HomeMade Granola/Trail mix

I'd be a hypocrite if I said I didn't get the munchies sometimes and even feel for something crunchy, salty and sweet even though I'm not hungry. I know you get those munchies and even have clients text me and say they feel for "some banana chips or doritos". You know who you are! Of course I often don't respond to such text messages because I try not to enable but at the same time always say "anything you do or eat be sure you can live with it". That means don't have what you 'feel' for now only to be eaten up by guilt immediately post consumption and then berate and bash yourself for being a failure and all that drama. Be a man, or woman! Own up to it and move on. 

Pumpkin Granola

With that said, it does happen sometimes where I want a quick snack but without the nasty calories, especially if I am away from my next prepared meal and/or snack. And more often than not, almonds/cashews fill this gap. However I realized lately that having too many almonds sometimes can leave my stomach a little queasy if not fiber-full beyond what it can handle. As a result I went searching for options and came across an article about seeds and then found a recipe using seeds to make cereal. Though nuts were the star of that recipe, to me the pumpkin and sunflower seeds provided some insight simply because their nutritional profile rivaled that of nuts like almonds and cashews with as much as 9g of protein and 16g of fat respectively in just 1oz compared to 5g of protein and 14g of fat. So armed with this information I set out to adjust the recipe to my liking and came up with what we have below. 

Trail Mix

My one problem with this, like the nuts, its hard to just have a handful. If you aren't careful you'll go through the whole batch in no time.

What you'll need:

- Baking Sheet

- Parchment Paper

- Mixing bowl

Ingredients

1/3 cup pumpkin seeds

1/3 cup sunflower seeds

1/4 cup dried cranberries, raisins and chopped dates (combined) or any dried fruit of choice

1/4 cup shredded coconut (recipe here)

1 tbsp coconut oil (optional)

Optional add-ins:

1/4 cup pureed pumpkin

1/4 chopped mixed nuts

2 tbsp honey*

1 tbsp ground chia seed

85-95% cacao nibs or chocolate chips*

Method

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Combined seeds, dried fruit, coconut and oil in a bowl. If you choose not to use oil then spray some cooking spray on top of mixture. 

If adding using pumpkin puree, mix with coconut oil & honey first then add seeds and fruit. **

Spread on a parchment paper lined baking sheet and bake in oven for 8-10 minutes or until seeds are toasted.

Cool before eating.

*The more sugar added the greater chance of burning so either toast on low heat or reduce sugar.

** The pumpkin puree will glue seeds/nuts together and give you clusters once it has cooled. This can then be eaten like cereal with soy or unsweetened almond milk.