Chewy, nutrient-packed, yogurt and granola cups make a perfect healthy snack (or quickie breakfast!)! These homemade granola cups are a fun, individual snack for kiddos that’s easy to whip up.
Naturally gluten-free, this homemade granola is sweetened with only maple syrup and berries! It uses a unique blend of nuts and seeds to give it it’s chewy, indulgent texture.
A cute, individual, bite-sized snack that can be customized based on the toppings! These mini yogurt and granola cups are the perfect party snack!
Though they seem indulgent in flavor, they’re extremely healthy and easy to whip up. Plus, kids can grab them and go making them a great treat to have on hand.
Not sure what to do with all your nuts and seeds and sick of the same old granola recipe or muffins? Whip up these mini granola cups for something new!
You'll love these granola cups because they:
- are light, and easy to customize
- are dairy-free, gluten-free, and vegetarian
- make a healthy, well-balanced snack
- are super easy to whip up
Ingredients You'll Need
If you have a well-stocked gluten-free pantry you probably already have all the ingredients you need for this granola cup recipe!
Sunflower seeds: make sure to use unsalted seeds that haven’t been roasted already.
Oats: make sure to use regular oats and double-check that they’re gluten-free.
Shredded coconut: for this recipe make sure to use unsweetened coconut that’s shredded and not in large flakes so that it blends into the granola better.
Chia seeds: one of the three foods that as a Certified nutrition coach I think should be in everyone’s diet! These seeds are POTENT with benefits.
Almond butter: this helps hold the granola cups together while giving them some extra healthy fats.
Egg whites: don’t skip the whites because they’re what allow the granola cups to pop out of the molds and stay together.
Dried fruit: any dried fruits will work however we love to use dried blueberries and cherries best.
Dairy-free yogurt: you can use any yogurt you like. We tend to use cashew or coconut yogurt but dairy-free Greek Yogurt will give more protein to the yogurt cups (learn more about the best dairy-free swaps).
How To Make Granola Cups
- In a mini food processor, process the cashews and coconut together.
- In a small bowl, add the cashew mixture, seeds, oats, and dried berries.
- Melt the coconut oil ad add the remaining ingredients.
- Mix well until everything is coated.
- In a silicone mold, portion the granola mixture and use a silicone spoon to press the granola down into the mold.
- Bake the granola cups and let them cool in the oven for five minutes.
- Pop each granola cup out of the mold and evenly top them with a dollop of yogurt and a berry.
Step By Step Photos
Important Teaching Tips
When you process the cashews, you want there to be a bit of texture but little, tiny cashew chunks. Too big of chunks and you’ll find that the granola cups won’t hold together.
The cups are soft coming out of the oven. Make sure to let them cool fully for thirty minutes before trying to pop them out of the molds.
The muffin cups or mold you choose may alter the baking times slightly. I opted for a small, bite-size mold for our yogurt cups.
It's easier to use a silicone muffin tin lined with silicone muffin cups than it is to use cooking spray on a regular muffin tin.
When pressing the mixture into the molds, press firmly. You want there to be a slight divot in the middle of the cup. It doesn’t need to come up all the way to the sides but the better you press down the more they stay together.
Make sure to pop the breakfast granola cups out of each muffin cup before topping with yogurt. Otherwise, it's a mess.
It’s up to you if you use flavored yogurt or not. Personally, we use plain and let the berries do the sweetening.
Serving The Granola Cups
You can make these ahead of time and store them in the fridge. However, they taste best when you top them with fresh yogurt.
Make sure to serve them out of the molds as with the topping it would be hard to remove them.
You can serve the breakfast granola cups topped with fresh fruit and drizzled with peanut butter. Or even better, dairy-free caramel sauce.
Likewise, my girls love them sprinkled with chocolate chips.
If you really want to have fun: make the breakfast granola cups, top them with yogurt (Greek yogurt is great too) and set up stations of fresh fruit, chocolate chips, and peanut butter. then, let kiddos "make" their own!
Frequently Asked Questions About Yogurt Granola Cups
The granola cups themselves can be frozen so long as they don’t get smushed. However, once topped with yogurt they’re best stored in an airtight container in the fridge.
Because the oats are not fully cooking in liquid, it’s best to use regular oats for the granola cups.
I like to use unsweetened coconut so that I can control the sweetness. And for these cups you want the shredded kind so that it blends into the cups better.
Other Dairy & Gluten-Free Snacks
- Cookie dough overnight protein oats
- The best nut-free granola recipe
- Easy vanilla protein bars
- Cookie dough balls
- Fudgy protein brownies
- Peanut butter and jam protein balls
- Easy protein pancakes
- Homemade crunchy granola
- High protein granola
- Protein cookies
- Banana protein donuts
- The best high-protein snacks
- Salted caramel protein fluff
- High protein snack ideas
- No-bake snacks
Dairy-Free Granola Cups
Equipment
Ingredients
- ½ cup cashews raw, split
- ⅛ cup shredded coconut unsweetened
- ⅛ cup sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup regular oats
- 1 tbs coconut oil
- 2 tbs maple syrup
- 1 tbs egg whites
- 2 tbs almond butter
- ⅛ cup dried berries
- ¼ cup dairy-free yogurt
- 4 strawberries sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.
- In a mini food processor, process the cashews and coconut together. You want there to be a bit of texture but little, tiny cashew chunks.
- In a small bowl, add the cashew mixture, seeds, oats, and dried berries.
- Melt the coconut oil ad add the remaining ingredients.
- Mix well until everything is coated.
- In a silicone mold (or lined muffin tin), portion the granola mixture. Use a silicone spoon to press the granola down into the mold. You want there to be a slight divot in the middle. It doesn’t need to come up all the way to the sides but the better you press down the more they stay together.
- Bake for 26 minutes.
- Turn the oven off and let sit for 5 more minutes.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes.
- Pop the granola cups out of the molds and even top them with a dollop of yogurt and a berry. Serve immediately or pop into the fridge to store.
Video
Notes
Nutrition
Shelby aka Mama Bear
Kalin
Such a delicious, healthy snack! These would be fun for the whole family to make together
Jess
I would love this for breakfast!
fitasamamabear
Right>?!
fitasamamabear
It's so much fun! My girls love "topping" their own.
kate
I made these for a brunch spread and filled them with lemon yogurt and blueberries, they disappeared quickly!
fitasamamabear
Omg lemon yogurt would make them so refreshing! Love this idea!
Jere Cassidy
Rarely do I find a recipe that uses cashews. This is so easy to make and the granola cups are delicious bite-sized snacks. Added lemon curd to a few.
fitasamamabear
Absolutely love cashews here hehe lemon curd would be a great flavor!
Glenda
Yes! These are so simple to make and they're a really special treat for those of us looking to be healthier over the summer! We will be putting a new batch of these out at our 4th of July gathering. But, we've been eating them for breakfast and for snacks this week. They are perfect for any occasion!
fitasamamabear
They're super versatile! I never even thought of the red/white/blue thing until I edited the pics! So fresh and so fun!
Jean
I like how easy to make this and so tasty too. Great granola treats.
fitasamamabear
Granola is addictive lol one of my favorites!
Claire
These were such a fun mid-morning snack!!! I loved having them ready for the kids over the weekend. Knowing they were tasty and healthy made this mumma bear happy!
Angela
I used dried cherries in these & oh boy, fantastic. Definitely good point on making sure the cashews are in bitty pieces so these hold up.
fitasamamabear
Woof, dried cherries would be amazing! And yes, I went wrong the first *cough 3* batches because the cashews were far too chunky lol
Janessa
These look delicious!! Do you think it would be possible to make them without the coconut flakes?
fitasamamabear
I feel you could probably double up on the sunflower seeds instead but you'd want a sweeter yogurt as coconut helps the granola part stay tasty 🙂
Donny
I brought the cups, yogurt and toppings to a family brunch and everyone loved making their own! Such a fun idea.
fitasamamabear
Amazing!
nancy
what a wonderful idea to have granola cups - portable and super cute
dave
my wife made these for our morning on the go and it was super easy and convenient ! the kid loves it
Stacey
These turned out so adorable and tasty! My kids love them..
fitasamamabear
Mega win!
jennifer
Such a delicious , yummy snack I felt great sharing with my family! Thumbs up from all!
fitasamamabear
Yay!
Sunrita
My 13 year old and her friends made them with different toppings. Was such a fun idea and a healthy treat!
fitasamamabear
Omg yay! Yea my kiddos love topping them too- keeps it fun and lets them experiment with flavors a bit!