This healthy granola recipe transforms rolled oats and puffed rice cereal into butterscotch, peanut butter, and chocolate coated crunchy goodness. Every serving has 5 grams of protein and just 13 grams of carbs. That’s roughly half the amount of carbs in traditional protein granola recipes!
Ingredients for Healthy Granola
This copycat Butterfinger granola is very similar to my chocolate peanut butter granola recipe. So if you’ve tried that one, you should have most of the ingredients on hand already. Most of the ingredients are straightforward enough, but I’ll briefly run through a few commonly asked about ingredients.
Puffed Rice Cereal
I typically buy this ingredient in bulk from Amazon, but you might be able to find them in your grocery store around the gluten free cereals.
I have the brand I use on my Amazon foods list, if you’re interested.
Honey and Liquid Egg Whites
If you’ve tried my cinnamon protein granola, you might be wondering whether or not honey can be swapped for a sugar free syrup like Walden Farms. I’ve tested this in my healthy granola recipes that call for honey and while it does work, the finished product tends to be a bit dry.
I will say that the added chocolate post-baking in this Butterfinger granola could alleviate these issues.
As for the egg whites, these are in the recipe to help the granola crisp without adding more calories from honey or peanut butter. You may be able to get away with more egg whites and less honey to reduce the carbs, but I haven’t tested it.
You can get more ingredient swap ideas in my chocolate peanut butter and pumpkin spice granola recipes.
Protein Powder
This healthy granola recipe calls for PEScience Select, a blend of whey and casein protein. The addition of casein makes the protein powder a bit thicker than a whey-only powder.
Pro tip: You can order samples of PEScience if you’re new to recipes with protein powder. If you like it, you can use my affiliate discount code mason to save 15% off on PEScience products. And if you’re looking for other recipes to try with a sample pack, try my Butterfinger protein oats, no bake oatmeal peanut butter bites, or homemade McGriddles.
If you’re using a different protein, you may need to use a full two scoops or slightly more. I’ve added a video of the recipe below so you can get an idea of what the granola should look like before baking.
[mv_video key=”ovost8jdhhnagk4f4ea3″ volume=”70″ aspectRatio=”true” title=”Healthier Butterfinger Granola” thumbnail=”https://mediavine-res.cloudinary.com/v1568821898/wbexnyqmpwbbmhlnncxo.jpg” doNotOptimizePlacement=”true” doNotAutoplayNorOptimizePlacement=”true” sticky=”false”]
Final Healthy Granola Recipe Notes
As with any protein powder recipe, you’re encouraged to stick to the recipe as closely as possible. If you make modifications, keep an even closer eye on the granola to avoid burning or over baking.
To troubleshoot a soft granola, break it into smaller pieces and continue baking longer. If the granola burns before it’s crispy, you can try covering in foil to continue drying it out without charring. You can also try again with a lower temperature so it has time to dry out before burning.
If you have ingredient or troubleshooting questions, you can drop a comment below or join my free Facebook group. There are nearly 10,000 people there to help you out!
Butterfinger Granola
Ingredients
- 1 C 80g Rolled Oats
- 2 C 34g Puffed Rice Cereal
- 1 1/2 scoop, 47g PEScience Protein Powder, vanilla
- 2 Tbsp 16g Sugar Free Butterscotch Pudding Mix
- 1/3 C 87g Creamy Peanut Butter
- 2 Tbsp 42g Honey
- 1/3 C 81g Liquid Egg Whites
- 1/4 C 56g Mini Chocolate Chips, I used Lakanto Sugar Free
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 350F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper or nonstick spray.
- Mix the dry ingredients together in a large bowl before adding in the peanut butter and honey. Fold together until no lumps of peanut butter remain before adding the egg whites. Continue folding together until evenly mixed.
- Transfer the mixture to the baking sheet. Use a spatula to spread it evenly across the entire baking sheet. Be sure to break up any large clumps and aim to have as many holes or spaces as possible in the mixture.
- Bake for 15 minutes before removing from the oven to break up and flip on the baking sheet. Bake for an additional 6-10 minutes, shaking every 2-3 minutes until the granola is crispy. (The honey can burn so keep your eyes and nose peeled. It will continue to dry out/crisp once it’s out of the oven so don’t be afraid to pull it a little early.)
- Once the granola has slightly cooled and is as crispy as you like, add the chocolate chips and stir. They'll melt a bit and stick to the granola. Fully cool before storing in an airtight container (mason jars work great).
Made weekly in my house!! It’s great as the recipe calls but I one time subbed almond butter with a sprinkle of cinnamon and also amazing. Great over Greek yogurt with a little drizzle of waldens caramel sauce.
This is honestly the most addicting granola ever! I have shared this recipe numerous times and everyone loves it. My only substitution is that I use Rice Krispies instead of puffed rice and occasionally I used a plant based vanilla protein. Comes out amazing every time
This is dangerous, you will have to resist eating the whole batch. I put this in my freezer for longevity and took my portion and would heat up in the air fryer for a couple minutes for that fresh out of the oven taste.
This granola is a 10/10. Crunchy, peanut butter goodness! I’m not gonna lie, I ate an entire batch in two days because it is that good. I even had all the ingredients minus puff cereal, but I just used extra oats and it still worked out perfectly. The second time I made it, I used puffed cereal and it’s even better with it!
Such a great tasting snack; does not last long once stored in jars. I substituted the puffed rice with rice crisps due to availability in nearby stores and substituted the protein with dymatize brand just because I had it on hand. Macros stayed the same! At least one of the several granola recipes by Mason are made weekly, twice weekly on many occasions.
Such a great tasting snack; does not last long once stored in jars. I substituted the puffed rice with rice crisps due to availability in nearby stores and substituted the protein with dymatize brand just because I had it on hand. Macros stayed the same! At least one of the several granola recipes by Mason are made weekly, twice weekly on many occasions.
My favorite Mason granola!! I used to buy those yogurt packs with the crunch toppings but now I’m making this granola for my yogurt. Oh and my kids have been eating it for breakfast!
My favorite Mason granola!! I used to buy those yogurt packs with the crunch toppings but now I’m making this granola for my yogurt. Oh and my kids have been eating it for breakfast!
This stuff definitely passes the crunch test! I am a granola feen and was so excited to see a higher protein version of it! Most important thing is to watch it while it bakes. Take it out too early and it wont be crunchy but if you leave it in too long it will start to crisp up and burn a bit.
Seriously addicting but in a good way. I subbed 2 real egg whites instead of liquid, and I baked at 325 instead because I have that tendency to overdo things and I wanted this perfect the first time. And it WAS! I can’t get over it! And I found two kinds of the puffed rice at the neighborhood Sprouts. Thanks Mason!