As you know, I follow a gluten free and grain free diet. It’s been a good year that I have been avoiding them and I am ok with it.
People think that it is impossible to live a life without gluten or grains but for me it is not a big deal; I have always created my healthy version of everything.
It gets hard when you eat out but nowadays, every restaurants and cafes have at least one gluten and/or grain free option on their menu. You just have to look for them!

There are days that I can’t resist to a good bowl of Italian pasta at my favourite Italian restaurant and I will just satisfy my cravings knowing that it will cause problems to my gut. After all, we are all humans, right? I believe in a healthy lifestyle but sometimes you just have to listen to your body.

Since I have moved to Australia, I have became obsessed with granola and porridge. Things that I have never had in Italy.
Porridge for years was my favourite breakfast in winter and granola with yogurt and fresh fruits was my go-to breakky in summer.

Unfortunately, the main ingredient of both is oat, a grain that my stomach doesn’t tolerate completely.
Since I didn’t want to give up on my favourite breakfasts, I have created my grain free porridge recipe (which I’ll share on Instagram soon) and my grain free coconut granola.

This granola is perfect for yogurt, soups and salads. The good thing about it, is that there’s numerous ways you can make it, depending on what you have at home.
For this version, I used coconut, pepitas, sunflower seeds, walnuts with a bit of coconut oil and brown rice syrup.

As you can see, this recipe is packed with healthy fats, omega 3s and protein. And it’s naturally sweetened with rice syrup.
The best way to start the day is with a bowl of this granola with some coconut yogurt or any plant-based milk of your choice. It will keep full until lunch!

My advice is to double the batch, because one batch will last you 1 or 2 days maximum. It’s that good that you can’t and won’t stop eating it!

Grain Free Coconut Granola

SERVE: MAKES 2 JARS

GRAIN FREE, GLUTEN FREE, DAIRY FREE, VEGAN, REFINED SUGARE FREE

Ingredients

1 1/4 cup shredded coconut
1/2 cup pepitas
1/2 sunflower seeds
1 cup chopped walnuts
3 tbsp melted coconut oil
2 tbsp coconut flour
1 tbsp grounded flaxseeds
1 tbsp cinnamon
2 tbsp rice malt syrup
Pinch of Himalayan salt

Instructions

Preheat the oven at 180°C.

In a large bowl mix shredded coconut with chopped walnuts, pepitas, sunflower seeds, coconut flour, grounded flaxseeds, cinnamon and salt.

Warm up the coconut oil with the rice malt syrup in a saucepan and pour on top of the dry ingredients.
Combine everything together and spread the mixture on a parchment paper covered tray.

Bake for 20 minutes checking every now and then but without stirring.

Once ready, let it cool down completely.

Notes

Serve with coconut yogurt or coconut milk.