Oh, granola, you were supposed to be irresistibly chewy bars like the ones I saw on Smitten Kitchen, but instead you crumbled apart and became a cereal. But, oh, what a lovely cereal you are, filled with nuts and freeze dried fruit and coconut and pepitas. I blame myself for your metamorphosis, as I probably forgot to add or adjust some ingredient here or there, but it’s all part of the learning process, so no hard feelings, okay?

Gluten Free Granola
adapted from King Arthur Flour (via Smitten Kitchen)

Notes: To make oat flour, process rolled oats in a food processor until finely ground. I used an 8 x 8 inch glass baking dish to make my granola, with the intent that it would become chewy bars. However, since this turned out to be a crumbly granola, you should be able to spread the granola mix evenly on a lightly greased cookie sheet for similar results. Freeze dried fruit is a great replacement for store bought dried fruit, which typically contains added sugar.

Ingredients

1 2/3 cups gluten free rolled oats
1/3 cup oat flour
1/3 cup yacon syrup
1/4 cup agave nectar
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
1 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
1 Tbsp. Water

2 to 3 cups of dried fruit, nuts, seeds — I used the following:
1/2 cup pepitas
1/2 cup dessicated coconut
1/2 cup pecans, chopped
1/2 cup walnuts, chopped
1/2 cup freeze dried blueberries
1/2 cup freeze dried strawberries

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F. Lightly grease an 8 x 8 inch glass baking dish.

2. In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the dry ingredients, including the fruit, nuts, coconut, seeds, etc.

3. Add the yacon syrup, agave nectar, coconut oil, and water to the dry ingredients and mix until thoroughly combined.

4. Spread in the greased baking dish (or on a cookie sheet — see notes above) and pat down gently. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes, or until golden brown around the edges.

5. Remove from the oven and cool on a cooling rack. Crumble cooled mixture (if you’re using a cookie sheet, then the granola will already be crumbly) and store in an airtight container.