Why Homemade Granola is the Best

....At least in my opinion : ) My favorite part about making your own granola (or any food) is that you control exactly what goes in it. No compromising on ingredients you don't like, or additives you'd like to avoid. Plus, you can control the sweetness and any add-ins that you want! Most recipes are flexible to the ingredients that you have on hand - just keep proportions in mind.

What's a Superfood Anyway?

Google would tell us it's a food that's particularly nutrient dense food with supposed health benefits. Superfruits were all the rage not too long ago! Nowadays you'd see a lot of foods on a superfood list, but it really comes down to having wholesome, real ingredients. Real food is the best food! Whether it's berries, chia or kale, having any plant-based food is probably going to be better than other options. Incorporating some different ones like acai or turmeric is great for a different and more nutrient dense boost, though! I was super intrigued by goji berries last year, so I had them on hand to brainstorm this granola.

Gimme the Granola Recipe

Let's cut to it! I'm calling this superfood granola because I used hemp seeds, chia seeds, sunflower seeds, goji berries, coconut AND pistachios. All things! Swap out any dried fruit for the goji berries, and leave out the seeds if desired. I'd suggest keeping the nuts and coconut in, though you could also use a different type of nut. Enjoy, and let me know if you try it!

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Goji Berry and Pistachio Superfood Granola

An easy #vegan and #glutenfree recipe for goji berry granola with lots of options for hemp seed, chia seed, sunflower seed and nut add ins! No additives like anything you'll find in the store, and fresh from the oven!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 4 -5 cups, depending on add ins

Author Andrea @ French Pressed Kitchen

Ingredients

Granola Mix

• 3 cups rolled oats
• ½ cup pistachios or almonds
• ¼ cup coconut chips or shredded coconut
• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• ¼ cup sunflower seeds
• 2 Tablespoons chia seeds
• Dash of salt
• Pinch of cinnamon
• ⅓ cup real maple syrup or honey
• ⅓ cup coconut oil or avocado oil
• ⅓ cup coconut sugar

After Baking Add-Ins

• ¾ cup dried goji berries

Instructions

• Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Mix dry ingredients in a bowl (minus any dried fruit).
• Mix the maple syrup (or honey), avocado oil and coconut sugar in a small sauce pan on low heat until just dissolved. Pour the mixture on top of the bowl of dry ingredients, gently folding in to combine.
• Spread the mixture evenly on a large baking sheet. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until just toasted and golden brown, stirring halfway through. Make sure that it doesn't burn!
• Remove and let cool without stirring - it will retain the big chunks! Add in goji berries or other dried fruit once cooled.
• Store in an air tight container for up to 2 weeks - if it lasts that long!

The post Goji Berry and Pistachio Superfood Granola appeared first on French Pressed Kitchen.

And yes - it comes via sous chef Pedro!! Idea to execution, this recipe was all his 🙂 The theme was initially fall inspired, but the pomegranate and pistachio gave me all the Christmas feels. Even though the weather feels too warm here in Washington D.C., the cookies, decorations and *thoughts* of snow are enough to get me a little excited.

Anyway, moving on to the creation of this lovely parfait.  This parfait was initially intended as a dessert, but I requested it to be moved to the morning since I was a little full that night we cooked. At first I didn't think the pistachio would work but it totally did and was such a festive holiday touch. We had some granola on hand that I had made earlier in the week, as well as some pomegranate that Pedro had de-seeded so we used both of those. I normally wouldn't bother to put them in a fancy glass but I'm so glad we did because it turned out so colorful 🙂 Plus, it was good to change things up with some yogurt. Love me some Fage.

So much magical holiday spirit!

These were totally a 5 minute creation once the prep was done - do it the night before! You could also buy pomegranate seeds already prepped, as well as use store bought granola and shelled pistachios. Then all you have to do is layer up! A bowl with toppings would also be great (I suspect this would travel well to work), but the layers are great to mix things throughout. Try it out and see what you think!

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Pistachio Pomegranate Parfait

An easy, 5 minute holiday parfait, featuring pistachio, pomegranate and nutty granola that is sure to brighten your day. Gluten free and vegan options!

Course Breakfast, Dessert

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Servings 1 large serving

Author Andrea @ French Pressed Kitchen

Ingredients

• 1 cup Greek yogurt*
• ⅓ cup granola homemade or other
• 2-3 Tablespoons pomegranate
• 2-3 Tablespoons shelled pistachios
• Dash of cinnamon

Instructions

• Layer up the ingredients in a bowl or jar: yogurt, granola, pomegranate, repeat! Top with more pomegranate and pistachios. We saved the nuts for the top so they wouldn't get soggy.
• No judge if you add more granola at the end.

Notes

* Try almond milk or coconut milk yogurt if you're looking for a vegan or dairy free alternative.

Bon appetit!

The post Pistachio Pomegranate Parfait appeared first on French Pressed Kitchen.

In da house. Bowls of it.

If you're looking for a fall granola, this is it! This mix is

+ Crunchy

+ Sweet

+ Toasty

+ Cinnamon-y

I used this roasted walnut oil as a base for the liquid in the recipe, which added a really nice depth of flavor. I've had it for a while and had been meaning to use it up but didn't know how. Granola is so flexible that I figured it would be a good test case and I was right!! So much flavor. I think coconut oil and/or canola oil would great as well, it will just have less of a walnut flavor.

We've had it for a few days and can't stop snacking on it 🙂

If you try it out, let me know!!

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Roasted Walnut and Maple Granola

A deeply flavorful breakfast granola made from roasted walnut oil, maple syrup and lots of cinnamon. You'll love how crunchy the oats get!

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 4 generous cups

Author Andrea Shome

Ingredients

Dry

• 2 cups rolled oats
• 1 cup raw walnuts chopped
• ¼ cup slivered almonds
• 1 Tablespoon flaxseed meal
• 1 teaspoon chia seeds
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon more to taste
• Heavy pinch of salt

Wet

• 4 Tablespoons walnut oil or coconut oil
• 4 Tablespoons maple syrup

Instructions

• Heat oven to 350 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Mix all the dry ingredients together in a bowl. Then add the oil and maple syrup, making sure to coat everything evenly.
• Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown. Check at 20 minutes and leave in a few more minutes if not toasty looking at smelling. You can stir halfway through, or leave it untouched which will result in bigger chunks of granola.
• Let cool, then dig in!! Best with a bowl of good milk =).

The post Roasted Walnut and Maple Granola appeared first on French Pressed Kitchen.

I always have a ton of recipes in my backlog of things to cook, and granola bars have been on them for a few weeks.  I made a similar one with quinoa here, but wanted to try something new. I mashed up a few recipes I saw, including this baked one and this chewy one, but made them my own because I wanted to use the tahini and hemp seeds I had on hand! The whole no bake thing also sounded good, and fast, so I went that route. And because I didn't have chocolate chips (sad, unheard of), I went with a DRIZZLE!

No bake granola bars or balls are pretty straightforward to make. You start with your dry ingredients -

Then mix away.

Melt your wet ingredients (tahini or nut butter, maple or honey, vanilla) like so (that swirl!)

Mix this in with the dry ingredients until well combined. It will look a bit crumbly like the picture below, but once you press the mixture into a pan tightly, it will come together.

Once you've pressed the oat mixture, you can TOP IT!! You'll see that I drizzled chocolate on top - totally recommend! Chocolate chips inside would be even better 🙂 The drizzle was a good compromise with my husband, who doesn't like chocolate quiiiiite as much as me. Just mix it all up - press into pan - drizzle - fridge it - then...

Cut into bars!

And then enjoy all week 🙂

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No Bake Tahini Hemp Granola Bars

A 10 minute no bake recipe for granola bars made with oats, nuts, tahini and seeds. A not-too-sweet snack or breakfast far. Vegan and gluten free.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Total Time 10 minutes

Servings 12 -16 small bars

Author Andrea Shome

Ingredients

Dry Ingredients

• 1 and ½ cups rolled oats
• ¼ cup hemp seeds
• ¼ cup finely shredded coconut
• ¼ cup mini chocolate chips
• 3 Tablespoons nuts I used sliced almonds
• 2 Tablespoons chia seeds
• 2 Tablespoons ground flax seeds
• ½ teaspoon cinnamon
• ¼ teaspoon salt

Wet Ingredients

• ½ cup tahini
• ¼ cup maple syrup ⅓ cup for sweeter bars
• 1 teaspoon coconut oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla

Instructions

• Line a 9-inch square pan with parchment paper. In a large bowl combine the dry ingredients (oats, hemp seeds, coconut, nuts, chia seeds, flax seeds, cinnamon, salt and chocolate chips if using).
• Heat a small saucepan over medium low heat and add in wet ingredients (maple syrup, tahini, coconut oil, and vanilla). Stir until everything is melted and combine.
• Add the wet ingredients to the dry mixture and stir, stir, stir until coated. It may not seem like enough at first but will come together nicely.
• Transfer the granola mix to the pan and spread evenly until the pan is filled. Press down firmly to pack in the bars - this will make sure that they stick together. I used the top of a lid to pat them down firmly. Once they are flat, you can drizzle them with melted chocolate*.
• Place the pan in the fridge for 1-2 hours to firm up. Once firm, cut into even squares or thin bars. These should keep nicely in the fridge for a week or so - I like to wrap them individually and bring as snacks!

Notes

* You can melt chocolate using the double boiler method, or in 15-20 second spurts in the microwave, stirring in between sessions.

You could leave out any of the seeds if you don't have them on hand - the oats, maple, and tahini are the main ingredients! You can add other chopped nuts if you like in place of them.

If you try these out, or any other variations, let me know how they turn out! Bon appetit.

The post No Bake Tahini Hemp Granola Bars appeared first on French Pressed Kitchen.

I was thinking about getting another Purely Elizabeth or Love Crunch to have with my yogurt this week but we had already maxed our grocery budget for the month, hehe. I secretly don't mind because it means a bit of pantry clean out and creativity!

Perfect with Siggi's.

I had already decided to make granola bars for my coworkers on my last day (incentive to come say bye 😉 ) I went with my favorite peanut butter quinoa oat bats from Ambitious Kitchen, with some tweaks!! A new jar of peanut butter was just enough for the budget so it seemed like a perfect fit.  I doubled the recipe, subbed ¼ cup of the quinoa with more oats (!!), added in more chia seeds and cinnamon, and cut the honey by about half (I like it less sweet especially if adding chocolate!). The honey might keep it together more so depending on your texture or desired sweetness you may like more. 

My original plan was to stud the bars with chocolate chips (example here) but I reached into my chocolate chip jar and found out they had melted!!!! In this crazy February weather I had forgotten my jar on the table in the morning and the warm weather + sun = melted. SAD!! So I just melted the rest with some coconut oil and did a drizzle instead. Saved. 

Since these are no bake bars, I mixed everything up and threw them in the fridge to set. I ended up cutting them into small pieces which was maybe not the best idea since they crumbled quite a bit. But still so delicious!!!

Ok, on to the next recipe!! While this was happening, I queued up the granola situation because #bakingfrenzy. I found this easy banana bread granola recipe that I adapted slightly. It made a great single pan and came out toasty and crunchy just the way I like it. I let it cool on the pan and ate it right out of there. Like pan in lap (...after it cooled and I took a few photos). Soo good! I loved the banana chunks, too (subtle enough that it went with fruity yogurt).

I highly recommend this granola recipe if you're looking for a small batch, more affordable option to a fancy granola 🙂 AND you'll get big clusters for the whole batch, not just on top of the bag! 

Hope you are inspired by my granola saga to make yourself a homemade treat this weekend.

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Banana Breakfast Granola

This recipe, adapted from Minimalist Baker, makes a great morning granola to serve with yogurt, milk, or just by itself on the go. The sweetness of the banana and maple is magical! Double the recipe for a big batch.

Course Breakfast

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 25 minutes

Total Time 35 minutes

Servings 1 big 30 ounce jar

Author Andrea @ French Pressed Kitchen

Ingredients

• 1 and ½ cups rolled oats
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup slivered almonds or sub other nut
• 1 and ½ Tablespoons raw sugar
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 2 Tablespoons ground flax seed
• ⅛ cup coconut oil
• 3 Tablespoons maple syrup or honey
• ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
• ½ of a banana mashed

Instructions

• Heat oven to 350 degrees F.
• Mix the dry ingredients (oats through flax seed) together in a big bowl.
• Melt the coconut oil, maple syrup (or honey) and vanilla in a small bowl in the microwave (it only took me 20-30 seconds). Add in the mashed banana. Mix to combine, then add to the dry ingredients and stir well to coat the oats.
• Spread the mixture on a baking pan (I used 9x13") and bake for 23-26 minutes. Mine was done and toasty at 25. No need to stir if you want big chunks!
• Let cool completely on the baking sheet, then store in a jar or other container. I doubt it will last longer than a few days but it's probably fine for up to a couple weeks.

Bon appétit!

The post Banana Breakfast Granola + The Best Bars appeared first on French Pressed Kitchen.