Low Fat Granola

If you’re familiar with my old blog, my love affair with this wholesome breakfast staple is old news, though I have continued to tweak it over the years, and it’s still a mainstay of our diet, so I thought it was worth sharing again.

My husband and I eat this low fat/low sugar granola for breakfast almost every weekday, topped with homemade soy milk or coconut yogurt, as well as ground flax or hemp seeds. Fresh fruit on top is a nice addition, if available. My daughter sometimes sprinkles a handful of this granola on top of a smoothie bowl, for a bit of crunch.

In this updated version, I’ve reduced the oil by 3/4, and the sugar by about 1/3. I’ve also doubled the recipe; this means I can bake off half, and freeze the other half until needed (a trick I learned in Heather’s Whole Food Freezer Cooking workshop). A half batch gets us through about two weeks, but feel free to make half this amount, and freeze half of that, if you won’t be going through it that quickly.

We do use honey in this, but feel free to replace it if you don’t eat it. We keep our own bees in a very non-intrusive way, and only take honey if there’s excess. I feel that I’m more likely to cause harm to bees by driving in a car (windshield strikes) than I am by keeping them this way, plus, they’re hugely beneficial to our orchard and garden. I will likely quit using it if we ever quit keeping them.

You can find the original recipe here.

5 from 2 votes

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Cheryl's Low Fat Granola

Makes a double batch of my low fat, low sugar granola. 

Course Breakfast

Calories 360 kcal

Cheryl (Eat What You Sow) Cheryl (Eat What You Sow)

Ingredients

Wet Ingredients

• 1/2 cup mild flavoured oil
• 1 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup honey, agave, or more maple syrup (we use our own ethically raised honey, but sub other sweetener to keep vegan)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup water (to help distribute sweetener and flavourings)
• 2 tbsp vanilla
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp cinnamon

Dry Ingredients

• 18 cups old fashioned rolled oats
• 2 cups shredded coconut
• 2 cups wheat germ (or less, or omit, for gluten-free)
• 1 cup sesame seeds (or less, or omit)
• 6 cups nuts (chopped - any combination of pecans, almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts, pumpkin seeds, and/or sunflower seeds)
• 4 cups dried fruit (any combination of raisins, dried cranberries, apricots, blueberries, cherries, or goji berries)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

2. Place wet ingredients in medium saucepan over medium heat. Stir until sugar has dissolved and mixture is just about to boil.

3. Stir dry ingredients (except dried fruit) together in a large bowl. Pour warm wet mixture over the dry, and stir well to combine.

4. At this point, divide the mixture and put half in a large freezer bag. Freeze. Divide the remainder between two large baking sheets (lined with parchment, if desired). Put two oven racks in the middle of your oven, and bake the granola for 30 minutes on convection, stirring halfway through. If you don't have a convection oven, just rotate the pans (top to bottom) at the halfway point.

5. At the 30 minute mark, sprinkle two cups of dried fruit over the granola (one cup per sheet). Bake for 10 - 12 more minutes. This brief baking period is just enough to dry the fruit slightly (so the granola doesn't get sticky in storage), without burning it.

6. Remove granola from oven, stir, and leave to cool. Store in an airtight container.
7. When it comes time to bake the second half, don't forget to add the additional two cups of fruit part way through baking.

Nutrition Facts

Cheryl's Low Fat Granola

Amount Per Serving (1 cup)

Calories 360 Calories from Fat 207

% Daily Value*

Fat 23g35%

Sodium 135mg6%

Carbohydrates 45.75g15%

Fiber 9.7g40%

Sugar 12.5g14%

Protein 11g22%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.