Converting granola recipe to Sugar-Free
Hello fellow Fresh-Loafers,
I like the following granola recipe, but want to make it sugar-free:
- 4 Cups of Oats
- 3 Cups of Seeds/Nuts
- 1 Cup of Desiccated Coconut
- 1/2 Cup of Oil
- 3/4 Cup of Honey or Maple Syrup
- 1/2 Cup of Brown Sugar
- 1-1/2 Teaspoon of Salt
Method: Combine Oil, Sugar, Salt and Honey/Maple Syrup in bowl and mix thoroughly. After mixing, add Coconut and continue mixing. Add Nuts and continue mixing. Add Oats and continue mixing. Mix thoroughly until is is moist throughout. Then put it in a wide, flat pan that is lined on the bottom with oven paper. Put it into a pre-heated 300F (150C) oven for 30~40 minutes. Take out and stir every 10 minutes.
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The recipe is delicious, crunchy, and creates big chunks that are great to eat. But it has 1/2 Cup of Sugar and 3/4 Cup of Honey or Maple Syrup, and I'd like to get rid of those and convert it to a sugar-free recipe. Afterward, I would get sweetness by adding dried or fresh fruit.
Does anybody have any idea how to do this and still get a crunchy, nice result that sort of sticks together?
Some online recipes suggest using egg whites, but I have little experience with that.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Thanks,
Tom in Taiwan
A good (but rather more expensive) substitute for sugar is Xylitol. It's good for your teeth too. Eating too much of it can cause a laxative effect because it's not digested by the body but it's only half a cup for the whole recipe. So eaten in normal amounts should be ok.
Taking out the honey/syrup and the brown sugar would certainly reduce the sugar content of the granola. Adding dried fruit would increase the sugar content of the granola. Depending on quantities, you could wind up right back where you started with respect to sugar content; the only difference being the method for putting sugar into the granola.
Of the three sweeteners in the recipe, maple syrup has the lowest sugar content for a given volume, the brown sugar the highest, and the honey not much less than the brown sugar.
As an experiment, I would try eliminating the brown sugar entirely. After tasting the granola made with just the syrup or the honey, I'd decide whether I wanted to increase or decrease the amount to fit my tastes. Then I'd add whatever dried fruit I wanted without concerning myself too much about the sugar content. As long as I don't put more than 1/2 cup of fruit in, the granola will still have less sugar than it started with.
Paul
He answered first and well.
I would also decrease the oil considerably! That is a lot of oil!
It isn't only the sugars that give it crunch. The granola will acquire crunch from coating the oats with oil and browning in the oven.However, it only requires a very light spray/coating to do that. Perhaps apply with an oil mister?
1/4 c serving of JUST the oats =75 calories,13 g carbs and 2 g fiber. Most people eat a lot more granola than 1/4 cup because they categorize it as "GOOD for you". It IS whole grain but it is high cal. Plan accordingly.
To help take care of any sugar in there. Now it's not good to overdo cinnamon but the right amount and choosing true cinnamon instead of cassia it'll help.
if youre looking for a crunchy granola with all the delicious buts and pieces that you can add sweetness to afterwards the trick is egg white. Make your mix. Beat an egg white. Fold it in and put on tray and bake. You can then break up granola into whatever size chunks you like and then add sugar at your pleasure...besides as the others have said dried fruit more than makes up for the sugar...
this is what i'm trying to do. i find most granola recipes to be too sweet, so i'd rather add sweetness with dried fruit later according to taste. i've read that egg whites is the way to go, but haven't tried it, so i guess next time i make a batch i'll give it a try.
egg white is brilliant...
How much egg white would you use in the recipe above, If i were to also get rid of the sugar, syrup or honey?
This recipe suggests using buttermilk in order to get crispy-clustery granola. It's worth a try. The recipe also uses a fair amount of sugar--try using something like erythritol (or another sugar substitute that measures cup-for-cup like sugar). Another idea would be to try something like vitafiber or another IMO fiber-syrup, which would play the same hygroscopic role that the honey does.
You can use sugar free replacement sugar, sugar free maple sugar, sugar free honey. If you don't like those alternatives am sure someone will help you out.
You can use sugar free replacement sugar, sugar free maple sugar, sugar free honey. If you don't like those alternatives am sure someone will help you out.