This crunchy grain free granola is packed with toasty sweet clusters and freeze dried strawberries for a breakfast or snack that you won’t believe is actually good for you! It’s paleo, vegan, free of refined sugar and family approved!
I’m not sure why it’s taken me this long to make grain free granola – because now it’s just about my favorite thing ever. I’m obsessed. At least for this week, that is!
But seriously, this stuff is GOOD and also really easy to make. So easy, that you’ll probably start making it regularly, and then realize at some point that it’s all you’re ever snacking on!
Yup, that’s what happened to me – don’t say I didn’t warn you!
I made this grain free granola with super simple ingredients – nuts (3 kinds), unsweetened coconut flakes, a little flaxseed, maple syrup and coconut oil. A little bit of cinnamon and salt for flavor, too.
And oh! The strawberries! I almost forgot…I bought these freeze dried strawberries months ago with the intention of making this exact recipe.
And what happened? Well, my kids AND Adam begged me to just use them already (since they wanted to eat them, of course), but for some reason the time just never felt right.
There’s no rhyme or reason to my recipes sometimes, I often just make what I feel like making on that particular day.
Finally, I’m not sure why, it felt like the right time to make the grain free granola I’d been planning to try out since February, I think.
At first I honestly didn’t know what to do with the freeze dried strawberries. Do they go in the oven with the granola?
No. Big fat NO on that one – they’ll burn and it won’t be pretty. So definitely don’t make that mistake!
I’ve always been someone who loved fruit in my cereal – especially dried fruit (hello Raisin Bran Crunch! And Basic 4!) but no, I don’t eat cereal anymore, of course.
Anyhow, with old cereal cravings in mind, I knew I needed some crunchy fruit in my crunchy granola (yes, it really is crunchy!) so the freeze dried strawberries made the perfect mix-in after the granola was done cooling.
Just add almond milk, and WHOA! This was just like old times with my fave cereals – almost TOO much like old times, if you know what I mean. I definitely felt that sweet/crunchy craving kick in and it was pretty tough to stop eating it – just being honest!
After completely cooling (and sneaking several bites, or perhaps having a big ‘ol bowl of it like I did) you can store this grain free granola in an air tight container for up to a month – or so I believe – mine only lasted a week, sadly!
However, it DID stay deliciously crunchy all week, so I think we’re all good in the crunch department. I hope you’re ready to make this insanely delicious, downright addicting grain free granola! Let’s get started!
Crunchy Grain Free Granola with Strawberries {Paleo, Vegan}
Crunchy Grain Free Granola with Strawberries {Paleo, Vegan}
This crunchy grain free granola is packed with toasty sweet clusters and freeze dried strawberries for a breakfast or snack that you won't believe is actually good for you! It's paleo, vegan, free of refined sugar and family approved!
Ingredients
- 1 cup raw almonds
- 1 cup raw pecans
- 1 cup raw cashews
- 2 Tbsp ground flaxseed
- 1 1/2 cups unsweetened coconut flakes
- 2 Tbsp organic refined coconut oil melted
- 1/4 cup + 1 Tbsp pure maple syrup or raw honey (for non-vegan), or a combination
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4-1/2 tsp sea salt depending on your tastes
- 1 cup freeze-dried strawberries crushed if desired
Instructions
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Preheat your oven to 325 degrees and place an oven rack in the middle of the oven. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
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You can either roughly chop all the nuts by hand, OR, pulse them in a food processor until you have a roughly chopped texture - some smaller and larger pieces are fine.
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Place chopped nuts in a large mixing bowl and add the flaxseed, coconut flakes, cinnamon and salt. Stir to combine, then whisk together the coconut oil and maple syrup or honey in a small bowl, and pour over the dry mixture. Stir well to fully combine. The granola should form “clusters” as you mix it - these are good!
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Spread the granola in a single layer on the prepared baking sheet, then bake in the preheated oven for 15 minutes. Remove, and use a silicone spatula to gently stir/turn over the granola (like you’d do for roasted veggies!) Return to the oven and bake for another 10-12 minutes, or until granola appears golden brown. Don’t worry if it seems soft, as it will crisp up a lot while cooling!
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Place the entire baking sheet on a cooling rack and allow granola to cool for about 25-30 minutes, then stir in the freeze dried strawberries.
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Once completely cooled, store in an airtight container for up to 1 month. Enjoy!
Nutrition
What I Used To Make My Grain Free Granola with Strawberries:
Want More Paleo and Vegan Breakfast Treats? Try One of These!
Apple Cinnamon Paleo Hot Cereal
Banana Blueberry Breakfast Cookies
Blueberry Coconut “Oatmeal” Bake
Maple Pecan Banana Bread Breakfast Bake
Almond Butter and Jelly “Oatmeal” Bake
love the granola with dried strawberries … looking at the nutrition info … how much is a serving? Thank you 🙂 Love all your recipes!!
To be around 250 calories, this recipe makes about 14 heaping 1/2 cup servings for me.
Is there something I can use besides coconut? I just cannot stand the taste of it and it seems like every recipe calls for coconut oil or coconut flakes, etc. Love your recipes!
You can probably just omit it or sub in another nut or seed 🙂
Definitely in my meal prep rotation for next week!!
I’m sure you’ll love it 🙂
I love making homemade granola and this one looks particularly amazing! I love that it’s grain free!
You’ll love it!
Just finished making this! Smells AWESOME!! Can’t wait to eat it tomorrow! Thanks for this awesome recipe!
Yay! I know you’ll love it!
Already on my THIRD BATCH this week!! My family (and a few friends too) absolutely LOVE IT!! Thanks again for another amazing recipe!
Is there something u think I could replace the maple syrup or honey with that won’t spike insulin?
I use sugar free maple syrup, works great.
This is the best granola recipe I have found! Thank you for sharing!
*I do not add the strawberries…this allows me to add whatever fresh fruit I have on hand. Also, I cook it at 275 instead of 325. The first batch was a little toastier than I like…even in that state it was the best tasting granola! 😉
If I want to pre-portion this out in baggies to take on the go as a snack, about how much is each serving? 1/4 cup, etc. thank you!
I’d say maybe 1/3 cup 🙂
Amazing! One of the very best granola recipes I have ever made. Loved the dried strawberries! Will try with stride blueberries and even mango in the future.
This recipe is fantastic. Have made 4 double batches!! It disappears. Thank you.
Oh my goodness! This is so good. So easy to make and unbelievably tasty!
So scrumptious! We’ve made this recipe a few times now, and it’s a big hit! One of my daughters is the pickiest breakfast-food-eater, and she loves this granola. I cut down on the cooking time to 18-20 minutes total, mixing in the middle otherwise it’s too brown (maybe my oven?!)
This was so easy and delicious! FINALLY, I can eat cereal again!
I just LOVE this, thank you so much! I added some seeds to the mix because I just love pumpkin and sunflower seeds. My only question is do I keep this in my pantry or in the fridge in an airtight container? Thanks for letting me know! <3
How much is a serving?
Go-to granola recipe!!! My picky 3 yr old loves the strawberries so this is a great way to get some good nutrients in her!!
I’m very excited to make this, I really need a crunchy goto breakfast/snack. And, did I mention how much a LOVE Freeze-
dried strawberries?!?! I think I would like to add a little chocolate to this mix, like mini chips. Is there a particular brand that you like that is paleo friendly?
Hu kitchen has good paleo chocolate, you can chop it and add!
My doctor recently put me on a grain free diet for health issues and I am already sugar free. I was happy to discover your blog as the recipes seem do-able and like things I actually want to eat. I’ve made your chocolate cherry granola and it’s good, but this one is super great! I used sugar free maple syrup and Swerve sweetener in place of the sugar. Also, instead of melting 2 Tbsp of coconut oil, I melted 1 Tbsp coconut oil with 2 Tbsp of peanut butter! It’s so, so tasty and incredibly crunchy, great recipe!