Pumpkin Granola

I have been drooling over this Pumpkin Pecan Granola recipe for awhile now and finally had a chance to make it yesterday!  Due to food allergies, I changed the recipe up a bit, but for the most part I stayed true to the recipe linked above.  It turned out delicious.  My recipe below is for double the amount of granola that the original recipe produces.  Since making some dramatic changes to our diet this past spring, I have almost eliminated breakfast cereal from my family's diet, and granola like this is a wonderful substitute.  We will quickly go through the doubled recipe!!  It is also a fun treat for my little guy to eat this for breakfast with (coconut) milk poured over it.  Just like Daddy!  (My husband loves boxed cereal, so I have yet to completely eliminate it from my pantry - I am still working on it!)

I wrote to the recipe's author, Erin Chase, and asked the reason why she uses quick cooking oats.  She said it makes the granola more "clumpy" so it is easier to eat for snacks, etc.  I did follow her directions (50% old fashioned, 50% quick cook) and it did make a difference (usually I only use old fashioned) in how clumpy it turned out!  It is also a softer/chewier granola, making it very kid friendly!  I did use some brown sugar in this recipe, but subbed in maple syrup for half the sweetener.  Next time, I would use all maple syrup, I don't think it would make much of a difference!  The banana that I added also provides extra sweetness.  (I may try subbing in more banana for the apple sauce and cutting the sugar in half next time.)

The liquid ingredients

The dry ingredients
(Note: I added this to a large mixing bowl after taking this photo!)

The final product - delicious!!!

Pumpkin Granola (Allergy-friendly)
Adapted from $5 Dinners' Pumpkin Pecan Granola
Makes 16 (1/2 cup) breakfast servings (or lots of snacks/lunchbox treats!) :)

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup applesauce
• 1/3 cup mashed ripe banana
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1 tsp vanilla extract (or you could use maple extract if you have some)
• 4 cups quick cooking oats
• 4 cups traditional oats
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/2 cup ground flaxseed (optional)
• 2 tsp cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger – each
• 1 cup raisins (I ran a knife through them to distribute them throughout the granola more evenly, and I used a but less raisins than called for.)

Directions

• Preheat to 300.
• In a small mixing bowl, combine the applesauce, banana, pumpkin puree, maple syrup and extract.
• In larger mixing bowl, toss together the 2 kinds of oats, brown sugar, flaxseed, cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger.
• Spoon the pumpkin mixture into the oats mixture and combine until all the oats are covered in the pumpkin mixture.
• Spread onto two baking sheets lined with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 25 minutes, then gently toss and bake for another 20-25 minutes.
• Stir in the raisins or other dried fruit after it has cooled some on a cooling rack.
• Store in an airtight container for up to a week. Beyond a week, I recommend storing in a plastic container or freezer baggie in the freezer for up to 3 months
• Dairy-free breakfast ideas using this recipe: sprinkle this granola over plain coconut milk yogurt or blend it in with oatmeal or brown rice cereal for breakfast in the morning (and on occassion as a bowl of cereal).

This post is linked up to:
Healthy 2day Wednesdays
Fresh Bites Friday
Allergy-Free Lunchbox Love
Allergy-Friendly Friday