Nutty Quinoa Granola bars- vegan, gluten free

Granola- simply refers to grain made food , that is crunchy. In late 19 th century, in health sanitarium settings, the concept was born as ‘granula’ and used widely, but its use dropped for a while,before finding a resurgence in late 1960s. Now, any location which sells food, be it grocery stores, supermarkets , airports, gyms, vending machines, you will find some form of granola. Granola bars make for an easy, healthy to go option, any time of the day.

Granola is simple to make, and by making it at home, you can conveniently add the healthy ingredients, skip the unnecessary additives. Basically customize your granola, so that it can be your go to snack any time of the day. This recipe uses quinoa predominantly, with a fair share of oats to hold the bars together and sweetened with dates/ maple syrup or honey.

Nutty Quinoa granola bars

An interesting mix of grains, nuts, dates with a vegan option. Anytime, guilt free snack or an addition to your breakfast. Simple to make and will be a family favorite.

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Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Cook Time 12 minutes mins

Course Breakfast

Servings 4

Equipment

• Blender for date paste

Ingredients

  

• 1 cup white quinoa organic preferred
• 1/2 cup red quinoa organic preferred
• 3/4 cup rolled oats
• 1/4 cup rolled oats grind into powder
• 1/4 cup avocado oil cold pressed
• 3/4 cup almond butter
• 1/4 cup maple syrup or date syrup can use honey instead, jaggery powder can also be used
• 1/4 cup chia seeds
• 1/2 cup sliced/ chopped almonds
• 1/4 cup walnuts chopped
• 1/4 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1 1/2 cup pitted dates- chopped grind into a paste

Instructions

 

• Chop the dates and use a blender to make it into a paste.

  Chop the nuts into desired size.

  In a sauce pan, add almond butter, maple syrup, oil and let it melt together 5-6 min on low-medium heat. If using honey once almond butter melted, switch off the stove and then add the honey.

  Grind about 1/4 cup oats .

  Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a baking cookie tray with parchment paper.

  Take a mixing bowl, add the quinoa, oats , oat powder, chia seeds, date paste, the mix of almond butter, sweetener, oil from the sauce pan. Add in the nuts. Mix thoroughly.

  Spread the granola mixture on the cookie tray evenly. Tap on the surface to ensure even thickness all across the tray.

  Bake for 12-15 min.

  Cool off and put in fridge for two hours before cutting them into bars or desired shapes.

Notes

• You can use just white quinoa all by itself. 
• Dates syrup will add a more earthy taste and darker color.
• You can fold in chocolate chips , or just sprinkle on the top, to make it more kid friendly 
• A dash of chili flakes and pinch of sea salt will add an interesting spice twist .
• You can chop the bars to top up your morning oat meal-My favorite way to eat these wonderful nutritious bars.