Over the years we have made lots of different versions of this granola recipe... this is my favorite of the moment with sprouted quinoa substituted for cooked quinoa that we have used in the past. Also we have added more seeds in place of some of the nuts in other versions. This recipe is only moderately sweet so you may choose to make it a bit sweeter by adding a few fresh dates or additional maple syrup.
3 cups quinoa, 1 cup raw walnuts, 1 cup raw almonds, 1 cup raw cashews, 1 cup raw pumpkin seeds, 1 cup raw sesame seeds, 1 cup sunflower seeds, 2 cups dried figs tip of stem removed, 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup, 2 cups raw coconut flakes, 1 tablespoon salt
Place quinoa on a large sheet tray, thoroughly moisten with water and cover with a sheet of parchment paper. Let sit until you see the quinoa has sprouted, little white tails will grow on the end of the grain and will be about the same length of the grain when it is ready. Check every 8 hours of so to make sure the quinoa is still moist but not sitting in a large amount of water. The whole process should take about 24 hours.
After the quinoa has been soaking for approximately 16 hours fill a large bowl with walnuts, almonds, cashews, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and figs– cover with water and let sit at room temperature for about 8 hours or until the quinoa has sprouted.
Once everything has soaked and sprouted drain the liquid from the nut mixture and place into a food processor, add maple syrup and pulse on and off until the ingredients are chopped but still coarse, you may need to do this in a few batches depending on the size of your food processor.
Thoroughly mix the quinoa (which should not have any extra liquid but if it does drain before adding) with the chopped nut mixture and toss in coconut flakes and salt.
Spread the granola onto two large sheet trays and place in a 120 degree oven to dry. There seems to be some debate about what temperature you need to stay below for food to be considered raw, many experts agree that most food enzymes will not be destroyed if you do not go above 120 degrees. I find that many ovens can be set as low as 120 degrees and the process of drying at this temperature can happen in 12-18 hours. If your oven does not go that low, no worries, just dry at a low temperature. While the granola is drying stir it every several hours and leave in the oven until there is no moisture left and it is crunchy.
The rough nutritional analysis below is based on 1/2 cup servings. I often eat it with almond milk. Store in an airtight container.
