Spicy Superfood Raw-nola

I am, simply stated, a granola monster. I love it with chocolate and dried fruit. Coconut and spice. Honestly, I haven’t met a granola I didn’t like. I eat it for snacks, as cereal with cashew butter and almond milk, and top off my nice-cream with any granola I can get my hands on. The thing is though, eating tons of granola with added sugar is not the greatest thing for your health, or your digestion…or your wallet. So, I set off to make a granola myself that was grain free and added sugar free. I’ve been obsessed with dried ginger lately and added that in for a spicy flavor. I couldn’t stop eating this superfood combo. It’s the perfect balance of textures and flavors and takes literally five minutes to make. It tastes good on just about anything and I feel like it’d make a great guest gift in cute little bags.

One part of granola I’ve always found challenging is the nuts. Nuts are super hard to digest and can leave our stomach in distress. I’ve been reading a lot about sprouted nuts which are much easier to digest (and easier to obtain nutrients from) and added those into this mix to be gentle on my stomach. The phytic acid in nuts has been linked to leaky gut, IBS and more, so buying them sprouted eliminates this acid. While sprouting DIY can be a cost effective solution, just be careful because if you don’t do it right there could be bacteria growth. Thus, why I just bought it off Amazon and left it to the experts.

So why am I calling this a superfood raw-nola. Hold on to your seats ladies and gents because it’s about to get nutritious up in here:

• Goji Berries: Protect the body against oxidative stress and free radicals (aka inflammation), provide support to the immune system, stabilizes blood sugar, and improves some symptoms of anxiety and depression (I haven’t seen this yet, but maybe in higher doses.

• Crystallized Ginger: Major stomach soother, anti-inflammatory, reduces menstrual pain, and improves brain function.

• Dried Apples: Keeps the doctor away. One a day.

  • ALSO: Provides necessary fiber for digestion, improves neurological health, helps immunity with high amounts of Vitamin C

• Toasted Coconut: Healthy fat keeps you full, anti-inflammatory and antibacterial, raises good HDL cholesterol

• Toasted Sprouted Pumpkin Seeds: Rich in magnesium which many of us lack that helps with inflammation and sleep, supports bone health, regulates menstruation (if you adhere to seed cycling), promotes healthy digestion.

• Toasted Sprouted Almonds: Increases Vitamin E levels which helps our biggest organ, our skin, stabilizes blood sugar, high in protein to keep you full.

Recipe is below but play with the portions till they’re exactly what you want since everyone’s tastes are different!