the oats from the oven, pour the toasted oats into a medium bowl and add the ground flaxseeds, pepitas, pecans and dried fruit.
- Reduce oven to 300° F.
- In a second medium bowl, combine maple syrup, pumpkin puree, oil, pumpkin spice, cinnamon, salt and vanilla.
- Pour over oats and stir together with a spatula.
- Spread back onto a baking sheet and bake an additional 20 minutes, or until golden.
I have made this granola a bunch of times now and it is fantastic. I don’t have flax in the house so I double up the pepitas instead. I keep my leftover pumpkin frozen so I just pull it out as needed. I eat this with a 1/2 cup of Greek yogurt and 1/2 cup of pomegranate arils and I’m obsessed! I actually find the serving size to be perfect with everything else. This is a filling breakfast.
This tastes soooo yummy! Thank you so much Gina, for the recipe!
Delicious! I followed the recipe, except that I was looking for a very crisp granola, so I placed the pan back in the oven for an additional 15 minutes after stirring. Hubby loves it as well! Easy to make and a good use of that last can of pumpkin that needed to be used.
This is very good!…I absolutely LOVE granola!
To bump the WW points down a bit, I substituted sugar free maple syrup. If I calculated it correctly this takes the serving on Purple pts down to 2.
I consider this a Win-Win!
I know the new WW Personal Points program rolled out yesterday, but this granola will be a part of my plan. Thanks Gina!
This granola is delicious!! The mix of pumpkin, cranberries, and maple is an inviting flavor combo! Thank you for another tasty recipe.
I baked this granola recipe last night, but I didn’t have any pumpkin puree, so I used 1 not-too-ripe mashed banana instead. It turned out really well and is very delicious!! I enjoyed it over plain yogurt with berries this afternoon. I’m so glad you posted updated Weight Watchers points values. Your recipes have inspired me to give the WW program another try. Fingers crossed that this time I can meet my goals! Thanks so much Gina! (Also, I was wondering how long the granola lasts when stored in an airtight container)?
This was my first time making granola at home. So delicious. How many WW points on the green plan? Thank you!
Glad you enjoyed it! Points have been updated. 🙂
This is simply outstanding. My grocer only had cranberries with added sugar so I used white raisins, walnuts because it’s what I had, and baked a little longer on the second bake. I made a double batch because I know us with something so delicious – gone quickly! Thanks, Gina!
Do you have any suggestions for a substitute for the pumpkin purée? I haven’t had luck finding any since it’s not fall anymore! Thanks!
I just took a double batch out of the oven, which, of course, took slightly longer to bake. It’s excellent. I had dried cherries that needed a recipe and I subbed them for the cranberries. What a clever idea to use canned pumpkin. Cutting the oil to such a minimal amount is another calorie saver. This is not an overly sweet granola. It will be perfect with vanilla yogurt and apples. Thank you, Gina!
You’re welcome! 🙂