I know what you must be thinking. I'm going out on a limb to say this out loud. This granola nearly banished my craving for sweet desserts except for these oatmeal and almond cookies. What I like about it is that just a handful of this granola is deeply satisfying. Not only would it cure the pang of your empty stomach in the late afternoon right away, but it would also become a go-to-dessert during your coffee breaks.
This granola is composed of nuts, seeds, whole grains, and dried fruits: a perfect combination of a healthy snack. Being enriched with fiber, it takes good control of your blood glucose level and improves insulin sensitivity. It also keeps you feel full because fiber is not broken down until it reaches the colon to feed your gut bacteria, helping you lose weight and maintain a healthy gut.
Since you have complete control over what goes into this granola, you can avoid consuming invert sugar and corn syrup, which are all too common in commercial granola bars. Once you learn how easy it is to make this delicious granola using wholesome ingredients, you will never miss commercial granola bars again!
Ingredients for 4 cups of granola
1 cup multi-grain hot cereals* My favorite is Bob's Red Mill 5 Grain Rolled Hot Cereal (see its picture below). But you can use any rolled whole grains such as rye and barley. I like to mix these rolled whole grains with oats to enhance the crunchy texture of this granola.
1 cup old-fashioned rolled oats 1 cup almonds 1 cup pumpkin seeds 1/4 cup raisins or dried figs 3 tsp brown sugar 2 tsp warm water 3/5 tsp salt 2 tsp ground cinnamon 2 tsp sunflower or other vegetable oil
Instruction
In a large bowl, dissolve sugar and salt in warm water first. Add rolled grains to the bowl. Once they absorb the seasoning, push the rolled grains to one side of the bowl. Add oil and cinnamon to the other side of the bowl. Mix them to make a cinnamon paste. Add dry fruits and nuts to the mixture and stir them to combine. Spread half of the mixture on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake it for 10 minutes at 325'F in a convection oven until your kitchen is filled with aroma from the roasted nuts and seeds. You will also see raisins expanding during baking.
Once the baked granola cools down, transfer it to an air-tight container such as a Mason jar (see the first picture above) and keep it refrigerated for long-term storage. I usually finish a batch of this granola in two weeks though ^^. You can be creative in mixing and matching different grains, nuts, and dried fruits to make this granola.
If you have enjoyed this recipe, please share it with your friends. I'd also love to hear from you about how your granola has turned out in the comments below! You can also check out other healthy snack recipes (pumpkin porridge, chocolate chip cookies, almond cookies, multi-grain bread).
