I absolutely love granola and eating it with yogurt is one of my all-time favorite breakfasts. I used to buy it until I actually read the label and realized how much sugar they put into it. Buying a sugar-free healthy granola was a possibility, but a very over-priced possibility. That led me to try and create my own healthy homemade granola. And then I realized just how easy it is to make! Buying granola will never again be an option for me and after trying this recipe I think you´ll agree.
If you are looking for some other healthy breakfast ideas, make sure you check out my:
Why you´ll love this healthy homemade granola:
⦁ you´ll need only 4 main ingredients
⦁ you can add your favorite add-ins and as many of them as you want
⦁ it´s absolutely beginner-friendly and easy to make
⦁ it keeps for a long time in an airtight container
⦁ it´s sugar-free
⦁ it´s gluten-free (make sure you use certified gluten-free oats)
⦁ it´s delicious
Add-in inspiration:
The wonderful thing about healthy homemade granola is, as I´ve mentioned before, that you can adjust it to your taste. You can make a different flavored granola every time, or divide one batch into a couple of containers, adding different add-ins to each of them. Read below for some add-in ideas.
Nuts– nuts are a good source of healthy fats, proteins, vitamins, minerals, and everything else your body needs. That (and being absolutely delicious) makes them a great add-in for this healthy homemade granola. You can use almonds, walnuts, pistachios, peanuts, cashews, macadamias, or anything else that comes to your mind.
Dried fruit– dried fruits bring additional sweetness to this granola without adding any refined sugar to it. They are also loaded with fiber, micronutrients, and antioxidants. Some of the popular options are raisins, dried apricots, prunes, dates, dried apples, freeze-dried berries, and many more.
Seeds– this granola is a perfect way to incorporate healthy seeds into your nutrition. For this recipe, I would recommend sticking with the bigger seeds like pumpkin or sunflower seeds, and leaving out the smaller ones, as they would probably fall to the bottom of your container anyway.
Chocolate– if you don´t want to go sugar-free all the way, feel free to add some chocolate chips to your granola. If you do want to make it sugar-free but still can´t resist adding some chocolate to it, go for sugar-free chocolate chips.
Spices– spices should be added to your granola mixture before baking it. Some of the options are vanilla, cinnamon, orange or lemon zest, or anything else that you like.
What you´ll need:
Oats– for this recipe you can use both rolled and quick oats. I decided to use quick oats mainly because I had them at home. If you are making this granola for eating with yogurt or milk, it really doesn´t matter which type of oats you use. If you want to make granola as a healthy snack however, you should opt for rolled oats. The reason for that is that using rolled oats results in bigger clumps of granola and that might be more fitting for a snack. But long story short, both will work just fine and it´s a matter of personal preference.
Coconut oil– I chose to use coconut oil for this recipe because of its wonderful flavor and health benefits. If you are not a fan of coconut oil or simply don´t have it in the house right now, don´t worry. You can use any other oil suited for cooking. I would advise you against olive oil, however, as I find the flavor would be too dominant.
Coconut sugar-coconut sugar is a healthier sugar alternative that will give this granola a wonderful caramel-like flavor. I really love using coconut sugar in my healthy dessert creations but if that´s not the case with you there are some other options. You can substitute coconut sugar for any other granulated sweetener of your choice. Using liquid sweeteners like honey or maple syrup is also an option, but you might want to adjust the amount.
Egg whites– you will need 2 egg whites. I used medium-sized eggs. And don´t forget to support the chickens, by buying pasture-raised eggs and contributing to better living standards for them 🙂
Healthy Homemade Granola (sugar-free)
Ingredients
Healthy Homemade Granola
Instructions
-
Let´s do it:
-
Preheat the oven to 175 C and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Whisk the egg whites shortly using a fork, just until some foam starts to form on the top.
- Melt the coconut oil and add it to the egg whites.
- Add coconut sugar, a pinch of salt, and any desired spices (cinnamon, vanilla, orange zest...) to the egg-white mixture and stir until combined.
- Add this mixture to your oats and incorporate well (best using your hands). As soon as the oats absorb the moisture and you can see no dry parts, they are ready.
- Spread them on a baking sheet and press lightly to get an even surface.
- Bake until golden (should take around 20 minutes)
- Leave Granola to cool down completely, then break it into pieces and mix with your favorite add-ins.
- Pack it into an airtight container and have your breakfast always on hand :)
-
