SRC: Homemade (Gluten Free) Granola with Quinoa

Granola is one of my favorite snacks to have on hand at all times.  It’s a delicious and healthy snack and a cinch to assemble.  However, with my schedule the past several months I honestly can’t tell you the last time I made a batch of granola.  So, I decided to change that thanks to this month’s Secret Recipe Club exchange.

While looking through this moth’s assignment, Without Adornment, I came across several tantalizing recipes.  {Vegan} Pumpkin cinnamon buns, eggnog french toast, {Vegan} apple rhubarb galette, grilled apple pie and ooey gooey single serve brownie, just to name a few.  All of these had my mouth watering, but when I came across a recipe for a simple homemade granola I knew that is what I was making.

This granola is gluten free, but if you don’t have a gluten intolerance you can simply use regular rolled oats.  Along with oats, some bran, coconut flakes, almonds, quinoa and salt are added to the mix.  This granola is then tossed in a mixture of honey and applesauce to add sweetness and flavor.  It’s baked for a few minutes and then cooled.  That’s it!

This granola is pretty basic, but strays from the norm just a bit with the addition of quinoa.  Along with the added health benefits the quinoa adds another nice layer of texture to the mix.
 
Homemade Granola with Quinoa

Ingredients:


4 Cups (gluten free) rolled oats
1/2 Cup rice bran
1 Cup shredded coconut flakes
1 Cup almonds, roughly chopped
1/2 Cup quinoa flakes
1/4 Tsp salt
1/3 Cup coconut oil, melted if it’s solid
2/3 Cup honey
4-5 Tbsp applesauce

Directions:


Preheat oven to 300.

Combine oats, bran, coconut, almonds, salt and quinoa and stir to combine.  Pour coconut oil, honey and applesauce over the dry ingredients and stir to coat.  Add more honey and/or applesauce if you’d like it sweeter.

Divide mixture between two rimmed baking sheets and spread in an even layer.  Place in preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes, remove from oven and toss with a spatula and return pans to the oven and bake for another 10 minutes.

Remove from oven and place pans on a cooling rack and allow to cool for 5 to 10 minutes, toss to loosen and allow to set another 5-10 minutes.  Once the mixture is cooled store in an airtight container or zip top bag.

Enjoy by the handful, over yogurt, or in cereal.

Recipe source: barely adapted from Without Adornment