This stuff is dangerous. I had to literally send this to work with Ben out of fear that I would eat it all today. It is so good on its’ own that I can’t even imagine how good it would be as a topping on oatmeal or as a cereal with almond milk. Its’ sweet, salty and not full of artificial sugars and preservatives like the store bought varieties, and let’s face it, most store bought varieties are more like a candy bar than they are a health food. Although this recipe is cleaned up with natural sugars and a grain free base, I would caution you to treat this as an ‘everything in moderation’ food. While it seems healthy enough (gluten free, no preservatives, no artificial sweeteners, etc.), it is still high in sugar, albeit natural, and has a moderate amount of fat, even though individually, the fat in the seeds and coconut oil would be considered healthy fat. The good news is that this recipe will save on your counter top for about 3 weeks in a seal top jar, so you don’t have to eat it all right away (but you might really want to!) out of fear it will spoil. With the holiday season just around the corner, you can bet on not so clean treats being everywhere you look, but this buckwheat granola allows you to have your fill of sweets without wreaking complete havoc on your body. Just remember, everything in moderation! click ‘more’ for recipe
The recipe refers to using soaked, raw buckwheat groats. This refers to soaking the buckwheat groats overnight in a bowl of water on the counter. Soaking the buckwheat may seem like a lengthy process, but it is done because it removes the hard to digest components of the seed that prevent your body from fully absorbing the contained nutrients. Though this step is not required, it is recommended if you have the time. If planning to make this recipe, or any other that require soaked grains like buckwheat (excluding quinoa), make sure to plan ahead to allow time for this process as it is beneficial to your digestion. This granola also calls for time to dehydrate the buckwheat. This takes about four hours. To prepare the quick version of this recipe, eliminate the soaking, rinsing and dehydrating, and start at the mixing bowl part of the instructions. Change cooking times to 15-20 minutes on each side.
- 3 cups raw buckwheat groats; soaked and rinsed thoroughly
- 1 cup pitted dates; chopped coarsely
- 1/2 cup raw, unsalted pumpkin seeds
- 1/2 cup raw, unsalted sunflower seeds
- 1/4 cups ground flax seeds
- 1 Tbsp. virgin, unrefined coconut oil
- 1/4 cup 100% pure maple syrup
- 1.5 Tbsp. cinnamon
- 1 tsp nutmeg
- 1 tsp sea salt
- Preheat oven temperature to the lowest setting allowed and line two large baking sheets with parchment paper.
- Spread rinsed, soaked buckwheat in an even layer, filling both sheets.
- Place baking sheets in oven on middle rack and let buckwheat dehydrate for about 4 hours, flipping occasionally.
- Once finished, put dehydrated buckwheat into a large mixing bowl, leaving parchment lined baking sheets to the side. Reset oven temperature to 300F. With the buckwheat, add in pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, dates, ground flax seeds, cinnamon, nutmeg and salt.
- In a separate, microwave safe dish, melt 1 Tbsp of coconut oil. When finished, add in pure maple syrup, whisking the two together and until thoroughly mixed.
- Pour coconut oil/maple syrup mixture over the top of granola and mix until everything is well coated.
- Spread granola mixture evenly across parchment lined baking sheets and place into the oven for 10 minutes.
- At 10 minutes, coarsely flip granola and cook for an additional 10 minutes. Be careful not to let it burn.
- When finished, remove granola from oven and let cool completely. Granola mixture will harden up as it sets.
- Place completely cooled granola in seal top containers on the counter to store.