The Drs: Is Granola Good For You?
The Doctors wanted to help you decode nutrition labels by doing the detective work for you. They first wanted to look at granola, which is often praised as health food. Dr Travis Stork said the reality is that it depends, because a lot of what you’re looking at when it comes to granola is loaded with sugar.
The Doctors explained what to look for when reading food labels and shared a recipe for healthy homemade granola. (Kzenon / Shutterstock.com)
Dr Jennifer Ashton said we think that granola is supposed to be so healthy, but it’s actually loaded with fat calories and hidden sugar. She said they make nice desserts, but you don’t want to be eating it thinking it’s healthy for you. The good news is that not all granola is bad. In fact, Dr Stork has a delicious healthy recipe for maple walnut granola from his The Doctor’s Diet Cookbook, for which you can find the recipe below!
The Drs: Why You Should Read Food Labels
Another misconception when it comes to food labels has to do with wheat. They explained that most of the time when you go to the store and buy a wheat product, it’s refined wheat. When wheat is refined, the whole grain is thrown out.
They take off the bran, which is the outer part of the grain that has all the fiber in it. Then, they get rid of the germ which has all the nutrition like iron and vitamins. What you’re left with is a pure-sugar type substance.
Always be sure to read the labels and make sure it says 100% whole wheat or 100% whole grain.
The Doctors: Maple Walnut Granola Recipe Ingredients
- 8 C rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
- 2 C coarsely chopped walnuts, pecans, peanuts, cashews or a combination
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 3/4 C melted virgin coconut or other oil
- 2/3 C pure maple syrup or honey
- 1 tbsp pure vanilla extract
The Doctors: Maple Walnut Granola Recipe Directions
- Preheat oven to 300 F.
- Combine the oats, nuts, cinnamon, and salt in a large bowl.
- In a medium bowl, mix together the oil, maple syrup and vanilla.
- Combine wet and dry ingredients and stir well to coat evenly.
- Spread the oat mixture over two large baking sheets in an even layer.
- Bake for about one hour, stirring every 15 minutes, until the granola is lightly browned and slightly crisp (it will become more crisp as it cools)
- Turn off oven and let cool for about one hour in the pan, until completely cooled, then pour the granola into a container, cover and store in the pantry.
- Granola will keep for up to two months.
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