Homemade Gluten Free Granola with Agave

My daughter and I were trying to buy granola last week.  I needed gluten free and she was looking for low sugar.  Guess what?  That’s a very uncommon combo.  In fact, it didn’t exist in our grocery store.   So we decided to be adventurous and make our own.  Why haven’t I ever thought of this before?  It was super easy, fun and SO YUMMY!  I’m eating it as fast as I can because I can’t wait to make it again, this time with different add-ins. 

This is our basic recipe:

3 cups rolled oats

1 cup slivered almonds

1/2 cup shredded coconut

½ cup ground flaxseed

1 cup applesauce

1/3 cup agave nectar

2 Tbs canola oil

1 tsp gf vanilla

½ tsp salt

2 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 300 F.  Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment.  Mix the first 4 ingredients together in a large bowl.  Mix the rest of the ingredients together, then add to the bowl of dry.  Toss well, trying to moisten everything.  Spread onto pans.  Bake, pulling the pans out every 10 minutes or so to stir the granola so it won’t burn.  Bake for a total of 30-35 minutes, or until golden brown.  Let cool, then store in a Ziploc bag or sealed container.  If it’s going to be around more than a few days, you might want to store it in the fridge.

The cool thing about this recipe is that you can change it up, but it’s very hard to mess it up.  You can add dried fruits (raisins, apricots, pineapple, cranberries), chocolate or peanut butter chips or M&Ms, just make sure to add them after the granola has cooled.  You can also use any combination of nuts or seeds.  The next batch I make I want to try sunflower kernels and raisins.  Or maybe pumpkin seeds (pepitas) and Craisins.  Oh, wait...chocolate chips with walnuts.  The possibilities are endless!  

Meet the GF Bloggers: Amy is Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free

Copyright Amy Green

As a child, Amy Green went from super-skinny to plump.  As a heavy teen, she was bullied and miserable.  She tried every diet under the sun but could never shake those cravings for sugar and carbs.  A chance conversation with a friend helped her discover that she was fighting a losing battle.  As long as she continued to eat gluten and refined sugar, she was going to continue having cravings and would never be able to lose weight.  It took some experimentation, but Amy was able to find a way of eating that worked for her whole self; body, mind and soul.  Since then, Amy has maintained a weight loss of over sixty pounds.  She is dedicated to creating nourishing meals and original, healthy recipes. 

Amy’s blog, Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free, is chock full of articles, recipes, stories and beautiful pictures of food.  As her tagline says, “Fabulous food made healthier”, she finds ways to make our favorites better for us, such as Chocolate Cupcakes with Agave nectar instead of white sugar and chewy chocolate brownies that get their sweetness from dates and are BONUS! fat free.  

photo courtesy of Simply Sugar & Gluten Free

Amy seems to be friends with every gluten free blogger out there, so there is a lot of sharing going on.  You’re bound to find the recipe you’re looking for here, even if it didn’t originate in Amy’s kitchen.  And because she’s so passionate about the gluten- and sugar-free lifestyle, you’ll find Amy guest blogging all over the web.  Here, she helps the food allergic in Dallas deal with eating out.  There is also a great How-To section, where you'll find lots of useful information, like how to make perfect hard boiled eggs.  

Visit Amy Green at Simply Sugar and Gluten Free and see what she’s up to.  She’ll even share her before and after photos with you.  Now that’s dedication!

Another Etsy Gem: Gluten Free Pizzelles by Bella Lucia

A few  years ago, Maryann Petta Cook, who had been diagnosed with celiac disease, pulled a fast one on her family.  While making the generations-old pizzelle recipe for Easter, she substituted gluten free flour for regular flour.  Her five grown kids couldn’t tell the difference!  (cue Hallelujah chorus) Bella Lucia cookies were born!

Maryann named her fledgling cookie company Bella Lucia, after her late mother, Lucy, who taught her to make all the old, traditional Italian cookies. 

I recently had a chance to try the anise flavored pizzelles and let me tell you, as an Italian who has had her share of good (and bad) pizzelles, these were delicious!  There was just enough anise flavoring, and they were crispy and melt-in-your-mouth yummy.  These pizzelles were, in a word, Bella!  The cookies are 7.00 for a dozen and are shipped in an airtight container to minimize damage and maximize freshness. 

Right now, you can find Bella Lucia pizzelles, in anise and vanilla flavors, at etsy.com  and a few stores in upstate PA.  Maryann is presently working on getting them manufactured so that they can be more widely available.  Everyone, whether gluten free or not, should taste these bella cookies!