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Yesterday we discussed the benefits associated with a healthy breakfast routine.  This afternoon in cooking class we made a scrumptious breakfast option!  We all agreed that this granola over 6 ounces of organic Greek, nonfat, plain yogurt would be divine!

Granola is one of those foods that has a “health halo”—meaning most people would categorize it as a “health food” when in fact most store-bought granolas contain a ton of added sugar and fat, and thus calories too.  Not to mention, all those calories are for a little bitty serving size, such as an unrealistic ¼ cup portion.  For these reasons, I really prefer to make granola instead of buying it.  I’ve been making it myself for years, but I must say that the recipe we used today is better than any granola I’ve ever had!  (Enjoy the recipe below!)

—Anna LaBarre, MS, RD, LDN

Granola (The Best Ever)  

We made our granola today with certified gluten-free oats because one of our participants has celiac disease and thus a gluten-intolerance, and one a gluten-sensitivity.  If you have not been diagnosed with celiac disease nor a gluten-sensitivity, it’s not essential to use gluten-free oats—any rolled oats will do!  Oats do not naturally contain gluten (a protein found in wheat, barley and rye), but they are often contaminated with it in processing facilities and sometimes in the fields when farmers rotate growing wheat and oats in the same area.

3 cups oats (Bob’s Red Mill Certified Gluten-Free)
1 cups coarsely chopped almonds
½ cup pumpkin seeds
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
1 teaspoon cinnamon
½ teaspoon ground ginger
1 cup mixed dried fruit, chopped (like apricots, cranberries, organic cherries and raisins—we used organic Turkish apricots and raisins)
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 tablespoons olive oil

Preheat the oven to 350°.

Mix together the oats, almonds, pumpkin seeds, and sesame seeds in a big bowl. Sprinkle the cinnamon and ginger over the top. Stir it up. Add the dried fruit and mix well again. Drizzle the maple syrup over the oat mixture, stirring as you go. Then do the same with the oil. Stir it all up until everything is well coated.

Dump the mixture out onto a baking sheet and spread it out evenly. Bake for 10 minutes.  Then, stir up the granola, put it back in the oven and repeat this process 1-2 more times (it will vary depending on your oven). The granola is done when it is not at all wet, golden brown and somewhat crunchy.

Pull it out of the oven and let it cool before putting it in a storage container.

Yield: 12 Servings (about 2/3 cup per serving)

Each serving contains approximately: Calories 243, Fat 11g, Saturated fat 1g, Cholesterol 0mg, Sodium 5mg, Carbohydrate 30g, Fiber 4g, Protein 6g.