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Vanilla Almond Strawberry Gluten-Free Granola

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glutenfreegranola_SpunkyCoconutLast week Zoe was asking me to buy cereal. *Groan* We haven’t been cereal people for years. I think it’s the least healthy way to start your day. I’m all about keeping our blood sugar even, not spiking it first thing in the morning. My girls are homeschooled, so who would get to deal with the sugar crash? Yep, that would be me =)

About the same time Zoe was asking me to buy cereal, Andy was asking me to make my Chai Paleo Granola. He eats it throughout the day, by the handful. I don’t know why it never even occurred to me to crumble it and make “cereal.” Then the lightbulb went on, and we’ve been having chai granola cereal with cashew milk for several days now.
I started daydreaming about another flavor of granola/cereal. Vanilla almond strawberry. Mmm. So I bought some slivered almonds and strawberries, and followed the same process as the chai granola. It came out wonderfully. However, next time I’ll cut the strawberries into tiny pieces and mix them in with everything else before dehydrating (this time I dehydrated the cut strawberries on their own tray). If your kids are like mine, they will want a bit of strawberry in every bite, so I think mixing the strawberries in at the beginning is the way
to go.

Vanilla Almond Strawberry Gluten Free Granola

gluten-free, refined sugar-free, dairy-free

Soak 2 cups of walnuts & 1.5 cups diced or slivered almonds for about 8 hours.
Rinse and strain.
Add to a bowl with:
1 cup shredded unsweetened coconut
1/2 cup almond meal flour
1 cup applesauce with no added sugar
1/4 cup coconut sugar , which is low glycemic index
1 tbsp vanilla extract
16 oz fresh finely chopped strawberries
In a separate bowl mix:
2 tbsp Chia Seed meal (I grind my chia seeds in a coffee grinder or Magic Bullet)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp sea salt
Combine the two bowls.
Dehydrate at about 115 degrees overnight, or until it’s dry and crunchy.
Serve with cashew milk. (cashew milk video)
♥, Kelly
Click for the link to my dehydrator, the Nesco American Harvest
 
Click for more on why I dehydrate.

For more on chia seeds, and why they rock, read Lexie’s post here.

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Comments

  1. Thanks for this new recipe, Kelly. I just made your chai granola this week and LOVE IT! So I’m really excited to try this new flavor.

  2. The homeschool comments in your post are hilarious :).

    This recipe sounds delicious! We haven’t bought cereal in a while and the chai granola has been a nice alternative. Thanks!

    ~Micaela

  3. Looks DELICIOUS & NUTRITIOUS too ….DO you like your Nesco dehydrator and may I ask do you know if it is made in the USA ?….If I may ask you to leave me a message on my blogsite if its not too much trouble …. thanks and have a great day !!

  5. I’ve got a question for you, swami of yumminess. I should be getting my Excalibur any day now, and I’m all over this recipe as my inaugural dehydrator adventure. But I really don’t want to go buy strawberries. Firstly because as soon as I bring them home they are gone because we can’t help but eat them all (looking forward to strawberry season at Berry Patch!). Secondly, I have an obscene amount of frozen strawberries in my freezer. If I thawed the strawberries, do you think the recipe would turn out comperable to using fresh berries? I figure I’d have to dehydrate longer, but I’m wondering if it will negatively affect the other items in the mix. Your thoughts? If you think frozen berries will work, I’ve got a slew of assorted berries and cherries in the freezer I’d be excited about using in this recipe too. My kids will LOVE it, especially now Alexandre can eat nuts since he’s had his braces removed.

  6. Another thought from the peanut gallery here. Alexandre is a cereal junkie. He told me the other day that when he grows up he’s going to have a huge walk-in pantry with nothing but cereal, and a large walk-in fridge with nothing but milk. I’m fortunate he is a foodie who likes lots of other foods too but cereal is his favourite. Do you have any other cereal type goodies up your sleeve?

  7. Michelle, I bet that would be good. Don’t think it would be a problem 🙂 Also, FYI, I use the liners on the trays when I make this.

    Also I will think on that second question, and get back to you 🙂

  8. Hi, this is probably a silly question, but would it be possible to just leave it on a tray in the oven at that temperature overnight? We don’t have a dehydrator, and I would very much like to try making this! Thanks for all you do!

    – Sarah

  10. Hi, this is probably a silly question, but would it be possible to just leave it on a tray in the oven at that temperature overnight? We don’t have a dehydrator, and I would very much like to try making this! Thanks for all you do!

    – Sarah

  11. Kelly

    My 15yr old is desperate to find a quick breakfast solution (he is grain free)Would these proportions give more than one breakfast for a teenager?

    PS We homeschool too:)

  12. Just been into town to buy the ingredients:) Do you find your children get more than one meal out of these proportions?

    Also seconding Michelle’s request. My 15yr old who has had to give up all grains desperately misses having a quick easy breakfast.

  13. I love this idea of dehydrating nuts, coconut, and liquid ingredients and then breaking it into granola. My husband is a cereal-o-holic. Maybe I can tempt him away from his precious boxes of cereal with a raw foods take on the stuff!

    -Sea

  14. This looks SOOO good! I must make it soon. Do you think leaving the coconut sugar out would negatively affect the granola? Is it’s purpose just to sweeten it, or does it help hold it together? I realize it’s not much anyway, but I’m not eating added sugar right now.

  15. Kelly…you rock. My hubs has been asking me for homemade granola and I’ve wanted to try something different from my usual recipe. This Is it!!! Thx!

  16. You all are the best =)

    I haven’t made this or the chai granola in the oven, so I can’t guarantee it will work, but it might =) I would turn it as low as it will go (150 or so) to preserve the omega 3 and 6 in the chia meal. High heat destroys omega fatty acids.

    Hugs! Kelly

  17. Kelly,

    I came across your blog the other day and I cannot tell you how grateful and inspired I am! Your recipes look amazing! This is my second week of an elimination diet and it’s difficult to get inspired. This inspiration has also carried over into wanting to purchase all sort of kitchen gadgets. I am currently debating on how much to spend on additional kitchen gadgetry…dehydrator, vitamix, yogurt maker, etc. I have decided to take it one step at a time and find that the Nesco dehydrator is in my price range and I would like to purchase it. Would you happen to know if the material is BPA free? Thank you so much for the inspiration!

  18. Kelly,
    Where do you get your coconut sugar from? I bought some a while ago but I have no idea where I got it from! I thought I got it from iherb but now i can’t find it on their site….
    I’m going to make this, this weekend!!! I’m so excited!!!
    Thanks!
    Ann

  20. I must try this. Except I haven’t got a dehydrator… (yet). Can I put in the oven on the lowest temperature?

  23. Hi there! I love your recipes and ran to the store to buy everything for this cereal…..except I forgot the Chia seeds. Can I sub flax seed meal? I do have that! Thanks for all you do. Truly inspiring!!