Oil Free Sugar Free Homemade Granola
Recently Aldi has been selling this soft-baked granola and I love love love to add it into my morning oatmeal. However, I don't really love that it has added sugar :/ So I decided to do some research and make my own granola! I found a recipe by Pick Up Limes and I thought that the use of dates and tahini was genius. I made my own version with the add ons that I love :)
Ingredients and calories:
1 packed cup of dried pitted deglet dates (~440)
1/2 cup of tahini (~710)
3 cups of dry quick oats (900)
1/2 cups of raw whole hazelnuts (~424)
4 tbsp of raw pumpkin seeds (~253)
2 tbsp of hulled hemp seeds (~104)
4 tbsp of unsweetened coconut shreds (~140)
Total calories (Don't freak out, this makes many many servings): ~2,971
I use the granola 3 tbsp at a time, but I unfortunately don't know how many calories that equates to. I just estimate it to be 80-100 calories since 3 tbsp of dry quick oats is ~50.
Preheat the oven to 300 degrees F. In the meantime, place the dates and tahini into a food processor and blend until smooth and well-mixed. Alternatively, you can just chop up the dates and mash them with a fork until they form a paste, and then mix in the tahini. Place the date and tahini mix into a large bowl and add in the oats. Mix well (this may take a few minutes). Add in the remaining ingredients and mix thoroughly. Place a sheet of parchment paper over a large oven-safe pan (I use a cast iron). Spread the granola mixture evenly into the pan. Bake for 20 minutes and let it cool for about 10 minutes. Store the granola in an air-tight container, preferably in the fridge. It should be good for two to three weeks. Enjoy :)
