Preheat the oven to 300°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
In a large bowl, whisk together the tahini, maple syrup, coconut oil, cocoa powder, vanilla, salt, and cinnamon. Once you have a smooth and unified mixture, add the almonds, coconut, and sunflower seeds to the bowl as well.
Thoroughly mix the nuts and seeds with the cocoa mixture until everything appears to be evenly coated.
Divide the granola evenly amongst the two baking sheets. Using a spatula, spread the granola out a bit. It’s okay to have some clusters of the granola, but you do want to give the clusters some space.
Bake the granola until slightly firm to the touch, about 30-35 minutes total. You’ll need to gently toss the granola at the halfway point of baking as well. Once it’s done, remove it from the oven and let it cool completely. When you first take it out, the granola hunks will seem soft and undercooked. They firm up and form the hunks as they cool.
Once completely cool, store the chocolate sea salt granola hunks in a sealed container. Granola keeps optimally for up to a week.
Recipe Notes
You can substitute raw cacao powder for the cocoa if you’d like a more intense flavour.
I like to actually taste the salt in this, but if you’re looking for more straight up sweet, chocolate-y, nutty goodness, dial the salt back to ½ teaspoon.
I roughly chop the sunflower seeds in the food processor, but this is an optional step.
The quality of your tahini is important. It honestly makes a world of difference! I like Seed + Mill’s tahini as well as Soom brand.
2 baking sheets is ideal so that the granola can be spread out. Parchment or Silpat linings are necessary.
Grain-free chocolate sea salt granola hunks are like little bites of heaven. Perfect to grab as a snack or to break up over some yogurt.