Maple Tahini Millet Granola

Sorry for the radio silence! After participating in the Hashawha Hills 50K this past weekend, I needed a few days to unplug and recover. Then I planned to share an amazing hummus recipe, but the legal pad where I jot down my recipes accidentally got recycled. I’m not too sad about having to remake the hummus, but in the meantime, I decided to share this maple tahini millet granola today. This granola is oil-free because the tahini maple sauce binds everything together. As you can see, even without oil you can get crispy, delicious, big clusters of granola! My favorite.

How do you like to eat your granola? I have a pretty solid breakfast routine already, so usually granola is just something to munch on. I usually just put it in a giant container in the kitchen and munch on handfuls of it throughout the day, or bring a little Tupperware of it with me to work. I leave for work by 8 AM and get home around 6 PM or later – there’s no way I can survive on only a lunch at noon and no additional snacks.

I was inspired to create this flavor profile with granola after I made Sweet Debbie‘s blondies with roots, which are spiced with coriander and cardamom. I really loved how those spices played with the more traditional flavors in the blondies and I thought that their near Eastern flair would translate well to a tahini-based granola.

Sticking with the vaguely Mediterranean theme, I included golden raisins, dates, and pine nuts in the mixture. And in classic Yup, it’s Vegan style there is no refined sugar in the recipe. If you make granola then you already know it’s super easy to mix and match this recipe with different add-ins, a different liquid sweetener, or substituting a nut butter of choice for the tahini. I don’t cook millet often enough to keep it constantly stocked, so when I’m putting it in granola, I go to the Whole Foods bulk bin and get the exact amount that I’m going to use. (They recently revamped the bulk bins at my local Whole Foods and it is vegan heaven now. Things I can buy in bulk that I couldn’t before: raw cashews, chia seeds, and dried chickpeas :).)

I hope you enjoy this sweet and (tastefully) savory tahini millet granola! I have some more new recipes in the pipeline that I’m really excited about. So stay tuned! And P.S., I’m looking for ideas on how to use up a BUCKETFUL of celery. Please help. Happy Friday!

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5 from 3 votes

Maple Tahini Millet Granola

A sweet and crunchy maple tahini millet granola, made oil-free and free of refined sugar and full of healthy fats. Cardamom, coriander and golden raisins add a unique flavor.

Course Breakfast, Snack

Cuisine oil-free, refined sugar-free, vegan, vegetarian

Keyword tahini millet granola

Prep Time 15 minutes

Cook Time 30 minutes

Total Time 45 minutes

Servings 4 cups

Calories 224kcal

Author Yup, it's Vegan

Ingredients

Dry ingredients:

• 2 and 1/4 cups quick oats
• 1/2 cup dry millet
• 1/4 cup flax seeds (linseeds)
• 1/4 cup pine nuts roughly chopped after measuring
• 1/3 cup almonds chopped after measuring

Wet mixture:

• 3 tbsp tahini heaping (sesame seed butter)
• 1/4 cup maple syrup
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp coconut sugar (or brown sugar) (plus more of either sweetener to taste)
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Spices:

• 3 pods cardamom outer shell discarded (or use 1/4 tsp ground cardamom)
• 2 tsp coriander seeds
• 2 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/2 tsp ground ginger
• 1/3 tsp sea salt

To finish:

• 1/4 cup pitted dates finely chopped
• 1/4 cup golden raisins chopped

Instructions

• Preheat the oven to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat.
• Mix together the dry ingredients in a large bowl.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the tahini, maple syrup, sugar, and vanilla until smooth. (I just use a fork).
• Toast the cardamom and coriander seeds in a small pan just until fragrant and golden. Remove immediately from the pan and grind with a spice grinder, coffee grinder or mortar and pestle. Add to the tahini mixture along with the cinnamon, ginger, and salt, and stir to combine.
• Add the tahini mixture to the dry ingredients in 2 or 3 batches (to ensure even distribution), folding in the mixture between each batch. Use a rubber spatula if needed. Continue mixing until most of the dry ingredients have come in contact with the wet mixture.
• Spread out the mixture onto the baking sheet and place in the oven. Stir the mixture every 10 minutes, taking care to be gentle and not break up the clumps too much. After 20 minutes (the second time stirring), fold in the chopped dates and raisins. The granola will be done after approximately 30 minutes, or when dry and beginning to brown slightly.
• Let the granola cool for 20 minutes - it will continue to get more crisp.

Notes

I almost always buy quick oats, so that's what I use for granola. I'm sure this recipe would work with regular rolled oats. You might want to increase the wet ingredients a little bit.

Nutrition

Serving: 1third cup | Calories: 224kcal | Carbohydrates: 32g | Protein: 6g | Fat: 9g | Saturated Fat: 3g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Sodium: 71mg | Potassium: 141mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 27g | Calcium: 40mg | Iron: 1.8mg

Adapted from Dreena Burton’s gingerbread granola.