Healthy Eating, Need Granola Recipe

Updated on April 01, 2009
M.P. asks from Lake Crystal, MN
17 answers

In my effort to eat healthier (and loose some weight), I am trying to eat more yogurt. The only way I can stand it is to put something crunchy with it - like granola. But I am finding that commercial granola cereal is very high in calories. Does anyone have a recipe for home-made low calorie, or at least low-fat granola? I suppose it's just rolled oats with a little dried fruit and maybe nuts, but the seasoning must have a lot to do with it. Can anyone help me?
Mama P

What can I do next?

  • Add yourAnswer own comment
  • Ask your own question Add Question
  • Join the Mamapedia community Mamapedia
  • as inappropriate
  • this with your friends

Featured Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

I just throw in some fiber one cereal-60 cal for 1/2 cup. BUT it's made with aspartame, so if you have an issue with artificial sugar, this would not be for you.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

D.L.

answers from Milwaukee on

Try an organic cereal. Theres a great one out there with pumpkin and flax seeds. This is a flake and granola cereal.

More Answers

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

B.M.

answers from Appleton on

Here's my favorite granola recipe. I got it from Food Network. You can use any combination of nuts or fruit that you'd like, as long as you have 2 cups of nuts and 1 cup of fruit, or even 3 cups of nuts and no fruit. My kids and I have this all summer long for breakfast or a snack with vanilla yogurt and fresh fruit. And I've used sweetened coconut when I didn't have unsweetened on hand and it tasted the same.

Whole lotta nuts granola
Ingredients
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
1/2 cup slivered almonds
1/2 cup unsweetened flaked coconut
1/4 cup hulled green pumpkin seeds
1/4 cup sunflower seeds or pine nuts
1/2 cup crushed pecans or walnuts
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/3 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 cup raisins, or chopped dates
1/2 cup dried cranberries or blueberries, or combination
Directions
Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.

In a large bowl stir together oats, almonds, coconut, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, pecans, cinnamon and salt. In a small saucepan melt butter with honey over low heat, stirring. Add vanilla and pour butter mixture over oat mixture and stir until combined well.

On a large baking sheet, spread the granola evenly in a thin layer. Bake, stirring every 5 minutes to keep from sticking or burning, until golden brown and crisp, about 20 minutes. (Do not overcook; the granola will crisp more when cooled.) Cool the granola on the pan on top of the stove and stir in dried fruits. Granola may be kept in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.
Enjoy,
B. M.

2 moms found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.B.

answers from Milwaukee on

10-12 c. oatmeal
1/2- 1 c. seasame seed
1 c. coconut
1/2c honey
3/4c. brown sugar
1c. chopped nuts
1c raisens
1c. corn oil
1/2 tsp. salt
1c. water

Mix all ingredients except oil, water, nuts and raisens. In seperate bowl mix oil water combine with dry ingredients.
Bake 250 degrees on ungreased cookie sheet(s), mix every so often. Done when granola is toasted and golden.
Add nuts and raisens after granola has baked.

(Makes a lot so keep your oatmeal container to put some back in. )
I mae this and give it away for Christmas. I LOVE IT. My mother made this when we were kids. I eat it with milk, or dry as a snack, or on yogurt.
Enjoy!

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

L.T.

answers from Sioux Falls on

Here one that I've used and still use. It's not a granola recipe, but it's very crunchy. Got this from one of the Head Start teachers in our area.

1 small bag of generic honey nut cherrio's
1 small bag of M & M's
2 small handfulls of raisins
1 small jar of dry roasted peanuts

Mix altogether in a bowl and put into snack bags (don't use any thing larger). This will keep for a couple of weeks but will most likely be gone before then.

If you have small children who can't eat the peanuts yet in the house, don't put them in.

1 mom found this helpful
Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

M.W.

answers from Minneapolis on

Have you considered making your own Yogurt and Yogurt Cheese (called YoChee) ? Yochee is used alone or in combination with sour cream, cream cheese, mayo etc taking on the flavor pretty much of anything you mix it with. It cuts calories by Huge amounts.

I've raised my daughter on Goat's milk and goat milk yogurt and cheese. I've just gotten back into making it again with an easy little yogurt maker by Salton Model YM9. It makes one full quart at a time ... much easier really than little containers and tops to keep track of. There are some FABULOUS yogurt cook books out there ... if any want more specific info... please give me a holler.

Yummy eating you all, Margie

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

N.E.

answers from Des Moines on

A good brand of store-bought granola is called Bear Naked-FIT. They have all different kinds, but the "Fit" line is lower in calories and pretty high in fiber. I think they have two flavors, one with dried berries and another with brown sugar (I think, I use the berry one).

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.D.

answers from Minneapolis on

My friend at work had a low-fat yogurt and granola combo cup at lunch. She purchased it at either Cub or Rainbow in the yogurt section. It was either Weight Watchers Smart Ones or 100 Calorie packs. She siad it was really good.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

J.S.

answers from Minneapolis on

Rather than granola, I like to add either Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal or part of a crushed up Nature Valley Crunchy Oats n' Honey granola bar to yogurt. Both add wonderful crunch. A friend of mine likes to use Grape Nuts cereal, so there's another idea. Good luck!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

T.K.

answers from Duluth on

It's not granola, but low-fat, I like to crunch up pretzels in my yogurt.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

K.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

I found a couple of good recipes on allrecipes.com and have adjusted it to my own liking...
2 cups of old fashioned oats
2 cups quick cook oats
1/2 cup of almonds
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup coconut flakes
1 cup wheat Germ
1/2 cup whole flax seed
1/2 sunflower seeds
1/4 cup brown sugar
1 tsp cinnamon or nutmeg
Mix all the dry, in another bowl mix 1/3 cup canola oil
1/2 cup honey/maple syrup/agave nectar
1tsp vanilla
1/2 c water
add to dry. Mix well. Spread out on cookie sheets and bake at 275 for 45 minutes. Check and stir every 15 minutes.
Feel free to experiment with all the different nuts seeds and sweeteners.
The base recipe I found was Jennifer's Granola on allrecipes.com. I don't tend to add dried fruit until I serve it b.c it seems to keep fresh longer and a couple of my kids prefer it without. I bag half and freeze it right away.
Now, if you come across a good granola BAR recipe I would love to have one...
K.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

A.

answers from Minneapolis on

Hi. I've made this one from the Baby Bistro cookbook. It is really good, easy, and seems like you can adapt it however you like.

• 2 cups quick-cook oats
• up to 2 cups in total from any mix of the following:
- sesame seeds
- unsweetened flaked coconut
- sunflower seeds
- chopped or slivered nuts (almonds, peanuts, walnuts,
pecans, pine nuts)
- puffed rice cereal
• 1/2 cup maple syrup
• 2 T vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 300 F. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

In a large bowl, stir together the oats, seeds, coconut, nuts and/or cereal. Add the maple syrup and the oil and toss to coat well. Spread evenly on the prepared baking sheet, no thicker than 1/2″. Bake, stirring once halfway through, for 25 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool completely. Break into pieces.

This will keep in the cupboard for up to 2 weeks or in the fridge for longer. It is a great snack on its own, or use as a topping for yogurt, fresh fruit, and ice cream!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.C.

answers from Minneapolis on

Hey there. I have been making granola for my family for years now. My recipe is simple.
4 cups rolled oats
1 cup sunflower seeds
1 cup almonds or peanuts (or some other nut you like)
Sometimes I add a 1/4 c sesame seeds or sometimes leave that out.
I then stir in 1/3 c canola oil and 1/3 cup honey or other liquid sweetener (maple syrup, sorghum etc)in a lasagna pan.
And then I bake it for a little over an hour at 325 stirring every 20 min till it is slightly brown on top.
When it comes out of the oven I add a couple handfulls of dried fruit like raisons, craisons etc. and then store in an airtight container. It lasts 2 adults about a week eating it most days for breakfast.
Yum!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

B.F.

answers from Sioux Falls on

I love Grape nuts on my yogurt--and it is a boost of fiber too!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

T.S.

answers from Minneapolis on

I eat Kashi Go Lean Crunch cereal in my yogurt. It is high in protein and fiber which allows me to stay fuller longer.

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

S.S.

answers from Minneapolis on

Bear Naked and Bear Naked Fit are all natural - i watched a program on it on the Food Network a few years ago and thought they must be only in natural food stores, but in the last couple of years Target has carried them and now i think they have about 6-8 flavors at my superTarget. It's in the cereal section.

I love the triple berry crunch with yogurt myself. And it smells delicious, too!

Smallavatar-fefd015f3e6a23a79637b7ec8e9ddaa6

C.K.

answers from Minneapolis on

The way I make this recipe is not low-fat because I use butter, but you can substitute margarine. I have no idea what the calorie count is.

3 cups oats
1/2 cup honey
4 tablespoons of butter (or margarine)
Dash of salt

Melt the honey and the butter in a large saucepan. Add the oats and salt, and stir to combine. Cook in a 9x13 cake pan at 375 for 10 minutes. (I turn the pan halfway through, but do NOT stir while cooking).

Let the granola cool right in the pan. When it is cool enough to handle, break it up and transfer it to an airtight container.

You could probably even decrease the butter or margarine and increase the honey. This is a very adaptable, forgiving recipe. You can add a handful or raisins or nuts if you like.

For Updates and Special Promotions
Follow Us

Related Questions

Related Searches