Simple Soft Baked Quinoa Granola Clusters
The best simple, soft baked, vegan granola made with quinoa and oats. This delicious and sweet granola is perfect to sprinkle on top of vegan yogurt bowls, smoothies, and so much more.
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Simple Soft Baked Quinoa Granola Clusters
Good morning friends! Today, I am so excited to share a simple and delicious quinoa granola recipe with all of you. This recipe is filled with superfoods and it tastes absolutely incredible. It’s the perfect sweet snack to eat by the handful, or you can use it as a topping for smoothies, yogurt bowls, and so much more.
Personally, I have always been a huge fan of granola. This comes as no surprise, because I love oats in pretty much any form. This quinoa based granola recipe is no exception, and the quinoa pairs perfectly with the other key ingredients including, you guessed it, rolled oats. I even added mashed banana for a softer texture and super moist granola.
You can actually make the granola even softer by soaking it in your favorite non-dairy milk, such as almond milk. I love to eat this granola with some nut milk and fresh berries. It’s a really delicious and satisfying sweet breakfast. Anyway, enough on that.
Let’s dive into a few quick things to note for this recipe. Then, we will take a look at the list of ingredients you will need to make this soft baked quinoa granola recipe a smashing success!
What Can I Use as a Granola Binder?
There are many different ingredients you can use to bind your granola together to form the perfect consistency to spread onto a baking sheet in a thin single layer. For this recipe, I used a combination of peanut butter, pure maple syrup, and mashed banana for the optimal texture and sweetness. This combination allows the granola to bake a thin, uniform layer so that you can break it up into clusters rather than individual little pieces. The banana is especially important to allow the granola to retain moisture and hold a softer texture while it bakes.
Now that we have covered some quick things to note for this recipe, let’s take a look at the list of ingredients you will need to make this soft baked quinoa granola.
Soft Baked Quinoa Granola Clusters – Ingredients
- Quinoa – Quinoa is a nutrient packed superfood that is a staple in my vegan diet. It is the first essential ingredient you will need for this granola recipe. It serves as one of the main dry base ingredients. I love the little protein boost that quinoa provides, so it is the perfect add-in for this granola recipe.
- Rolled Oats – Rolled oats are the next key ingredient that you will need for this recipe. The oats should come as no surprise, as they are commonly found in pretty much every granola recipe. They add an incredible texture and flavor to this granola recipe.
- Raisins – The raisins add a ton of flavor and some natural sweetness to this granola recipe. They are one of my favorite dried fruits to include in trail mix and granola recipes, and this soft baked quinoa granola is no exception.
- Chia Seeds – The chia seeds are packed with protein, fiber, and they give this granola some additional texture, as well as a bit of crunch.
- Cinnamon – This little spice adds a ton of flavor to this granola recipe.
- Salt – The salt will be added to taste to achieve that sweet and salty flavor combination. A little bit goes a long way for this recipe.
- Ripe Banana – The ripe/overripe mashed banana adds sweetness, flavor, and moisture to this granola recipe. It helps the granola retain some of that softness as it bakes. Make sure that your banana is ripe or overripe for optimal sweetness. If the bannaa peel is yellow with brown spots, it’s perfect to use in this recipe.
- Pure Maple Syrup – The pure maple syrup serves as the main source of added sweetness for this recipe. It’s one of my favorites to use in baked goods, and this soft baked quinoa granola recipe is no exception.
- Creamy Peanut Butter – The peanut butter adds healthy fat, tons of flavor, and creaminess. It also helps the granola stick together.
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Soft Baked Quinoa Oat Granola Clusters
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup dry quinoa
- 1/2 cup rolled oats
- 2 tbsp raisins
- 1 tbsp chia seeds
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- salt to taste
- 1/2 medium ripe banana (thoroughly mashed)
- 1 1/2 tbsp creamy peanut butter
- 1 1/2 tbsp pure maple syrup
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350° F.
- In a large bowl, mix together the quinoa, oats, raisins, chia seeds, cinnamon, and salt.
- Add the banana, peanut butter, and pure maple syrup.
- Mix again until all ingredients are well incorporated.
- Spread the granola out on a lined or greased baking sheet in a thin, single layer.
- Bake the granola for about 15 minutes, or until the outer edges of the granola sheet are golden brown.
- Let the granola cool for a bit, then dig in and enjoy!
Notes
I hope you all enjoy this simple yet delicious soft baked quinoa granola recipe. It truly is the perfect snack to take with you on the go or pair on top of smoothies, yogurt bowls, and so much more. Anyway, that’s it for this recipe. As per usual, I will be back with more content very soon.
-Alyssa 🙂
