Granola has grown in popularity over recent years, both as a breakfast or snack option, however is packed full of sugars which isn't ideal, especially when eaten in the morning. A high sugar intake first thing in the morning will give you a rapid sugar rush, then completely dip in your blood sugar levels. This is when you get a 'sweet tooth' craving and generally leads us to eating items that are not necessarily good for us, such as carb loaded or sugary junk food, as well as snacking more throughout the day. With granola being a favourite breakfast choice for me, I decided to give it a go making my own homemade granola, packed with loads of nuts and only a natural sweetener made up of fruit sugars. This is also great to make at the moment as many supermarkets have packs of mixed nuts with it approaching winter for a very good price, so won't break the budget.
For this recipe I used cups and spoons as a method of measurements (easier to follow, especially for students like myself that may not have scales!) You will need:
- 1 cup of pecan nuts
- 2 cups of mixed nuts (mine contained pecans, hazelnuts, almonds, cashews and brazil nuts)
- 1/2 cup of mixed seeds (I used pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and chia seeds)
- 1 tbsp flaked almonds
- 1 cup dried cranberries (any dried fruit will do the same, for added sweetness)
- 2 cups of oats
- 4 tbsp natural sweetener (I used 'Sweet Freedom' syrup but maple syrup may be easier to find)
- 4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- Preheat oven to 150C/300F. Put pecans and mixed nuts in separate resealable food bags, squeeze air out and close fully. Begin to crush nuts in bags, make sure pecans aren't broken up too small in size as they will add nice sweet taste and crunchy texture when caramelised.
- Empty both food bags into a large mixing bowl. Add mixed seeds, flaked almonds, cranberries and oats and distribute thoroughly.
- Add olive oil and sweetener and combine with dry ingredients. It is easier to combine with hands so that all dry ingredients are combine with the liquids, and continue mixing until mixture is slightly sticky and clusters are forming. Add a tablespoon more olive oil or sweetener if too dry.
- Empty granola mixture onto a baking tray lined with greaseproof paper. Spread granola across whole tray and leave plenty of gaps between so that it doesn't all stick together and resemble more of a flapjack.
- Bake in the oven for 30 minutes until lightly toasted. Remove from oven, remove greaseproof paper from baking tray to allow the granola to cool faster. Serve with some greek yoghurt and fresh berries.
This recipe will keep for up to 4 weeks if kept in an airtight container, however is much nicer when fresh!
What are your go-to breakfast recipes?