Carrot cake inspired granola! Toasted shaved carrots, apples, coconut flakes, pecans and walnuts. Tossed in a cinnamon tahini glaze.

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I love making granola. it’s a healthy choice for when you need something to snack on. It can be added crunch for things like yogurt, cottage cheese, and smoothies. Or it can be a quick snack to make in bulk for everyone.

When I make granola I think about two things flavor and crunch. Flavor can go a lot of ways. Since you can mix up any nut, dried fruit, and oat you want. Crunch I need to decide if I’m in the mood for a softer chewier granola or a crisp snappy one. For this recipe i decided to try something new. A carrot cake inspired granola. I thought it would be a nice way to incorporate veggies in the mix.

So for this granola I knew I had to get the moisture in check. So I grated and baked the carrots and apples ahead of time. That way it evens out the cooking time for the nuts and oats. Then I made a binding glaze that would sweeten the granola while also lending some familiar flavors to give it that carrot cake feel. Like spicing it with allspice, nutmeg and cinnamon. This recipe sure was a nice swap from the norm. Served over ice cold Greek yogurt was the best. It’s also vegan! Check out my tips and tricks below for the best carrot walnut granola. Try this recipe out and let me know what you think.

TIPS & TRICKS FOR THE BEST CARROT WALNUT GRANOLA

dry your carrots: roast your carrots and apples to dry them out. place them on a parchment lined baking sheet on a rack closest to the top. dry them out and to keep them on the same level moisture wise as the other ingredients . so it doesn’t make your other ingredients soggy. only add your spiced to the mix when your ready to see some color added to the carrots and that will be after they reduced by half in size.

toast everything else:if you’re not going to be baking your granola very long make sure to toast it. toasting your granola gives it a chance to wake the flavors up.

try the glaze: the glaze is where the sweetness is added to the dish. along with sweetness the honey helps hold everything together. for me i prefer more hold less sweetness. so i put enough sweetness to hold everything together. but not too sweet to overwhelm everything else. so if you like your granola sweeter feel free to add more honey. try the glaze out before tossing it over the granola.

cranberries last: the cranberries need no special attention prior to the final product. the cranberries i use for this recipe are dried. they really don’t have much benefit in the oven. keep them around for the final toss so they don’t start to get soft.

let it sit: toasted oat, pecan and apples of course taste great warmed. for the granola they make it even better once the granola is cooled slightly. it will stat to firm up. give it time to harden up a little by letting it cool.

don’t let it burn: stay close to this recipe. coconut and regular nuts all have a tendency to burn . they get this woody burnt musk that is hard to mask once it gets into the nuts

SIMILAR INGREDIENTS TO:

1. HOMEMADE CHEX GRANOLA PARFAIT
2. CARROT CAKE BREAKFAST BARS W/ CREAM CHEESE COCONUT TOPPING – RAW VEGAN
3. RAW VEGAN: PEANUT BUTTER GRANOLA BARS

ENJOY THIS RECIPE WITH:

1. DARK CHOCOLATE AND CHERRY MUFFINS
2. FRENCH TOAST MUFFIN CUPS
3. CINNAMON ROLLS CREAM CHEESE TOPPING

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