Superfood Granola with Turmeric, Ginger, and Carrot — Nut-Free

What better way to start your day than to nourish your body with a healthy and delicious snack, like superfood granola? The turmeric, ginger, and carrot added to this homemade edible make it a nutritious breakfast item that tastes like a delightful refreshment — it’s definitely one of the perfect crunchy snacks that your favorite treats might be missing out on. So in this article, we will put together a simple and easy-to-make superfood granola recipe to make your breakfasts (and mornings) much more exciting and tasteful!

Homemade Superfood Granola

Avoid the low-quality ingredients and extra sugar that store-bought versions carry by making your own healthy superfood granola.

Superfood Granola Ingredients

To make it a quick on-the-go breakfast idea, we’ve composed a recipe with simple ingredients that you can find easily on your short grocery trip in the morning. 

• Gluten-free oats 
• Carrots (grated with liquid squeezed out)
• Coconut oil
• Maple syrup
• Coconut chips 
• Popped quinoa 
• Dried cranberries
• Flax meal
• Chia seeds 
• Turmeric
• Ground ginger 
• Sea salt 

Since it’s a nut-free recipe, we’ll skip out on walnuts, pecans, almonds, etc. 

How To Make Superfood Granola

Done collecting all the ingredients? Time to jump into the easy recipe! 

1. Heat up the oven: Start by preheating the oven to 300 F/150 C. Side by side, line a baking sheet with parchment paper. 
2. Prepare the carrots: In the meantime, grate the carrots and squeeze out the liquid. Pro Tip: Use a vegetable peeler or a food processor to avoid mushy carrots.
   
   This veggie ingredient will have a very subtle flavor that you will barely taste. 
3. Toast quinoa and dry cranberries: Add the quinoa into a small, dry pan and shake the pan till the quinoa becomes golden and starts popping. Pro Tip: This will take around 1 minute.
   
   Use a food dehydrator to dry the cranberries or place them in an oven at a low temperature. 
4. Combine the dry ingredients: Toss in the coconut chips, popped quinoa, dried cranberries, and chia seeds into a bowl and mix well. 
5. Move on to the wet ingredients: In a small saucepan, add maple syrup, coconut oil, and salt. Bring it to a low boil. Pro Tip: Watch it carefully because it bubbles up quickly. 
6. Mix wet & dry ingredients: Pour the wet ingredients from the saucepan into the bowl of the dry ingredients and mix thoroughly with a spoon until fully combined. 
7. Transfer the mixture onto the baking sheet: Shift the mixture onto the baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Thinly distribute the granola. Pro Tip: Use a spatula to press down and flatten the mixture more evenly. 
8. Bake: Watch your masterpiece baking for around 20 minutes. 
9. Remove from the oven and allow it to cool down. 
10. Store: Break up the granola and store it in an airtight container to enjoy whenever you want! 

How Long Does The Preparation of Superfood Granola Take?

Is your mouth watering after indulging in the superfood granola recipe? Don’t worry; it only takes 40 minutes to prepare this scrumptious snack — 10 minutes of prep time, 10 minutes of rest time, and 20 minutes of baking time! The best part is that this recipe serves ten people, which means you can enjoy this yummy nut-free granola with your family too!

Is Homemade Granola Healthier Than Store-bought?

Nearly all store-bought granola packagings contain processed sugars and partially hydrogenated oils. If you’re going to be consuming this in breakfast as fuel for your day, it might not be a very suitable choice. This is because the partially hydrogenated oils — oils that have been hardened to create a required consistency for that food — can result in heart diseases and other life-threatening issues. Similarly, unnecessary and excessive sugar consumption in the morning can lead to an energy crash. Homemade superfood granola, on the other hand, gives you a chance to load up on nutritious foods, like seeds, dry fruits, coconut chips, and fruits like dried cranberries, while avoiding ingredients dangerous to your health.

Is Granola Good For Your Skin?

The ingredients that make up our superfood granola recipe are all focused on supporting good health, including healthy skin. Generally, it is a good source of Vitamin E, with one serving being capable of providing you with 20% of your daily requirement. This helps protect the skin from premature aging, wrinkles, and sunburn, along with acting as a great choice for a breakfast booster. 

Viewing each ingredient individually, the superfood granola offers incredible benefits for the skin in multiple other ways, such as: 

• The natural oil in carrots moisturizes your skin and protects it from Sun damage. 
• The fats in the coconut chips minimize the dirt- and bacteria-attracting pores to help prevent acne. 
• The Vitamin B in popped quinoa enhances and brightens your skin to make it more vibrant. 
• The Omega-3 fatty acids in chia seeds strengthen the skin barrier and prevent fine lines. 
• The anti-inflammatory effects of turmeric deal with issues like acne and psoriasis. 
• The Vitamin C in dried cranberries boosts collagen production and improves skin elasticity. 

FAQs

As discussed above, turmeric granola is undoubtedly one of the best snacks you’ll ever try. Therefore, we’ve rounded up a few frequently asked questions to help you perfect your treat further with the right tips and tricks!

How do you get homemade granola to stick together?

Add more agave/maple syrup or flax meal. It will act as glue to bind the ingredients together.

What can I use instead of coconut oil in granola?

In case you’re allergic to coconut oil or simply don’t want to spend $12 on a jar of oil, below are a few substitutes you can consider. 

• A combination of peanut butter, vegetable shortening, and honey
• Plain butter or cashew butter
• Olive oil (has a similar consistency to coconut oil). Pro Tip: You can use it as a replacement at a 1:1 ratio, so you don’t have to worry about doing any math. 
• Lard (has a similar fatty acid profile as coconut oil). 
• Hemp oil (has a similar taste to coconut oil). 

How do you know when homemade granola is done?

To some extent, superfood granola behaves like cookies in the sense that it continues baking after being pulled out of the oven. As it cools down on the baking sheet, it hardens and forms clusters, so be sure not to leave it in the oven until it is fully brown. Rather take it out when it's golden brown, and while it might seem a little wet, it will crisp as it cools. 

Remember, you can certainly follow the recipe you are using but do trust your intuition when judging if it’s done. 

Prepare yourself a nourishing and easy breakfast with the superfood granola recipe! Whether you top a smoothie bowl with superfood granola, pair it with coconut milk, fresh fruit, or yogurt, or simply eat it alone with a spoon, it’s sure to make your mornings much more fun and your lifestyle much more healthy!