Granola is such a versatile food and is great to have on hand for last minute breakfasts or snacks. Sprinkling granola over a bowl of fresh fruits and yogurt is such a delicious and filling snack. I like to always keep a jar of homemade granola in my pantry, and on the plus side, I don’t have to buy sugar loaded cereals at the store.
I have been making my granola without oil or refined sugar for a while now and I thought I would share my recipe with you. To replace the oil and sugar, I use mashed bananas, almond butter and apple sauce. These ingredients really help create nice clusters in the granola, which I love! It adds some texture and crunch to the granola. As usual, this granola recipe is gluten-free and in addition to using old-fashioned rolled oats, I added quinoa flakes and seeds for extra protein. The dried fruits in this banana chocolate granola recipe adds a bit of extra sweetness.
- 1 cup apple sauce
- 1 banana, mashed
- ¼ cup almond butter
- ¼ cup cocoa powder
- 2 tablespoon chia seeds
- 1 teaspoon ginger powder
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
- 1 cup quinoa flakes
- 1 cup raw sunflower seeds
- ¼ cup sesame seeds
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup dried blueberries
- In a large mixing bowl, blend together apple sauce, mashed banana, almond butter, cocoa powder, chia seeds, ginger and vanilla extract.
- Incorporate rolled oats, quinoa flakes, sunflower seeds and sesame seeds.
- Place the mixture on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
- Bake at 325 degrees F for 35-40 minutes, mixing the granola every 10-12 minutes to avoid burning.
- Once cooked, incorporate dried cranberries and blueberries into the granola.
- Set aside to cool and store in airtight containers for about 2 weeks.
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