Nutty Coconut Granola - More filling than Weetabix I reckon!

*** Update - I have made this a few times now and experimented with the coconut element. I have given all desicated a go, all flaked and half and half. My opinion is that half desicated and half flaked coconut gave me the version I've been most happy with so far. I'm also loving the addition of sesame seeds in the latest incarnation.***

I've got a recipe to share with you that I am super excited about. I am a real snacker and in an office where there is always ready supply of biscuits to tempt me that is not a good thing! About 10.30am is when the snack pangs start to rear their ugly heads and despite my best intentions I will often find myself choosing the chocolate bourbons over the broccoli dippers.

But not this last few weeks, I haven’t had a mid-morning snack attack at all!

So what’s changed? What’s different about my morning routine? Well I put it down to this rather delicious granola recipe (and another one for Chia seed pudding - I'll be posting that next). It’s not particularly low calorie because it’s full of fats but they are at least the good kind. Another thing it isn't is sweet – I've set myself a challenge of going two weeks without added sugar in my diet. What it is though is delicious and supremely filling.

If you are like me and get the morning munchies then I can’t recommend enough giving this recipe a go. As for the ingredients, use them as a rough guide. If you have different nuts and seeds in the house then give them a try.

  

Nutty Coconut Granola

Pour the following contents over a large baking tray:

500g oats (I like the jumbo oats for this recipe but normal ones would work fine too)

250g desiccated coconut

150g walnuts (roughly chopped)

100g hazelnuts (roughly chopped)

100g mixed seeds

50g linseeds

In a dish melt 3 tbsp of coconut oil in the microwave and stir through:

1 pod vanilla seeds (save the pod after you've scraped out the seeds, it's great to add to custards etc)

1 tsp cinnamon (feel free to add more but I prefer it as a back note)

Now pour the oil mixture over the oats and nuts then mix until it is evenly coated.

Place the tray into an oven at gas mark 4 and bake for 25 minutes – take out half way through and turn it through with a spoon. Do the same again five minutes before the end of the cooking time.

It is ready when everything has turned a lovely golden brown.

Leave in the tray to cool and then transfer to an airtight container.

Serving suggestions:

I love this with a splash of milk instead of processed cereal (Koko milk is even better as it really brings out all the coconut flavours).

Mix with a dollop of Greek yoghurt and a smattering of berries.

This weekend I’m going to use it to top roasted carrots with chunks of goats cheese, I think it will be delicious and I’ll let you know how it goes. ***Update, it was delicious! This has now become my go to topping when I want something a little different over my roasted veg, it's also a fantastic salad topper. 

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