I LOVE buckwheat and homemade granola, but have never tried this combo together! I found a recipe online and didn’t have too high of expectations, but really loved how it turned out! I’ve eaten it alone as a snack, with milk as a cereal, as a yogurt topping along with other fruits, and even coated chocolate covered bananas with it. It was delicious no matter how I had it, and this recipe from entrejardins.com is so simple to make!

My edits are italicized in red

homemade buckwheat granola

serving size: makes around 4 cups

INGREDIENTS

• 2 cups raw buckwheat groats
• 1 1/2 cup mixed seeds/nuts (pumpkin seeds + almonds) I used pecans and sliced almonds
• 1 cup coconut flakes (I used coconut chips from trader joes)
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp ground ginger
• 1 ripe banana
• 2 tbsp olive oil (or coconut oil or almond butter). I used coconut oil
• 2 tbsp maple syrup

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Preheat oven to 170°C (340°F)
2. In a bowl, stir the buckwheat groats together with seeds, nuts and spices.
3. Smash the banana with a fork and add to the bowl, along with oil (I used coconut) and maple syrup. Stir until everything is nicely coated, spread across a baking sheet and bake for 20 to 30 minutes or until fragrant and golden.
4. Remove from oven and let cool before storing in a glass container.
5. Serve with almond milk, sprinkle over smoothies or eat it by the handful!

Optional – Soaking to reduce phytic acid and increase nutrition : Soak nuts in 3 cups water for 4 to 8 hours, rinse and spread over a clean kitchen towel to dry overnight. Soak buckwheat and seeds (separately) in double amount of water for 30 to 60 minutes, rinse and spread over a clean kitchen towel to dry overnight. If you make this recipe using soaked buckwheat and nuts, it will take a bit longer to bake, around 40 minutes.

VARIATIONS:

• Use different nut/seed mix, I suggest 1 type of seed+1 type of nut
• Try different spices (cardamom, nutmeg, cloves..)
• Substitute olive oil by your favorite nut or seed butter, cacao butter, coconut oil or ghee
• Substitute the banana for the same amount of pureed pumpkin, sweet potato or chocolate ( 3 tbsp cacao butter + 2 tbsp cacao powder + 3 tbsp maple syrup)