The first time I made this recipe I burnt it, like bits of charred fruits, nuts and seeds, set off the smoke alarm, BURNT it! I was disappointed and the dogs were pissed. That damn smoke alarm interrupted their fifteenth nap of the day. But as they say, every failure is a learning experience. What I learned from this recipe failure was that my dogs hate smoke alarms and I love burnt grain-free granola! The dates, I used dates in the first version, and the cherries became like charcoaled bits of delight. Some of the bits of dates were actually so hard that I was worried about the state of my molars. Despite my concern I happily munched on. So what I am trying to tell you is….I ate it ALL and thoroughly enjoyed it, then set about perfecting it so that such mistakes would not occur again. Even though I found them to be delicious.
People often ask me what inspires my recipes. I wish I had an amazing story of growing up, cooking with my grandmother and trying to recreate recipes passed down to her through generations. Although my grandma did make a killer peach cobbler, canned her own fruits and veggies and made the most amazing strawberry jam, but my recipes rarely have a storyline. Most of them are flat out accidents, like this one. I was trying to put groceries away, realizing I had little pantry space as bags of nuts, seeds and dried fruit were landing on my head! Once I regained my wits, managed to wrestle a bag of dried cherries from my dog and cleaned up the pecan pieces that had rained down all over my kitchen floor, I realized I may have the making of a delicious grain-free granola. Plus I had a Chocolate Cherry Chia Seed Pudding (recipe coming soon) setting in my fridge, what a perfect combination!
I know I say this about every one of my recipes, and I believe it to be true about each and every one, but this stuff is SO tasty! I made it with the goal of creating an easy snack, a topping for some delicious homemade puddings, plain yogurts from a grass-fed source, or even ice cream. It is all of that and more. Pour yourself a heaping pile and drown it in coconut milk as well. You will not regret it!
- 1 cup pecans
- ½ cup walnuts
- ½ cup macadamia nuts
- ¼ cup raw sunflower seeds
- 3 Tbsp Chia seeds
- 2 Tbsp Flax
- ½ cup unsweetened coconut, finely shredded
- ¼ tsp sea salt
- 1 tsp cinnamon (optional)
- 3 Tbsp coconut oil
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 2 Tbsp raw honey
- ½ cup dried cherries, chopped
- 14 cup cacao nibs
- Preheat oven to 325, use middle rack
- In food processor, pulse walnuts, pecans and macadamia nuts about 30 sec
- Pour mixture in bowl, add chia, flax seeds and shredded coconut
- Add salt and cinnamon and stir to combine
- In small sauce pan melt coconut oil and honey, add vanilla
- Add to nut mixture and stir well
- Place an even layer on parchment lined baking sheet
- Bake for 10 minutes, stir and bake an additional 10 minutes
- Stir again, increase heat to 350 add dried cherries and bake for about 5 minutes
- Remove from oven when granola is browned to your perfection (or blackened like I like it!)
- Stir in cacao nibs and let cool completely
To a nourished life,
Natalie