Five Spice Sesame Granola Bark

This Five Spice Sesame Granola Bark is a hybrid between granola and a cracker – you can keep it in big chunks, or break it apart into a seedy, nutty pile of crunchy granola. The whole thing bakes as a bark – hence the name – but I love chopping it into crunchy bite-sized pieces to throw on skyr bowls, smoothie bowls, oatmeal, or really anything!

This recipe is great to have on hand and make on a Sunday so that you have fresh, delicious granola bark all week. It’s easy to make, uses pretty simple ingredients and will up your breakfast game! I love having this granola bark on hand throughout the work week as quick option for breakfast. It pairs well with anything and keeps things interesting!

Ingredients you’ll need for this granola bark

This granola bark is so easy to make and uses a lot of ingredients you probably already have on hand. You might have to track down Chinese five spice, but almost everything is a pantry staple (at least in my house!). Here’s everything you’ll need:

• 3/4 cup (80g) old-fashioned rolled oats
• 1/2 cup (60g) almond flour
• 1/4 cup (25g) flaxseed meal
• 3/4 cup (95g) white sesame seeds
• 2 teaspoons (5g) Chinese five spice
• 1 teaspoon (4g) flaky salt, or 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• 1/3 cup (100g) maple syrup
• 1/4 cup (58g) warm water

As for substitutions, I would try to stick to everything listed above. If you don’t have almond flour, you can sub it for oat flour, but everything else is important for this bark to be perfect!

What is Chinese five spice?

Chinese five spice is an incredible blend of spices that originates from China. The five spices that are used in this blend are commonly found in a lot of Chinese cooking, hence why they are blended together into one magical spice.

The most common mix consists of star anise, cloves, Chinese cinnamon, Sichuan pepper and fennel seeds, but other spices can also be added like ginger root, nutmeg and turmeric. This blend covers the basic flavor elements of Chinese cooking, which are sweet, salty, savory, bitter and sour.

For this sesame granola bark, I love the complexity that the Chinese five spice brings. It makes any breakfast better – yogurt, oatmeal or even just cereal all transform into something unique when this granola bark is added.

How to make granola bark

1. Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F convection or 350°F standard.
2. In a large bowl, add the oats, almond flour, flaxseed meal, sesame seeds, five spice and salt. Whisk together.
3. Whisk together the maple syrup and water and pour into the bowl. Mix everything together with a spatula. It will be tacky, but not wet.
4. Spread out the mixture as thinly as possible on a parchment-lined baking sheet. If it’s too sticky, press another piece of parchment paper on top and use a rolling pin to roll out the mixture until it is the same thickness, about half a centimeter thick, maybe a little less. This will fit perfectly in a quarter sheet pan, but the parchment paper trick is helpful if you are using a larger pan.
5. Bake the granola bark for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown and completely hardened. Let cool completely before breaking into 16 pieces.

Serving suggestions

My favorite way to eat this granola bark is over thick yogurt or skyr with sliced mango and a drizzle of honey. The bark feels warm, crunchy, and cozy against the cold fruit and creamy yogurt.

You can also:

• Eat it straight from the pan as is
• Layer it into smoothie bowls
• Crumble it over ice cream with a little honey or dark chocolate
• Add it to a snack plate with fruit and cheese

It’s sweet, salty, toasty, and somehow works for breakfast, snack time, or dessert.

Why is this recipe in grams?

Grams is always my preference for baking, and I hope it will be yours, too. The only way to ensure complete accuracy is through measuring by weight, not volume. One cup of flour can weigh anywhere from 120 grams to 160 grams, depending on how it was packed. This ends up causing some volatility and mismatched results.

I want to ensure you get the best results with this recipe (and I want to keep this recipe foolproof!) so I highly recommend getting a small affordable kitchen scale if you want to move forward with this particular recipe.

Watch the full recipe here

The video may not fully represent the recipe. For best results, follow the instructions as written.

Looking for more breakfast ideas?

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Matcha Granola

If you love matcha as your morning drink, you'll love it even more as your morning breakfast. This granola uses honey, coconut oil, ginger and matcha to make a unique and delicious flavor combination that will remind you of your favorite matcha latte. Using gluten free, dairy free ingredients and with the option to be made vegan, this is a wholesome and easy breakfast recipe (or if you're like me….ice cream topping lolol)

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And that’s everything for this Five Spice Sesame Granola Bark!

If you make it, please tag me on Pinterest or Instagram so I can see! It’s my favorite thing to scroll through stories and see what you all are making.

And of course feel free to leave any questions, comments, or reviews! This is the best place to reach me, and I’d love to hear from you <3

Five Spice Sesame Granola Bark

Half-granola, half-crispbread, this sweet and nutty bark is perfect for an easy, crunchy and healthy snack or breakfast. You bake it as a bark, but you can crush it into a granola, whatever your heart desires!

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 30 minutes mins

Total Time 35 minutes mins

Servings: 8 servings

Cook mode:Prevent your screen from going dark

Equipment

• ▢
  1 large bowl
• ▢
  1 whisk
• ▢
  1 half sheet pan
• ▢
  1 parchment paper
• ▢
  1 rolling pin if needed

Ingredients

• ▢ 3/4 cup (80g) old fashioned rolled oats
• ▢ 1/2 cup (60g) almond flour
• ▢ 1/4 cup (25g) flaxseed meal
• ▢ 3/4 cup (95g) white sesame seeds
• ▢ 2 teaspoons (5g) Chinese five spice
• ▢ 1 teaspoon (4g) flaky salt, or 1/2 teaspoon Diamond Crystal kosher salt
• ▢ 1/3 cup (100g) maple syrup
• ▢ 1/4 cup (58g) warm water

Instructions 

1. Position a rack to the center of the oven and preheat to 325°F convection or 350°F standard.
2. In a large bowl, add 80 grams of oats, 60 grams of almond flour, 25 grams of flaxseed meal, 95 grams of sesame seeds, 5 grams of five spice and 4 grams of flaky salt. Whisk together.
3. Whisk together 100 grams of maple syrup and 58 grams of warm water. Pour into the bowl of dry ingredients and mix everything together with a spatula. It will be tacky, but not wet.
4. Spread out the mixture as thinly as possible on a parchment-lined baking sheet. If it’s too sticky, press another piece of parchment paper on top and use a rolling pin to roll out the mixture until it is the same thickness, about half a centimeter thick, maybe a little less. This will fit perfectly in a quarter sheet pan, but the parchment paper trick is helpful if you are using a larger pan.
5. Bake the granola bark for 25-30 minutes, or until golden brown and completely hardened. Let cool completely before breaking into 16 pieces.

Serving: 2 piecesCalories: 207kcalCarbohydrates: 20gProtein: 6gFat: 13g