The Best Gluten and Nut Free Granola Recipe

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The perfect combination of sweet and crunchy, this simple gluten and nut free granola recipe is a family favorite in our house. While making your own granola, may sound difficult, I promise this recipe comes together in only a few minutes and requires just a few basic ingredients!

Our Granola Story

To be honest, I never grew up eating cereal of any kind. In fact, the idea of eating a bowl of cereal or granola with milk poured in it doesn’t sound appetizing at all. However, as I got older, I did have a deep love for yogurt. And granola with yogurt is the perfect combination in my opinion. After we began our real food journey, I was frustrated with the poor quality and expensive granola options at the store. So, I quickly began making my own. After much experimentation, this basic yet delicious gluten and nut free granola has become a staple in our kitchen.

Why Make Your Own Granola?

We are big fans of making most everything from scratch, but this is especially true when it comes to any cereal type items. There are several reasons for this:

• Cereals and specifically oat-based products tend to test very high for containing significant levels of glyphosate, a chemical known to cause cancer. Glyphosate, found in the weed killer Roundup, is sprayed directly on oats before harvest causing them to end up in many oat-based products. You can read more in this article.

• Most cereals contain a laundry list of ingredients, many unnatural with added sugars and certainly not contributing to health.

• The price point, especially amongst the “better quality” cereal or granola products is generally significantly more than I want to spend.

With all of these reasons to avoid purchasing cereals or granola from the store, why make your own?

• It is quick and easy.
• You get to be in control of the ingredients that are used.
• Tons of money in savings for a higher quality product! 

What Type of Oats to Use?

When it comes to purchasing oats, this is a very important question. As I explained above, oats tend to be one of the highest Glyphosate containing foods. In order to avoid this cancer-causing chemical, it is important to purchase organic oats. Our favorite oats are the One Degree Organic Foods Gluten Free Sprouted Rolled Oats. These are not only organic but certified non-Glyphosate as well as gluten-free certified. You can find these online or our favorite place to purchase them is at Costco.

What about steel cut vs. rolled vs. quick oats? The difference between these types of oats has to do with the amount of processing they go through. 

Steel cut oats are the least processed and most closely resemble the harvested oat groat. Steel cut oats are chopped into pieces by large steel blade and the resulting product is coarse, nutty, and chewy. 

Rolled oats, also known as old fashioned oats, are oat groats that have been steamed and flattened. They are flatter and softer than steel cut oats and cook much more quickly as they have already been partially cooked. 

Quick oats are taken one step beyond old fashioned or rolled oats. After being steamed they are flattened even thinner making them even quicker to cook up.

For this nut free granola recipe, I prefer to use rolled oats but quick oats could be used as well.

The Ingredients in Our Gluten and Nut Free Granola Recipe

After experimenting with many different granola recipes, this has become our favorite. I love it because the ingredients are basic and I almost always have them on hand, and it comes together so quickly. That being said, there are some tweaks and adjustments you can make to make this granola recipe your own!

Oats

Like I mentioned above, our favorite oats to use are rolled oats and we especially like gluten free and sprouted rolled oats by the One Degree Organic Food Company. They are sprouted which makes for easier digestion and increased absorption of vitamins and minerals.

Egg Whites

When cooked, the egg whites in this recipe really help give this granola that characteristic crunch. I am always looking for ways to use up extra egg white from using the yolks in making our homemade vanilla ice cream. This nut free granola recipe fits the bill!

Brown Sugar

While you could definitely substitute honey or maple syrup in this recipe, we’ve found that using brown sugar gives this granola the best texture. The maple syrup or honey tended to lead to a softer, less crunchy texture while the brown sugar worked perfectly for this. Alternatively, you could substitute coconut sugar for brown sugar.

Coconut Oil

As opposed to most store-bought granolas that contain vegetable and seed oils which tend to be rancid and high in polyunsaturated fatty acids, we prefer to use either coconut oil or butter as the fat in our granola.

Spices

Our favorite combination is salt and a good helping of cinnamon. However, you can feel free to get creative here and substitute whatever spices you like. Nutmeg or pumpkin pie spice would be delicious options!

Additional Add in’s

While we tend to keep our granola simple and only use the ingredients listed in the recipe, feel free to add whatever additional add-ins you would like! Some delicious options would include coconut flakes, nuts or seeds, chocolate chips, or dried fruit.

Gluten and Nut Free Granola Recipe

Ingredients:

4 Cups Gluten-Free Oats
1-2 Tbsp Cinnamon
½ tsp salt
½ cup brown sugar
1/3 cup coconut oil (or butter), melted
4 whipped egg whites

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Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 275 degrees.
2. Whip egg whites until frothy*
3. In a large mixing bowl mix dry ingredients (oats, cinnamon, salt, and brown sugar).
4. Add in melted coconut oil and whipped egg whites.
5. Stir until everything is combined.
6. Pour onto a baking sheet, spreading out into a thin layer.
7. Bake at 275 for 30-35 minutes
8. If granola isn’t crunchy yet, check back every few minutes until desirable texture is achieved. If the top is starting to brown, bump oven down to 200 degrees until finished.

*To whip egg whites, remove from fridge at least an hour before whipping for best results. I whip thoroughly with a whisk until foamy – it doesn’t need to be perfect.

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For more of our favorite breakfast recipes, check out our soaked baked oatmeal and sourdough scones!