The Best Raw Granola you will ever have

[areana33]

Hello! I've been creeping this forum for a long time without posting anything. I make a lot of raw desserts and recipes but never get the chance to post them because they become too mangled and disfigured from my SAD family chowing down on them.

BUT, there was a thread recently on what to do with oats on a raw diet (assuming they are raw of course which is very debatable) and so I was inspired to make some granola.
I used to make incredible SAD granola and so I wanted to try to make the recipe raw because it was just so good.
All I did was switch the ingredients in the old recipe in favor of its raw counterpart.


The Best Raw Granola Recipe

1/4 cup coconut butter
1/8 cup agave
2 tbsp + 1 1/2 tsp honey (use more agave if you don't use honey but use less because agave is sweet)
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/3 of a vanilla bean chopped finely
1 cup raw oats (soaked and drained of excess water)
Almonds, Goji berries, sun-dried raisins, cranberries, cocoa nibs, pumpkin seeds, cashews, sunflower seeds - the list goes on! Mix and match to suit your tastebuds.

Directions

1. Cream together the coconut butter and agave with an electric mixer until well combined. Then add the cinnamon and the vanilla bean. Mix well.
2. Add the honey and mix until it has a carmel-like texture.
3. Add the soaked oats and stir well with a spoon so that everything is well coated.
4. Next add your nuts, seeds, and dried fruit. I eyed it at this point and put big handfuls of my favorites in. Mix again with a spoon.
5. Pour onto teflex sheet in a thin even layer. Dehydrate at 114 degrees for 8 to 24 hours depending on how crunchy or soft you like it.

Delish!
I will post a picture soon when I eat it for breakfast, warm with almond milk and fresh fruit - YUM!


Note: If you don't have a dehydrator you can do this in your oven at the lowest convect temperature (I've tried it both ways). And you can use unsoaked oats if you want. (I like soaking them for better digestion).

[RawKnitster]

Mmmmmm! Yum is right. Great idea using the coconut butter. Pass the almond milk, please!

[Aleesha]

that looks really good.

[kimmm]

Hi! I'm a newbie- been looking for a good granola recipe because I would love to have something "cereal like".... I'm confused about the grain products though... I have some kamut, is that the oat you are talking about here? In describing, it looks like a whole wheat kernal... would you soak the usual 8 hrs? I also have oat groats that look like the same thing, are they? Lastly, I have some buckwheat oat groats, they are much smaller, look more like a seed, confused about them too. Thanks for your help!

[Jessican]

Originally Posted by kimmm

Hi! I'm a newbie- been looking for a good granola recipe because I would love to have something "cereal like".... I'm confused about the grain products though... I have some kamut, is that the oat you are talking about here? In describing, it looks like a whole wheat kernal... would you soak the usual 8 hrs? I also have oat groats that look like the same thing, are they? Lastly, I have some buckwheat oat groats, they are much smaller, look more like a seed, confused about them too. Thanks for your help!

I believe Kamut is a type of Wheat.

She's using "oat groats" which look like this:


"Buckwheat groats" (which can also be sprouted and dried - Alissa has a recipe for granola using them in her book) look like this:

[kimmm]

Jessican- Thank you so much! I needed pictures to clarify! I have the oat groats... and the buckwheat I have looks just like that, I think this is the variety everyone is using in their recipes and also using to soak and dehydrate for snacks, ect... I think you're right about the kamut, it looks a lot like the wheatberries I used to use to grow wheatgrass a few years ago. Thanks again! Although I know I'll have more questions, this really helps!

[skier2]

Originally Posted by kimmm

Jessican- Thank you so much! I needed pictures to clarify! I have the oat groats... and the buckwheat I have looks just like that, I think this is the variety everyone is using in their recipes and also using to soak and dehydrate for snacks, ect... I think you're right about the kamut, it looks a lot like the wheatberries I used to use to grow wheatgrass a few years ago. Thanks again! Although I know I'll have more questions, this really helps!

I am weary of using grains in my daily diet. What have people noticed? I don't have a problem with using buckwheat, since it isn't really a grain in the wheat sense, but cereal grains seem to make me feel fat and bloaty. Thoughts?

[areana33]

Originally Posted by skier2

I am weary of using grains in my daily diet. What have people noticed? I don't have a problem with using buckwheat, since it isn't really a grain in the wheat sense, but cereal grains seem to make me feel fat and bloaty. Thoughts?

I eat grains very sparingly on this diet because they are harder on your digestion then whole foods like fruits and vegetables. When I can, I try to sprout them, which ups the protein, the nutritional value, and eases the digestion process. I too, feel very sluggish if I have too many grain-based foods. But it's okay to have them once and while I think, as long as you don't go overboard.

kimmm - For this recipe I actually use raw rolled oats. I have a secret stash of them that's almost used up. My LHFS stopped carrying them so I'm now at wits end trying to find a truly raw supplier.
But I'm sure oat groats would work just as well!

[xPIXIEx]

Yum, thanks for sharing. I'm going to make some of this and a pitcher of almond mylk!

[Jessican]

areana - sorry, I just ASSumed it was oat groats since you said raw oats - and I've only heard of rolled oats being made by steaming them and then rolling them. I know oat groats can be iffy because you don't know what method is used to dry them, but I thought rolled oats could ONLY be cooked?

[Sirova]

That sounds delicious!! Definitely have to get some raw sproutable oats!

[areana33]

Originally Posted by Jessican

areana - sorry, I just ASSumed it was oat groats since you said raw oats - and I've only heard of rolled oats being made by steaming them and then rolling them. I know oat groats can be iffy because you don't know what method is used to dry them, but I thought rolled oats could ONLY be cooked?

Jessican - it's okay! Most rolled oats aren't raw because of the steaming process used. So you are correct in your assumptions! I just happened to find some that were made using the lowest temperature possible. But, alas, I can no longer get them.
And the more I do research the more and more I conspire that maybe the ones I bought weren't technically raw and were just very gently steamed. (As I'm sure you know, most products labeled raw usually aren't).
Ah wells...the granola is still tasty and not terrible for you like the other SAD recipes filled with butter and sugar! Haha.

[Mary Kay]

You can get truly raw hulless oats - whole oats - and then roll them yourself in a little machine I really like ---it's a Marga brand. (You can get it from Lehman's....Lehmans.com? It's about $80 - $85. Also, if you combine with rye, this makes them more digestible and you can do a truly raw dehydrated version. You can actually sprout and dehydrate the truly raw grains, then roll them.

However, my opinion, Skier is that grains are better cooked. Now, don't everyone come down on me!!! BUT I don't like to cook oats or other grains with dry heat due to acrylamides. My compromise ---and since my kids don't like grawnola made with buckwheat and quinoa ---was to mix in a little coconut oil, vanilla, and maple syrup, and begin cooking the oats mixed with a little rolled rye, just like you would a SAD version only on a lower heat - 250 F. But then STOP as soon as you know it's begun to cook and before it dries out. Cool, mix with the grawnola, then dehydrate the whole thing.

It was stupendous. However, my kids only marginally liked it. Sigh.

My grawnola is: sprouted buckwheat, sprouted quinoa, coconut, ground nuts, vanilla, fruit etc.

HTH,

Mary Kay