A few nights ago I dreamed I ate a very large bowl of cereal.  But, it wasn’t just any cereal, it was one of the foods I had the hardest time breaking up with when I began to eat a cleaner diet.  My ex…Kashi Go Lean Crunch.  You know, the cereal that boasts it contains as much protein as an egg (and 13x the sugar, but that is a completely different blog post).  I practically lived on the stuff, and sometimes I just miss it.  So, instead of buying a box of trouble, I made something that would satisfy both my craving and my commitment to my health.

Grain Free Granola 

Ingredients:

• 1/2 c coconut oil (melted)
• 1/2 c honey
• 1 tbsp cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 c raw sunflower seeds
• 1 c raw pumpkin seeds
• 1 c raw sliced almonds
• 1 c raw chopped pecans
• 2 c shredded unsweetened coconut (split in 1/2)
• 1 c dried blueberries
• 1 c dried cherries
• 1 c dried cranberries

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 300°
2. Melt coconut oil and honey together.
3. Stir in cinnamon, ginger, and salt.  Mix well.
4. Add the sunflower seeds, pumpkin seeds, pecans and 1 c of the shredded coconut to the bowl.
5. Mix ingredients until evenly coated.
6. Spread mixture evenly onto a parchment lined cookie sheet.
7. Bake for 20 – 25 min, turning the granola 1/2 way through to prevent burning.
8. Let the mixture cool for 5 – 10 min.
9. Sprinkle remaining shredded coconut, blueberries, cranberries and cherries on top of the baked granola.
10. Using a spatula, mix thoroughly on the cookie sheet.
11. ENJOY!!   Oh, and try not to eat the whole batch at once…it will be tempting, but if you eat too much it will give you a tummy ache.

*This recipe was inspired by Juli from PaleOMG (http://paleomg.com/paleo-granola/)