No worries, I have not gone grain-free over night. I love grains, I tolerate them well, but sometimes, it’s nice to try something new, don’t you think? This grain-free and sugar-free granola is the result of my New Year’s curiosity in the kitchen. Whereas I’m always a bit tired to try new things during Christmas time, I am always excited at the beginning of the new year, to experiment in the kitchen again. Maybe it’s that new year’s vibe, maybe it’s the gloomy post-Christmas blues that always hits me after the Holidays.
I made this granola for my sister, who visited us over New Year’s Eve. My sister is a celiac, so she is highly sensitive to gluten, and has to avoid it at any cost. Since I was out of gluten-free oats, I decided to finally give grain-free granola a try. I’ve had it in Cape Town and in the US during my last trips over there, and to be honest, I was not really fond of it back there. The reason being that it was simply too heavy and too sweet for my liking. As grain-free granola contains soley nuts and seeds, it is quite nourishing and filling. Therefore, adding a ton of sugar to it, makes it almost not eadible in my opinion. That’s why I was super keen on making my own version with nothing but apple sauce to sweeten. And something that would give it a fresher note than the other granolas I had tried.
The final touch is orange peel, similar to this recipe here. It makes the world of a difference, trust me! You only add the orange peel at the end of the baking process, yet it instantly makes the whole granola smell like orange. So fresh and delicious!
Heavenly for body and soul, because …
… the nuts and seeds full are full of good nutrients. Almonds contain, for example, vitamin E, the beauty vitamin, and pumpkin seeds and raw cocoa are a natural magnesium supplier. Flaxseed is one of the best plant omega-3 sources. That’s why this cereal-free and sugar-free granola lubricates our brains for breakfast, because omega-3 fatty acids support natural brain function.
- 100 g of hazelnuts
- 100 g of almonds
- 100 g sunflower seeds
- 30 g pumpkin seeds
- 50 g of shredded flaxseed (preferably freshly shredded, otherwise store-bought ground flax)
- 2 tablespoons of native coconut oil
- 80 grams of apple sauce
- 1 tbsp raw cacao
- 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
- ½ tsp ground cardamom
- a pinch of sea salt
- the peel of 1 organic orange
- Preheat the oven to 160 ° C circulating air (180 ° C top and bottom heat).
- Chop the nuts roughly or pulse briefly in a food processor. Mix the chopped nuts, sunflower and pumpkin seeds and shredded flax seeds in a mixing bowl.
- Heat the coconut oil in a small pan on low heat. Add the apple sauce, cacao powder, cinnamon and cardamom and mix everything to a sticky paste.
- Add the paste to the dry ingredients and mix well with a wooden spoon so that everything is well covered with the sticky mix. Spread the granola on a baking sheet lined with baking paper and roast for about 20 minutes.
- Remove the baking tray, loosen the granola a little and stir. Turn the baking sheet around, and bake for another 5-10 minutes in the oven.
- Just before the end, add the orange peel and spread it over the granola. Roast everything for another 1-2 minutes until the orange peel becomes fragrant.
- Remove the granola from the oven, allow to cool completely and store in an airtight glass container.
Enjoy!
Honestly, the last time I tried grain free granola…was quite a while ago. I was simply not a fan of the store-bought granola brand of the bag my mother had in her pantry! The granola in and of itself was not sweet enough and far too coated in cacao powder for my liking. I will say, I have always wanted to create grain-free granola in my own kitchen. It’s just that nuts and seeds are REAL expensive, LOL! But my mix would consist of hemp seeds or chia seeds, toasted coconut, pistachios, hazelnuts, sunflower seeds, and cashews. Yours looks wonderful and I would love to give it a try–maybe add in some pistachios because those nuts are my favorite kind!
Hi Cassie,
that’s absolutely true! I guess it sort of depends on where you live – here we can get organic flax, chia, sunflower and pumpkin seeds for reasonable prices, but I remember living in the states, they were quite expensive. So maybe looking for local ingredients might be the best option? And yes – I do love pistachios, too. However, those are REAL expensive over here. 🙂
Best wishes,
Lynn
Wow! Thank you, Lynn. I’ve never prepared grain-free granola. I’m definitely going to try this out this weekend. Keep up the great job.
I’ve never tried grain-free granola, but I would definitely love some. This is a great way to start my day. All amazing recipes in just one bowl.