Healthy Granola Recipe

Here’s my recipe for super quick, tasty and healthy granola. Many of the shop bought granola is high in sugar, contains unhealthy fats and oils, and may contain unnecessary ingredients. The benefit of making your own is that you can mix up the flavours and experiment with ingredients.

Whole oats are full of good-for-you fibre, high in protein, and contain vitamins and minerals like iron and magnesium. Buy 100% pure whole rolled oats as “instant” or “quick cooking” will be highly processed.

Add nuts and seeds for flavour, texture, extra nutrients and added healthy protein. You can add unsweetened dried fruit and maybe added less sweetener if you are adding fruits to keep the sugar content down.

This recipe makes about three cups of granola – ½ cup is typically a serving. Serve it as cereal with milk (try it with unsweetened almond milk), unsweetened Greek yogurt and with fresh seasonal fruit. I like to add a sprinkling of chia seeds to add protein and nutrients. Plus chia seeds are very filling so will prevent mid-morning cravings!

Healthy Homemade Granola Recipe

Prep Time: 10 min
Total Time: 20 min
Serves 4-6

Use raw, organic ingredients whenever possible. These measurements are flexible; don’t worry too much about being exact.

Ingredients:

2 cups raw, whole rolled oats
½ cup raw nuts, chopped
¼ cup raw seeds (sunflower or pumpkin seeds are great)
½ cup unsweetened dried fruit, chopped (optional)
2-3 tablespoons raw honey
2 tbsp virgin coconut oil
½ tsp vanilla extract or almond extract
1 large pinch fine sea salt

Preheat the oven to 150C/300F/Gas Mark 2.

Combine all ingredients in a mixing bowl and use your clean hands to mix well and to coat.  The coconut oil might be liquid or solid depending on the temperature of the room you are in (it has a melting point of about 75ºF.) Your hands will warm it up and melt it into the mixture if it’s solid, just be sure to mix it all through the other ingredients so there aren’t any chunks of oil left. Spread the mixture in a thin layer on a baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes, until very lightly toasted.  Cool before serving or storing. This granola can be kept in an airtight glass container in a cool, dry place for up to 2 weeks.

Why not get creative and add your own combo of healthy ingredients.  Here are a few ingredient ideas to get you started:

Blueberries
Dates
Flaxseeds
Cherries
Almonds
Walnuts
Maple Syrup
Cashew Nuts
Pecans
Raisins
Cinnamon
Cranberries

The list goes on…. Enjoy creating your own flavour combinations!