Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups Dry Oats
1 cup Raw Sliced Almonds
1 cup Raw Sunflower Seeds
3/4 cup Raw Pecan Halves
3/4 cup Raw Walnut Halves & Pieces
1/4 tsp Vanilla Bean Powder
1/4 tsp Ground Allspice
3/4 tsp Ground Cinnamon
3 tbsp Coconut Flakes
3 tbsp Shredded Coconut
1 tbsp Coconut Oil
1/2 cup Honey

I love granola which is how my first granola recipe “Guilt Free Granola” came to be. Lately we have been coming across granola at breakfast and brunch so it inspired me to create a new granola recipe with some different flavors and combinations. This time around I decided to add whole larger nuts, use less oats, and bake on two cookie sheets instead of one. It cut down the bake time significantly!

Every time I picked up a box of granola to look at the ingredients I’d be turned off and put it back down. So I started reading more labels and chose to create my own granola with ingredients I know are healthy and simple without additives and loads of sugar and other stuff we don’t want hiding in our healthy food. Choosing what products you use is as simple as reading the labels. All the dried fruits and nuts I use are sulfur free, unsalted, unsweetened with no added oil, sugar, or other preservatives. I go to Trader Joe’s for my nuts and dried fruit because they have a great selection with nothing added.

Combine quick cook oats, shaved almonds, sunflower seeds, pecans, and walnuts and mix in a large bowl. Add in the shredded coconut, coconut flakes, allspice, cinnamon and vanilla and stir it all up. I prefer using a wooden bowl and spoon because once you add the honey mixture it tends to stick less.

Put 1/2 cup honey and 1 generous tablespoon of coconut oil in a separate bowl and mix it well. The coconut honey and the oats can now be mixed together. Add in honey slowly stirring the oats an nuts along the way. Keep mixing by hand until all of the dry ingredients are slightly coated with your coconut honey mixture, and be sure to use the best honey you can get your hands on.

Once the nuts and oats are completely covered with honey spread the mixture on a well greased cookie sheet. I use coconut oil spray to grease my pan. Place it in the oven heated to 275.

The trick to excellent granola is in the baking. Bake at 275 degrees 10 minutes at a time for a total of 40 minutes in the oven. You have to take it out every 10 minutes and stir it around, then pop it back in to continue baking. Otherwise the oats will burn. And make sure you keep the oven at 275. Any higher and you will likely end up with burned up inedible oats. Trust me, I learned the hard way. I use a timer and keep track of cook time.

Once your perfectly golden granola has cooled it is ready to eat. Store in an air tight container and it will last for up to two weeks. Tis the season, so you can also make a few extra batches and gift them as holiday treats in simple mason jars.

Vegan, vegetarian, dairy free, gluten free.

Xo
K