Oil-Free Granola (No Added Sugar)
This delicious Oil-Free Granola has zero added fats, sugars, or preservatives, and yet it's the perfect crunchy and lightly sweet addition to homemade soy yogurt and more. Make up a batch of this magic fat-free granola and enjoy it all week long for breakfast, snacks, and even dessert.
Equipment
- 1 Blender
- 1 Blender spatula optional, but it makes a big difference for me to get all the stuff out of the blender
- 1 Spatula regular spatula for spreading the granola across the pan
Ingredients
- 3 Cups Rolled Oats, I like to use sprouted rolled oats but any brand will work. Use certified GF oats if you can't have gluten.
- ½ Cup Wheat Germ, or oat bran will work. This is to help the granola stick together and cluster. If you want loose granola, you can skip it, but you may need more rolled oats so the mixture isn't too wet.
- 2 Teaspoons Ground Ceylon Cinnamon, see notes section below for why Ceylon cinnamon as opposed to other cinnamons.
- ¼ Cup Unsweetened Soy Milk, or any unsweetened non-dairy milk is fine.
- 4-6 Medjool Dates, pitted, see notes section below for substitution information.
- ¾ Cup Unsweetened Applesauce, or ripe (spotty) mashed banana in the same amount will work.
- 1 Teaspoon Vanilla Extract, or use ¼ to ½ teaspoon vanilla bean powder.
- 1 Cup Freeze-Dried Strawberries, optional, or use another freeze-dried fruit. See notes section below about when to add it.
Instructions
- Prep: Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit (150 degrees Celsius) and line a half sheet baking tray with parchment paper. I find that oil-free granola gets a little crisper on parchment paper as opposed to a silicone baking mat which is what I usually use. I like to crumple up the parchment paper then smooth it out again, which makes it lie flatter on the baking pan.
- Mix the dry ingredients: In a large mixing bowl, use a fork to mix the rolled oats, wheat germ, and ground Ceylon cinnamon together. Set aside.
- Blend the wet ingredients: Add the unsweetened soy milk (or other plant milk), pitted Medjool dates, unsweetened applesauce (or mashed banana), and vanilla extract to a blender and blend until smooth. If your blender complains about the lack of volume (mine did), you can add a splash more non-dairy milk. Don't worry if there are still specks of date in the blended mixture, though, because those will blend right into our fat free granola.
- Combine the dry and wet ingredients: Use a blender spatula (or just a regular spatula) to scrape out the contents of the blender straight into your bowl of mixed dry ingredients. Mix with a spatula or fork until very well combined. Everything should more or less come together and there should be a lot of dry ingredients left out of the mix. If it won't come together, add a tablespoon or two of non-dairy milk and stir again.
- Fold in the strawberries: If your freeze-dried strawberries come in sliced/whole form, place them on a plate or in a bowl and lightly crush them so you have smaller pieces. Add to the oat mixture and fold them in with your spatula.
- Add the mixture to the baking pan: Use a spatula to scrape out the bowl onto the prepared baking tray. Then use the spatula to smooth it out, making the fat-free granola into one even layer across the tray. You don't want any big clumps because those will take longer to bake than the rest.
- Bake: Place the tray of uncooked granola in the oven on the center rack and bake for 15 minutes. Using oven mitts, carefully remove the tray from the oven and use a cooking spatula to stir the fat-free granola well. Return to the oven and bake for 15 more minutes. Carefully remove and stir again. It should seem fairly dry but not completely yet. Place it bake in the oven and turn the oven off. Let the granola dry out in the oven for 1 hour. Then remove it from the oven and allow it to cool to room temperature on the counter.
- Store: Store completely dried oil-free granola in an airtight container on the counter for 3-4 days or in the refrigerator for 1 week.
Notes
- Ground Ceylon Cinnamon: So there are different types of cinnamon, the most common three are Saigon, Cassia, and Ceylon. Only Ceylon cinnamon is regarded as anti-inflammatory, and I think it tastes better! So that's the only kind of cinnamon I use. Plus it tastes great!
- Medjool Dates: You can swap homemade date paste, date syrup, or pure maple syrup instead, however you may need less (or no) plant-based milk then, as the liquid sweeteners will change the ratio of the wet to dry ingredients. If the mixed raw granola turns out too wet or soupy (or won't come together) add more of the rolled oats and wheat germ until it does. At that point, you may need to spread the mixture between two pans, because a thicker layer of granola will take much longer to cook/dry out.
- Freeze-Dried Strawberries: You have two options here, you can add them into the wet uncooked oat mixture and they'll bake (they'll turn dark, but they'll integrate into the granola clusters) or leave them out and add them after the granola is cooked (they'll be loose but still bright red).
- Other Fruit: Any other freeze-dried fruit would be delicious, such as apples (crush them a little) or blueberries. If using traditional dried fruit (such as raisins), add it after baking.
Nutrition
Serving: 0.25cupCalories: 122kcalCarbohydrates: 22.3gProtein: 4.5gFat: 1.8gSodium: 1.8mg
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!