Remember my dehydrated Millet Buckwheat Orange Zest granola? I promised to create a baked version soon. And today is the day! I'm sharing this oven-baked version of my sprouted granola over at Honest Company Blog today! Fancy Baked Sprouted Granola is crunchy, flavorful, and deliciously healthy.
This is what I call fancy baked sprouted granola because it's sprouted first. Sprouting your grains first makes them higher in protein and more digestible. Confused? Sprouting is a brief period in the life cycle of a grain or seed—right after it has started to sprout, but before it has developed into a full-fledged plant—when it's considered to be a sprouted grain. The outer bran layer will have split open, and the beginnings of a young shoot may be visibly peeking out of the grain. In this stage, some of the starchy portions of the grain will have been digested by the young shoot to fuel its awakening. It is this change in state that results in the observed nutritional difference between sprouted and conventional (ungerminated) grains.
Interesting right?
I LOVE to make granola. There really isn't anything better for breakfast than a healthy homemade breakfast cereal. And it's nutritious, full of healthy fiber, protein, fats, and carbohydrates.
But the granola I usually make is raw sprouted and dehydrated. Not your typical oven-cooked breakfast. Many people don't own dehydrators (although I highly recommend that you buy one). And I do not suggest that you follow a recipe that calls for a dehydrator and then uses the oven instead. It never turns out right (i.e., my kale chip recipe)—and those of you who have done this know what I'm talking about. It changes everything. So, today I've created a “sprouted and dehydrated” style granola that calls for an OVEN! Yay.
It's full of wonderful grains. The grains are germinated first and the seeds are sprouted. It's gluten-free. And I sweeten it only with coconut sugar and honey. That's it.
I hope you enjoy this breakfast in a big bowl topped with fresh fruit and fresh almond milk.
Fancy Baked Sprouted Granola
INGREDIENTS
• ½ cup millet, soaked in water for 1-2 hours and rinsed
• ½ cup buckwheat, soaked in water for 1-2 hours, and rinsed
• 1 Tbsp. chia seeds, soaked in water for 10 minutes
• 1 cup certified gluten-free oats
• ½ cup sprouted sunflower seeds (you can buy these, sprout yourself, or just use raw seeds)
• 2 vanilla beans
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ⅓ cup coconut sugar
• 2 heaping Tbsp. good quality organic honey
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• 1 pinch sea salt
*Try to use organic options when possible.
DIRECTIONS
1. First set the millet and buckwheat aside and let it soak in water for at least an hour. Do the same with the chia seeds, except for 10 minutes.
2. In a food processor, chop up the oats and sunflower seeds until they are evenly distributed and chopped but not so much they are turned into flour (about 10 seconds).
3. Add chia seeds, coconut sugar, honey, and melted coconut oil. Pulse again until thoroughly mixed (like 5-10 seconds).
4. Add the rest of the ingredients and pulse one last time until the mixture is evenly combined (again about 5-10 seconds).
5. Put mixture onto a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper. If you don’t have parchment paper try and grease the pan a bit using a coconut oil spray or just rub coconut oil with a towel.
6. Cook at 350 degrees F for about 30 minutes. Please stir the mixture with a spatula every 5 minutes or so.
7. Let cool and enjoy. Store in a dry container in the fridge for longer shelf life.
For more banter and a few extra photos, you can check out the Honest Company Blog's original post.
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